Synthetically Engineered Artemisinin Lianne Ryan

Statistics of Malaria ✴ Million people are effected each year ✴ 45% of the population is at risk, 95 countries ✴ ~1 million people die each year ✴ Africa represents 81% of the people effected by malaria and 90% of the deaths ✴ Africa accounts for 12% of the population ✴ Children under the age of 5 and pregnant mothers living in Sub-Saharan Africa (sub tropical climate)

Map of Malaria Sub- Saharan Africa South East Asia South America

✴ Five types of the protozoan parasites under the genus Plasmodium Plasmodium Parasite 4) P. Falciparum 2) P. Vivax 3) P. Ovale 1) P. Malariae 5) P. Knowlesi (Found worldwide) (Newest) (Mostly found in Asia and Latin America) (Mostly found in the islands of the Western Pacific) (Called benign malaria)

Discovery of Artemisinin ✴ Distilled from dried leaves ✴ Discovered in the 4th century CE by Chinese physicians ✴ Used for its antipyretic properties ✴ Called it qinghaosu

Foundation ✴ Sesquiterpene lactone which is a compound made up of three isoprene units that are bound to cyclic organic esters ✴ Effective against most plasmodium parasites

Artesunate ✴ Artesunate is a semi- synthetic derivative ✴ Injected intravenously, water soluble ✴ Used in severe cases where high levels of the parasite is found in the blood

Artemisinin ✴ Administered orally, intramuscularly or as a suppository ✴ Used in combination with other anti-malarial drugs ✴ ACT’s (Artemisinin-based combination therapy) ✴ Prevent plasmodium parasites from developing a resistance to a particular drug/ Prevent disease relapse Artesunate- mefloquine Artemether- lumefantrine Artesunate- amodiaquine

Targeting the Parasite ✴ Able to target the parasite at the schizont stage ✴ Schizont stage contains insoluble iron ✴ Comes after the parasite develops into a sporozoite ✴ Contains a peroxide group that is able to react with hemozoin to produce radicals that attack parasite’s proteins

Plasmodium Parasite

Groups working with Artemisinin ✴ Amyris started the Artemisinin Project to provide affordable ACT’s to developing countries ✴ Used synbio to create microbial strains that produce artemisinic acid (precursor) ✴ Create Artemisinic Acid-producing yeast strains to Sanofi (royalty-free basis) ✴ Amyris is funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation via OneWorld Health (PATH’s Drug Development Program)

Groups working with Artemisinin

Work Cited Amyris. "The Malaria Project." Amyris. Amyris, n.d. Web. 24 July "The Global Malaria Epidemic." U.S. Global Health Policy. The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, n.d. Web. 24 July com/2012/10/ pdf>. John, Chandy C. Clinical Malaria. UniversitJohn, Chandy C. Clinical Malaria. University: U of Minnesota Medical School, n.d. Print. Division of Global Pediatrics. Kramer, Dan. "Artemisinin: A Synthetic Biology Success Story." Scitable. Nature Education, 23 June Web. 24 July "Malaria." Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 July Foundation. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 July < "Malaria." CDC. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 9 Nov Web. 24 July >. Rogers, Kara. "Artemisinin." Encylopaedia Britannica. EncyloRogers, Kara. "Artemisinin." Encylopaedia Britannica. Encylopaedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 24 July Vyas, Jatin M., ed. "Malaria." MedlinePlus. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 19 May Web. 24 July f Medicine, 19 May Web. 24 July 201 White, Nick. Artemisinin therapy for malaria by Professor Nick White. Youtube. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 July , n.d. Web. 24 July <