Tobacco Plants Found Capable of Producing Malaria Drug

Scientists say they have figured out a way to use tobacco plants to produce artemisinin, a highly effective anti-malaria drug. Malaria infects an estimated 200 million people each year, resulting in 400,000 deaths. The drug artemisinin is sometimes used to treat the mosquito-borne illness, clearing the parasite from the bloodstream within 48 hours, according to experts. However, it is very expensive. Artemisinin comes from an herbal plant grown in China called sweet wormwood. It takes...

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