title: Anticancer agents against malaria: time to revisit?
abstract: The emergence of artemisinin resistance could adversely impact the current strategy for malaria treatment; thus, new drugs are urgently needed. A possible approach to developing new antimalarials is to find new uses for old drugs. Some anticancer agents such as methotrexate and trimetrexate are active against malaria. However, they are commonly perceived to be toxic and thus not suitable for malaria treatment. In this opinion article, we examine how the toxicity of anticancer agents is just a matter of dose or 'only dose makes the poison', as coined in Paracelsus' law. Thus, the opportunity exists to discover new antimalarials using the anticancer pharmacopoeia.
authors.affiliation: Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI)/Wellcome Trust Collaborative Research Programme, Kilifi, Kenya. anzila@kilifi.kemri-wellcome.org
authors.forename: Alexis
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nzila
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Okombo
authors.forename: Ruy Perez
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Becker
authors.forename: Roma
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Chilengi
authors.forename: Trudie
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Lang
authors.forename: Tim
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Niehues
mesh_terms: D000962:Antimalarials / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use* / Q000633:toxicity; D006801:Humans; D008288:Malaria / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008727:Methotrexate / Q000627:therapeutic use / Q000633:toxicity; D016597:Trimetrexate / Q000627:therapeutic use / Q000633:toxicity
chemical_list: D000962:Antimalarials; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D016597:Trimetrexate; D008727:Methotrexate