Malaria affects more than 282 million people worldwide and claims over 600,000 lives a year.

The emergence of drug-resistant parasites has complicated efforts to control and eliminate the disease, intensifying the need for new treatments that attack the malaria parasite in different ways.

The WEHI-MSD team’s breakthrough centred on two previously unexploited proteins, plasmepsin IX (PMIX) and plasmepsin X (PMX).

In a research collaboration spanning over a decade, the team was able to uncover critical insights into how these proteins control key stages of parasite development, including red blood cell invasion, parasite replication and transmission.

These discoveries led to the development of two antimalarial compounds capable of targeting both proteins, effectively stopping the parasite replication in its tracks and preventing further disease transmission.

Clinical trials of the team’s lead compound, MK-7602, found it can achieve blood concentration levels predicted to deliver its intended antimalarial effect – a key milestone that supports progression to later-stage clinical evaluation.

Professor Alan Cowman AC, scientific lead of the program at WEHI, said the nomination recognised a unique collaboration aimed at delivering urgently-needed new treatment options for malaria.

“Our team has created a promising new investigational treatment approach for one of the world’s most devastating infectious diseases,” Prof Cowman, also a WEHI laboratory head, said.

“The most rewarding aspect of this work has been seeing discoveries made in the lab translated into a drug candidate that has progressed to human studies.

“It is incredibly humbling to now see this collaborative effort acknowledged through a Eureka Prize nomination.”

The compounds were originally identified and optimised by the WEHI-MSD team using the advanced screening technologies of the National Drug Discovery Centre (NDDC), Australia’s premier small molecule screening facility based at WEHI.

Beyond developing a new drug candidate, the team’s research could also lead to potential future applications, including long-acting injectable medicines and new approaches to malaria prevention.

This work has been supported by the Wellcome Trust, MSD and WEHI.

Former MSD scientist and project lead Dr David Olsen said neither organisation could have achieved these outcomes alone.

“Malaria remains a critical global health challenge and science-driven collaborations are essential to deliver meaningful progress,” Dr Olsen said.

“The decade-long partnership between WEHI and MSD exemplifies the power of combining complementary scientific expertise and underscores our shared commitment to advancing research and development in malaria.”

The nomination comprises six principal contributors whose combined expertise were critical for this translational success: Professor Alan Cowman, Associate Professor Justin Boddey, Dr Paola Favuzza and Anna Ngo (WEHI) and Dr David Olsen and Dr John McCauley (MSD).

The Eureka Prize winners will be announced on Thursday 3 September.