Can this blue dye kill malaria parasites?
A new study published in The Lancets Infectious Diseaseson reveals that blue methylene is a dye that has seen to kill malaria parasites. The study uncovered that dye cured disease within just a few days and prevented transmission.
Malaria is the cause of about 430,000 deaths every year, especially in Africa. Prevention tasks have decreased the number of deaths by half.
The biggest concern against antimalarial medicine is resistance. The current artemisinin-based combinations do not prevent the transmission of malaria.
Researchers added the blue methylene dye to an antimalarial therapy to confirm that already infected patients would not transmit the parasite further. Patients who did not receive the blue dye continued to transmit the parasite infecting other mosquitoes for another several days.
Blue methylene is already widely used in medicine. It is a safe dye and well tolerated by patients. The only drawback to this promising treatment is the fact it turns the patient’s urine blue. This may prevent people from utilizing this new form of treatment.
For additional information please visit The Lancets Infectious Diseaseson.
Questions: What are your thoughts on using this dye in conjunction to antimalarial treatment? How would you help the patients to overcome their concerns over the color of their urine?
