Rational methods in the search for antimalarial drugs

TLDR: An elaborate follow-up procedure must be adopted before a new drug discovered by screening can be prepared and passed for clinical trial, and the “Quinine Index” should be replaced by a “Chloroquine Index".

Abstract: Largely because of the emergence of P. falciparum strains resistant to modern antimalarial drugs such as chloroquine, there is a new surge of interest in malaria chemotherapy. Various in vitro systems for drug screening are reviewed. There is some hope that automated techniques may be of value in the future. Drug screening in the mosquito vectors can give useful leads to compounds with sporontocidal action, and is relatively cheap and easy. P. berghei in the albino mouse is replacing older laboratory models with various avian malarias for in vivo screening. Drug resistant as well as sensitive lines of P. berghei are available for drug screening, and resulting data may readily be interpolated in terms of chemotherapy of P. falciparum infection in man. Standardized techniques which must be adopted with the P. berghei test are discussed. The “Quinine Index” should be replaced by a “Chloroquine Index.” An elaborate follow-up procedure must be adopted before a new drug discovered by screening can be prepared and passed for clinical trial.