Terminal and benign diseases alike in adults, children, pregnant women, and others are successfully treated by pharmacological inhibitors that target human enzymes. Despite extensive global efforts to fight malaria, the disease continues to be a massive worldwide health burden, and new interventional strategies are needed. Current drugs and vector control strategies have contributed to the reduction in malaria deaths over the past 10 years, but progress toward eradication has waned in recent years. Resistance to antimalarial drugs is a substantial and growing problem. Moreover, targeting dormant forms of the malaria parasite Plasmodium vivax is only possible with two approved drugs, which are both contraindicated for individuals with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency and in pregnant women. Plasmodium parasites are obligate intracellular parasites and thus have specific and absolute requirements of their hosts. Growing evidence has described these host necessities, paving the way for opportunities to pharmacologically target host factors to eliminate Plasmodium infection. Here, we describe progress in malaria research and adjacent fields and discuss key challenges that remain in implementing host-directed therapy against malaria.

中文翻译：

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以宿主为目标的干预措施是抗击疟疾的激动人心的机会

成人、儿童、孕妇和其他人的晚期和良性疾病都可以通过靶向人体酶的药理学抑制剂成功治疗。尽管全球为抗击疟疾做出了广泛的努力，但这种疾病仍然是一个巨大的全球健康负担，需要新的干预策略。在过去 10 年中，当前的药物和病媒控制策略有助于减少疟疾死亡人数，但近年来根除疟疾的进展有所减弱。抗疟疾药物的耐药性是一个严重且日益严重的问题。此外，靶向疟原虫休眠形式的间日疟原虫只能使用两种已获批准的药物，这两种药物均禁止用于患有葡萄糖-6-磷酸脱氢酶缺乏症的个体和孕妇。疟原虫是专性细胞内寄生虫，因此对其宿主有特定和绝对的要求。越来越多的证据描述了这些宿主必需品，为通过药理学靶向宿主因子以消除疟原虫感染的机会铺平了道路。在这里，我们描述了疟疾研究和相关领域的进展，并讨论了在实施针对疟疾的宿主导向疗法中仍然存在的主要挑战。