Lifesome Therapeutics and the Shanghai Institute of materia medica achieve promising preclinical results with an Ohmline® based oral antimalarial formulation
Lifesome's proprietary bioactive lipid technology is being used to develop long-acting oral drug formulations, with preclinical results demonstrating malaria clearance following a single-dose administration.
Lifesome Therapeutics is advancing applications of its patented Ohmline® technology through a development with the Malaria Epigenetic Research Group of the Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences.
The research team is using Ohmline®, a bioactive lipid capable of self-assembling into nanostructures, to develop innovative oral formulations of antimalarial drugs with sustained-release properties. Using Lifesome's technology, the team has already developed a formulation that achieved malaria clearance following a single oral administration in in-vivo preclinical studies.
“Current malaria treatments are mainly artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs), which primarily target the blood-stage parasites and require multi-day dosing. This not only increases the risk of drug resistance but also leads to poor patient adherence. There is therefore an urgent clinical need for new antimalarial drugs with multi-stage activity and single-dose regimens. Our development with Lifesome’s technology could improve the accessibility of antimalarial drugs in Africa and other regions and effectively improve patient adherence in other endemic areas” explain Dr. Zhenghui Huang.
Oral administration combined with sustained drug release represents one of the most sought-after approaches in pharmaceutical development. Improving oral bioavailability, extending therapeutic exposure and reducing dosing frequency can address major challenges in patient adherence and treatment accessibility, particularly in infectious diseases affecting underserved populations. The potential to achieve therapeutic efficacy with a single administration could therefore represent a significant advance in malaria treatment.
In parallel, Lifesome has extended its patent protection for its multifunctional drug delivery technology to China and Hong Kong, strengthening its intellectual property position in key Asian markets. The company is currently seeking investment to advance the next stages of development, including regulatory preclinical studies and future clinical development of Ohmline®-based formulations.
This development illustrates the versatility of Ohmline® as an active nanotechnology platform rather than a conventional passive carrier, opening opportunities for the development of next-generation oral drug formulations across multiple therapeutic areas.