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Vaccines
Special Issues
Parasitic Infections: Therapy for Host Immunity and Vaccination
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Parasitic Infections: Therapy for Host Immunity and Vaccination

A special issue of Vaccines (ISSN 2076-393X). This special issue belongs to the section "Vaccines against Tropical and other Infectious Diseases".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2024 | Viewed by 4069

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. José Manuel Molina Caballero

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Animal Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Gran Canaria, Spain
Interests: immunology, treatment and control of coccidiosis and gastrointestinal nematodes in small ruminants
Dr. Antonio Ruiz Reyes

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Animal Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Gran Canaria, Spain
Interests: immunology, treatment and control of coccidiosis and gastrointestinal nematodes in small ruminants

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Over the last few decades, there has been extensive research into pharmaceutical alternatives to deal with adverse effects caused by parasites in humans and animals. This is mainly due to the development of resistance to antiparasitic drugs and the ecological problems associated with pharmacological residues in the environment and animal products for human consumption. However, there are still very few tools available to address more complex parasitic groups, such as helminths and arthropods. Many alternative strategies focus on enhancing the immune response of hosts to reduce parasite development. However, the results have not always been as expected, possibly due to the complexity of host–parasite interactions and environmental involvement.

We welcome original manuscripts, reviews, brief communications, meta-analyses, and other types of articles reporting vaccination and therapy trials against parasites for a Special Issue in Vaccines. We encourage the analysis of immune mechanisms against parasites and the relationship between protection and antiparasitic control strategies.

Prof. Dr. José Manuel Molina Caballero
Dr. Antonio Ruiz Reyes
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Vaccines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • immune response
  • parasites
  • helminths
  • arthropods
  • protozoa
  • therapy
  • vaccination

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

23 pages, 3742 KiB  
Article
A Head-to-Head Comparative Study of the Replication-Competent Vaccinia Virus and AAV1-Based Malaria Vaccine versus RTS,S/AS01 in Murine Models
by Kartika Hardianti Zainal, Ammar Abdurrahman Hasyim, Yutaro Yamamoto, Tetsushi Mizuno, Yuna Sato, Sani Hadiyan Rasyid, Mamoru Niikura, Yu-ichi Abe, Mitsuhiro Iyori, Hiroaki Mizukami, Hisatoshi Shida and Shigeto Yoshida
Vaccines 2024, 12(10), 1155; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines12101155 - 10 Oct 2024
Viewed by 955
Abstract
Background/Objectives: We developed a multistage Plasmodium falciparum vaccine using a heterologous prime-boost immunization strategy. This involved priming with a highly attenuated, replication-competent vaccinia virus strain LC16m8Δ (m8Δ) and boosting with adeno-associated virus type 1 (AAV1). This approach demonstrated 100% efficacy in both [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: We developed a multistage Plasmodium falciparum vaccine using a heterologous prime-boost immunization strategy. This involved priming with a highly attenuated, replication-competent vaccinia virus strain LC16m8Δ (m8Δ) and boosting with adeno-associated virus type 1 (AAV1). This approach demonstrated 100% efficacy in both protection and transmission-blocking in a murine model. In this study, we compared our LC16m8∆/AAV1 vaccine, which harbors a gene encoding Pfs25-PfCSP fusion protein, to RTS,S/AS01 (RTS,S) in terms of immune responses, protective efficacy, and transmission-blocking activity (TBA) in murine models. Methods: Mice were immunized following prime-boost vaccine regimens m8∆/AAV1 or RTS,S and challenged with transgenic Plasmodium berghei parasites. Immune responses were assessed via ELISA, and TB efficacy was evaluated using direct feeding assays. Results: m8∆/AAV1 provided complete protection (100%) in BALB/c mice and moderate (40%) protection in C57BL/6 mice, similar to RTS,S. Unlike RTS,S’s narrow focus (repeat region), m8∆/AAV1 triggered antibodies for all PfCSP regions (N-terminus, repeat, and C-terminus) with balanced Th1/Th2 ratios. Regarding transmission blockade, serum from m8∆/AAV1-vaccinated BALB/c mice achieved substantial transmission-reducing activity (TRA = 83.02%) and TB activity (TBA = 38.98%)—attributes not observed with RTS,S. Furthermore, m8∆/AAV1 demonstrated durable TB efficacy (94.31% TRA and 63.79% TBA) 100 days post-immunization. Conclusions: These results highlight m8∆/AAV1′s dual action in preventing sporozoite invasion and onward transmission, a significant advantage over RTS,S. Consequently, m8∆/AAV1 represents an alternative and a promising vaccine candidate that can enhance malaria control and elimination strategies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Parasitic Infections: Therapy for Host Immunity and Vaccination)
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26 pages, 5587 KiB  
Article
Protective Efficacy of the Epitope-Conjugated Antigen N-Tc52/TSkb20 in Mitigating Trypanosoma cruzi Infection through CD8+ T-Cells and IFNγ Responses
by María Elisa Vázquez, Brenda A. Zabala, Andrea C. Mesías, Lucia Biscari, Cintia D. Kaufman, Andrés Alloatti, Francesco Siano, Gianluca Picariello, Natalia S. Corbalán, Bladimiro A. Lenis, Marta A. Toscano, Cecilia M. Parodi, Cecilia M. Pérez Brandán and Leonardo Acuña
Vaccines 2024, 12(6), 621; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines12060621 - 4 Jun 2024
Viewed by 1228
Abstract
Chagas disease, caused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi, remains a major public health challenge affecting millions in Latin America and worldwide. Although significant progress has been made in vector control, no vaccine exists to prevent infection or mitigate disease pathogenesis. We developed [...] Read more.
Chagas disease, caused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi, remains a major public health challenge affecting millions in Latin America and worldwide. Although significant progress has been made in vector control, no vaccine exists to prevent infection or mitigate disease pathogenesis. We developed a rationally designed chimeric protein vaccine, N-Tc52/TSkb20, incorporating immunodominant epitopes from two T. cruzi antigens, the amino-terminal portion of Tc52 and the TSkb20 epitope derived from trans-sialidase. The objectives of this study were to construct and characterize the antigen and evaluate its protective potential in an immunoprophylactic murine model of T. cruzi infection. The N-Tc52/TSkb20 protein was recombinantly expressed in E. coli and its identity was confirmed using mass spectrometry and Western blotting. Immunization with the chimeric protein significantly controlled parasitemia and reduced the heart, colon, and skeletal muscle parasite burdens compared to non-vaccinated mice. Protection was superior to vaccination with the individual parental antigen components. Mechanistically, the vaccine induced potent CD8+ T-cell and IFNγ responses against the incorporated epitopes and a protective IgG antibody profile. A relatively low IL-10 response favored early parasite control. These results validate the promising multi-epitope approach and support the continued development of this type of rational vaccine design strategy against Chagas disease. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Parasitic Infections: Therapy for Host Immunity and Vaccination)
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15 pages, 2259 KiB  
Article
Analysis of Protection and Immune Response against Teladorsagia circumcincta in Goats Immunised with Thiol-Binding Proteins from Adult Worms
by Leire Ortega, Jessica Quesada, Antonio Ruiz, Magnolia María Conde-Felipe, Otilia Ferrer, María del Carmen Muñoz, José Adrián Molina, Francisco Rodríguez and José Manuel Molina
Vaccines 2024, 12(4), 437; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines12040437 - 18 Apr 2024
Viewed by 1332
Abstract
In view of the increasing occurrence of anthelmintic-resistant strains of gastrointestinal nematodes in ruminants, various alternative control strategies have been investigated, such as those based on the induction of protective immune responses by immunisation with parasite antigens. In this study, the protective activity [...] Read more.
In view of the increasing occurrence of anthelmintic-resistant strains of gastrointestinal nematodes in ruminants, various alternative control strategies have been investigated, such as those based on the induction of protective immune responses by immunisation with parasite antigens. In this study, the protective activity of somatic antigens from adult worms of Teladorsagia circumcincta purified by affinity chromatography on thiol-sepharose was analysed in goats. After challenge, the enriched products induced a slight reduction in the cumulative faecal egg counts (21%) and in the number of worms (23.3%), with a greater effect on female worms, which also showed a reduction in parameters related to their fertility. These parasitological findings were associated with a Th2 immune response, with a prominent local humoral response and an eosinophilic infiltrate in the gastric mucosa (negatively associated with the fertility of female worms and the number of worms, respectively), as well as an infiltration of MCHII+, CD4+, IgG+ and IgA+ cells. However, several analyses showed an increase in CD8+ cells in the mucosa, as well as IL-2 expression in the gastric lymph nodes, which may have been associated with inhibition of protective responses or with the development of mixed Th1/Th2 responses, a finding that should be analysed in future studies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Parasitic Infections: Therapy for Host Immunity and Vaccination)
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