A vaccine being developed by Oxford University to combat malaria could have an efficacy of 75% or more.
The vaccine study, being carried out in Burkina Faso, found that the jab had an efficacy of 77%. A second phase of the trial inoculated nearly 500 children in the country and made the finding. There were no serious side effects.
Oxford University is working with India’s Serum Institute and American vaccine maker, Novavax, to develop the vaccine.
It is now in its third phase of testing in a larger population.
The vaccine’s efficacy is above the stated goal of the World Health Organisation to develop a malaria vaccine with an efficacy of above 75% by 2030.
Malaria is still a serious public health concern in much of the world, with about 400 000 people dying from it every year. According to the Financial Times there were over 200 million cases of malaria globally in 2019.