疟疾疫苗有望2015年问世
British drug maker GlaxoSmithKline is seeking regulatory approval for the world's first malaria vaccine after trial data showed that it had cut the number of cases in African children.
英国制药公司葛兰素史克正在寻求管理机构批准生产世界上首款疟疾疫苗，统计数据显示该疫苗减少了非洲儿童的发病率。
Experts say that they are optimistic about the possibility of the world's first vaccine after the trial results.
Malaria, a mosquito-borne parasitic disease, kills hundreds of thousands of people worldwide every year.
Scientists say an effective vaccine is key to attempts to eradicate（根除，灭绝） it.
The vaccine known as RTS,S was found to have almost halved the number of malaria cases in young children in the trial and to have reduced by about 25% the number of malaria cases in infants.
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is developing RTS,S with the non-profit Path Malaria Vaccine Initiative (MVI), supported by funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
"Many millions of malaria cases fill the wards of our hospitals," said Halidou Tinto, a lead investigator on the RTS,S trial from Burkina Faso.
"Progress is being made with bed nets and other measures, but we need more tools to battle this terrible disease."