The early preclinical and clinical development of ganaplacide (KAF156), a novel antimalarial compound

Introduction: Ganaplacide (previously known as KAF156) is a novel antimalarial compound part of the imidazolopiperazine family. Areas covered: At the time of writing, a total of eight studies addressing its preclinical and clinical development have been published on this compound, which is currently in phase 2 of clinical development, alongside lumefantrine in a novel soluble formulation as combination partner. This review provides an overview and interpretation of the published pre-clinical and clinical data of this possible next-generation antimalarial drug. Expert opinion: In the search for a ‘magic bullet’ in malaria therapy and prophylaxis facilitating single encounter radical cure and prophylaxis, ganaplacide demonstrates some promising properties toward this ultimate goal. The available data suggest that ganaplacide exerts multi-stage antimalarial activity, and that its pharmacokinetic profile potentially allows for a simplified dosing regimen compared to that of existing antimalarial drug combinations. The first in-patient results demonstrate promising single-dose antimalarial activity, and no serious in-human safety and tolerability concerns have been reported to date.