: A scientist tasked with the mission turned to ancient medical texts. She discovered a reference to "sweet wormwood" ( Artemisia annua ) being used to treat fever in 340 AD.
: To prove it was safe, Tu volunteered to be the first human subject to take the drug. Her discovery eventually earned her the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2015. 3. The Shadow of Side Effects
: After many failures, Tu realized that high-heat extraction was destroying the active ingredient. She used a low-temperature method to isolate Artemisinin . antimalarial drug
: Quinine is still used today for severe malaria, nearly 400 years after its first documented use. 2. The Secret Mission: Project 523
: Isolated in 1820 by French chemists, this "Jesuit's powder" became the first world-standard treatment. : A scientist tasked with the mission turned
The story of antimalarial drugs is a millennia-long race between human ingenuity and a parasite that constantly evolves to outsmart its cures. It is a narrative that spans ancient forests, secret wartime laboratories, and modern-day medical miracles. 1. The Ancient Bitter Bark
History of antimalarial drugs - Medicines for Malaria Venture Her discovery eventually earned her the Nobel Prize
During the 1960s, as malaria took a heavy toll on soldiers during the Vietnam War, standard drugs like chloroquine began to fail. In China, a secret military project named was launched to find a new cure.