SYNTHETIC CONJUGATE VACCINES AGAINST PLASMODIUM FALCIPARUM

THE OVERALL GOAL OF THIS RESEARCH IS THE DEVELOPMENT OF A SYNTHETIC PEPTIDE CONJUGATE VACCINE THAT WILL ELICIT NEUTRALIZING ANTIBODIES AGAINST PLASMODIUM FALCIPARUM SPOROZOITES. THIS PROJECT IS BUILT UPON A PREVIOUSLY IDENTIFIED MURINE MONOCLONAL ANTIBODY RAISED AGAINT P. FALCIPARUM SPOROZOITES THAT PROTECTS MICE AGAINST A P. BERGHEI SPOROZOITE CHALLENGE. THE BINDING SITE OF THIS MONOCLONAL ANTIBODY WAS REVEALED BY EPITOPE MAPPING TO CONSIST OF A DIPEPTIDE SEQUENCE COMMON TO THE CIRCUMSPOROZOITE PROTEINS OF BOTH P. FALCIPARUM AND P. BERGHEI. IN PHASE I, UNIVAX BIOLOGICS, INC., WILL PREPARE SYNTHETIC PEPTIDE CONJUGATE VACCINES AND DETERMINE THEIR PROTECTIVE EFFICACY IN A MURINE MALARIA MODEL. THESE STUDIES WILL LAY THE FOUNDATION FOR THE FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF CONJUGATE OR RECOMBINANT VACCINES FOR LATER PRECLINICAL STUDIES.