Scientific Career
Tu Youyou led a research group at the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences tasked with finding a treatment for malaria during Project 523 in the late 1960s. She investigated traditional Chinese medicine texts and identified sweet wormwood (Artemisia annua) as a promising candidate.
Artemisinin Discovery
Through careful extraction at low temperatures (inspired by a 1,600-year-old text), Tu's team isolated artemisinin in 1972. The compound proved highly effective against Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasites, including drug-resistant strains.
Global Impact
Artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) are now the WHO-recommended first-line treatment for malaria. The discovery has saved millions of lives, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia.