Breakthrough 'In Malaria Fight

Australian scientists have identified a potential treatment to combat malaria by pinpointing the process that helps the disease hijack red blood cells.

They have found the key to an adhesive that stops the parasite being flushed out of the body by the immune system. The removal of just one of these compounds is enough to bring the process to a halt. Researchers in Melbourne believe their discovery could be a major breakthrough in the fight against the disease. They have identified eight proteins that allow this glue-like substance onto the surface of a hijacked cell.