Alisporivir, an anti-hepatitis C drug, has been repositioned by researchers to treat malaria caused by drug-resistant strains. The study was published in the journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. Alisporivir demonstrated potent antiparasitic activity against Plasmodium in blood stage culture, according to researchers from JNU′s Special Center for Molecular Medicine. Also, alisporivir did not induce eryptosis, the suicidal death of red blood cells.

Malaria is a vector-borne disease caused by a parasite of the Plasmodium species that spreads through the bite of infected mosquitoes. According to several clinical trials, the Plasmodium species responsible for causing malaria has developed drug resistance to all known antimalarial therapeutics, leading to the discontinuation of many first-line treatments, including chloroquine, proguanil, pyrimethamine, sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine, and mefloquine.

The researchers claimed that their study was experimental in nature. They pointed out that although cyclosporin A is known to inhibit the growth of the Plasmodium parasites, because of its immunosuppressive nature, the drug was never approved as an antimalarial drug. Hence, they used alisporivir, a non-immunosuppressive analog of cyclosporin A and a well-known immunosuppressive agent for organ transplants, for their study.

They further explained that the process of drug development is tedious and costly. Therefore, repositioning a drug is the most effective solution. This process can be used to identify new medical uses for an existing drug. The additional benefits of the repositing process are cost-effectiveness, reduced time for product development, and an already-known safety profile. 

(Source: https://health.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/pharma/in-jnu-anti-hepatitis-c-drug-re-positioned-to-treat-malaria/95543670 )