Selcia, University of Edinburgh enter GBP2.5m project for new fatal disease drug

About 70 million people in Africa are affected by sleeping sickness, which is spread by the bite of the tsetse fly and is prevalent in west and central Africa.

The new drugs would combat the virus which attacks the nervous system and can plunge people into coma, organ failure and death.

According to Selcia, the existing medicines for the disease can cause debilitating side-effects or can be fatal.

As of now, scientists aim to develop safe, effective medicines that can be given easily, as some drugs must be administered using a drip, which makes treatment time-consuming and expensive.

Scientists have showed that the parasite is able to survive in the bloodstream by using enzymes to convert blood sugars into the energy it needs to stay alive, while they have also identified potential drug compounds that can stop two of these enzymes from functioning, so killing the parasite.

Based on these drug compounds, scientists aim to design a drug that will be effective in small doses, and will work even on advanced infections.

Wellcome Trust has provided funds for the 30-month project, which seeks to test the compounds in the lab and in mice, ahead of further studies that could involve human trials.

The company said that new treatments could be developed into veterinary medicines for infections caused by the same parasite in livestock, which cost farmers about $2bn per annum.