Development of a Spirulina-based oral malaria vaccine

ABSTRACT Vaccination represents the single most effective and cost effective medical intervention devised to datesaving lives and reducing morbidity and disability for billions of humansDespite the early success of the oral polio vaccinemost vaccines are delivered parenterallyand as such are associated with painnon compliancebiohazardous medical waste and strict requirements for expensive productiontransport and storage logisticsthecold chainand for trained technical personnelOral mucosal vaccine strategies eliminate or significantly reduce these drawbacksThe potential use of Arthrospira platensiscommonly called Spirulinaas an oral vaccine delivery platform is highly attractivegiven its safety profilerich nutritional content and wide acceptance as a human food sourceAt Lumen Biosciencewe utilize a proprietary and patent pending technique to genetically engineer Spirulina to express heterologous proteinsLumen Bioscienceandapos s Spirulina platform consists of recombinant strains designed to express viral capsid proteins that assemble and form durable high order complexes commonly called virus like particlesVLPsParenterally administered VLPs have been used in humans for prevention of infections with human papilloma and hepatitis B viruses and malaria parasitesOrally administered Spirulina expressed VLPs have been engineered to efficiently express pathogen derived antigens inserted into the exterior facing VLP domainsHereVLPs bearing epitopes derived from Plasmodium yoelii circumsporozoite proteinCSPand other antigens were expressed in Spirulina and Pyoelii CSP VLP expressing Spirulina were administered orally to miceThis vaccine induced high titer systemic anti CSP IgGwhich conferred in vitro and in vivo protection against sporozoite invasionThis project aims to optimize and develop the oral Spirulina vaccine model as a safe oral pre erythrocytic malaria vaccine NARRATIVE Low costeasily delivered vaccines are urgently needed to combat malaria parasites worldwideTo achieve this goalLumen Bioscience in collaboration with the University of Washington will undertake development of a SpirulinaArthrospirabased oral Plasmodium vaccine designed to block sporozoite invasion