Establishment of artemisinin combination therapy as first line treatment for combating malaria: Artemisia annua cultivation in India needed for providing sustainable supply chain of artemisinin

Abstract

The Plasmodium falciparum malaria is responsible for about 500 million clinical attacks and one million deaths each year, mostly in Africa and southeast Asia. On account of the parasite having become resistant to the conventional antimalarials, artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) is the only reliable treatment option. The Roll Back Malaria (RBM) and Millennium Development Goals (MDG) campaigns of WHO and UNDP, respectively, have made little headway, mainly because of paucity of artemisinin in world market. Here we show that the cultivation and processing of Artemisia annua, presently the only resource of artemisinins, in India, in partnerships, can help build a sound supply chain of artemisinin.