MUVAPRED: Mucosal vaccines for poverty related diseases

• Forschungsstelle: EU FRP
• Projektnummer: 03.0570-2
• Projekttitel Englisch: MUVAPRED: Mucosal vaccines for poverty related diseases

Schlüsselwörter (Englisch)

HIV/AIDS; tuberculosis; malaria; vaccine

Alternative Projektnummern (Englisch)

EU project number: 503240

Forschungsprogramme (Englisch)

EU-programme: 6. Frame Research Programme - 1.1.2c

Kurzbeschreibung (Englisch)

See abstract

Abstract (Englisch)

Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Mycobacterium tuberculosis enter the human body at mucosal sites. The aim of the present project is to develop mucosally delivered vaccines against HIV, TB and malaria which will induce local immunity able to neutralize the pathogens at their port of entry and systemic immunity able to prevent systemic spread of the infection. The development of mucosal vaccines against malaria will be also investigated.
The trust of -the project derives from the recent proof of concept that mucosal vaccines are feasible in humans. This was achieved by the core group of participants of the present project who demonstrated during the 5th Framework Programme that mucosal delivery of diphtheria and influenza antigens induces both local immunity and protective levels of serum antibodies in humans.
In this project, existing antigens which are known to be protective in animal models against HIV, TB and malaria will be formulated for mucosal delivery and tested in clinical trials, using the expertise gained during the 5th Framework Programme. The antigens used for the initial clinical trials will be the latest generation of the envelop protein of HIV which being deleted of the loop 2 unmasks some of the conserved epitopes and induces broadly neutralizing antibodies against primary isolates of HIV, the Gag and Tat proteins of HIV and the fusion protein of Ag85B and ESAT-6 of TB.
While the first trials are performed, new systems to deliver mucosal vaccines and basic mechanisms of mucosal immune responses and memory in humans will be studied. This will allow better understanding of the clinical results and optimisation of second-generation vaccines to be tested in Developing Countries during the second phase of the project.
The project will be managed using the industrial knowledge of planning and management, to focus the participant laboratories in advancing the development of the vaccines against HIV, TB and malaria.

Datenbankreferenzen (Englisch)

Swiss Database: Euro-DB of the
State Secretariat for Education and Research
Hallwylstrasse 4
CH-3003 Berne, Switzerland
Tel. [phone]
Swiss Project-Number: 03.0570-2