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Volume 9 Supplement 2

Parasite to Prevention: Advances in the understanding of malaria

Viral vectored transmission blocking vaccines against Plasmodium falciparum

Malaria Journal volume 9, Article number: O22 (2010) Cite this article

Background

Transmission blocking vaccines (TBVs) target sexual develop¬ment of the parasite within the mosquito and aim to prevent transmission of malaria from one individual to another. Antibodies raised against Pfs48/45, Pfs230 Region C, PfHAP2, and Anopheles gambiae Alanyl Aminopeptidase N1 (AgAPN1) proteins reduce transmission i.e. have transmission blocking activity [1–5]. Recombinant simian Adenovirus (AdC63 serotype) and Modified Vaccinia Ankara (MVA) viral vectors have been shown to induce high antibody titres to asexual parasite antigens in animal studies [6].

Materials and methods

Protein sequences for each of the antigens were codon optimised for expression in humans and cloned into shuttle vectors, which were then recombined with the parental virus and purified to obtain virus expressing the antigen of interest. Mice were vaccinated with AdC63 (i.m.), sera was taken after 2 weeks, and will be followed by an MVA boost (i.d.) eight weeks after the prime. Antibodies were assayed by a standardised ELISA, and transmission blocking activity assessed using a standardised membrane feeding assay (SMFA).

Conclusion

Induction of high antibody tires using this vaccine platform could be used together with other control measures to achieve elimination and/or eradication of the disease at a local or national level.

References

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Jenner Institute, University of Oxford, Roosevelt Drive, Oxford, OX3 7DQ, UK

    Melissa C Kapulu, Sumi Biswas, Sarah C Gilbert & Adrian VS Hill

  2. Division of Cell and Molecular Biology, Sir Alexander Fleming Building, Imperia College London, Imperial College Road, London, SW7 2AZ, UK

    Andrew Blagborough & Robert E Sinden

Authors
  1. Melissa C Kapulu
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  2. Sumi Biswas
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  3. Andrew Blagborough
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  4. Sarah C Gilbert
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  5. Robert E Sinden
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  6. Adrian VS Hill
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This article is published under license to BioMed Central Ltd. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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Kapulu, M.C., Biswas, S., Blagborough, A. et al. Viral vectored transmission blocking vaccines against Plasmodium falciparum. Malar J 9 (Suppl 2), O22 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-2875-9-S2-O22

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-2875-9-S2-O22

Keywords

  • Malaria
  • Plasmodium Falciparum
  • Vaccinia
  • Anopheles Gambiae
  • High Antibody

Malaria Journal

ISSN: 1475-2875

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