Heme detoxification and antimalarial drugs – Known mechanisms and future prospects

Malaria parasite degrades hemoglobin and releases toxic heme, which is quickly detoxified by the parasite. Whereas several important antimalarials like artemisinin and chloroquine disrupt this process, the mechanism of heme detoxification is not fully understood and is a subject of intense debate. This review summarizes the current state of research in heme detoxification, its future directions and reasons why this process has been and will remain one of the most attractive targets for developing antimalarials.

Section editors:Gary Woodnutt – CovX, San Diego, USAPaul-Henri Lambert – Centre of Vaccinology, University of Geneva, Switzerland