Since 2001, malaria treatment combining an artemisinin derivative with a partner molecule (ACT) has led to a significant drop in mortality in tropical and subtropical regions. However, since 2008, a serious threat has emerged in western Cambodia, where the clinical efficacy of artemisinins has declined considerably, with delayed parasite clearance and a high recrudescence rate. Plasmodium resistance to artemisinins is now reported in several Southeast Asian countries. This situation is all the more critical given that there is currently no drug available to replace ACTs.
It is therefore essential to gain a better understanding of Plasmodium' s resistance to artemisinins, in order to propose new diagnostic and therapeutic tools to combat these resistant parasites.
The mechanisms of Plasmodium parasite resistance to artemisinin and its derivatives will be studied from a phenotypic and genotypic point of view.
