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. 2023 May 3;3(2):mtsi.v3i2.2023.325.
doi: 10.48327/mtsi.v3i2.2023.325. eCollection 2023 Jun 30.

[Vaccination against malaria]

[Article in French]
Marie Mura  1   2
Affiliations

[Vaccination against malaria]

[Article in French]
Marie Mura. Med Trop Sante Int. .

Abstract
in English, French

Vaccination against malaria is an old dream that reemerged in 2015 with the European Medicines Agency's favourable opinion on a first antimalarial vaccine, RTS,S/ AS01. Six years later, the World Health Organization (WHO) is advising a wide deployment of this vaccine in sub-Saharan Africa and in regions with high and moderate transmission where Plasmodium falciparum circulates. This follows favourable results from the pilot programme in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi involving over 800,000 children since 2019. This article addresses the objectives and main vaccine candidates targeting the different stages of parasite development, highlighting the progress and limitations of these different approaches. The RTS,S saga has been a milestone in vaccine development, with a first-generation vaccine recommended by the WHO for use in children over 5 months of age in sub-Saharan Africa and other areas of moderate to high transmission of P. falciparum malaria, in combination with other prevention measures. Research efforts continue to better understand the correlates of protection. With advances in vaccine platforms, new multi-antigen, multi-stage, and even multi-species approaches might emerge and brighten the horizon for malaria control.

L'espoir d'une vaccination contre le paludisme commence à se dessiner concrètement depuis 2015 avec l'avis favorable de l'Agence européenne du médicament sur un premier vaccin antipaludique, RTS,S/AS01. Six ans plus tard, l'Organisation mondiale de la santé (OMS) conseille un large déploiement de ce vaccin en Afrique subsaharienne et dans les régions à transmission forte et modérée où circule Plasmodium falciparum. Cette décision fait suite aux résultats favorables du programme pilote réalisé au Ghana, au Kenya et au Malawi sur plus de 800 000 enfants depuis 2019. Cet article décrit les objectifs et les principaux candidats vaccinaux ciblant les différents stades de développement du parasite, en soulignant les progrès et les limites de ces différentes approches. L’épopée RTS,S a été une étape clé dans le développement vaccinal, avec un vaccin de première génération recommandé par l'OMS chez les enfants de plus de 5 mois en Afrique subsaharienne et dans d'autres régions où la transmission du paludisme à P. falciparum est modérée ou forte, en association avec les autres mesures de prévention. Les efforts de recherche continuent pour mieux comprendre les corrélats de protection. Grâce aux progrès des plateformes vaccinales, de nouvelles approches multi-antigéniques, multistades, voire multi-espèces pourraient voir le jour et éclaircir l'horizon de la lutte contre le paludisme.

Keywords: Alphonse Laveran; Malaria; Plasmodium falciparum; Prevention; RTS,S/AS01; Sub-Saharan Africa; Vaccination; WHO.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Principales stratégies vaccinales et cibles antigéniques pour le développement d'un vaccin antipaludique contre Plasmodium falciparum Main vaccine strategies and antigenic targets for the development of a malaria vaccine against Plasmodium falciparum
Figure 2
Figure 2
Développement du RTS,S de première génération Development of 1st generation RTS,S vaccine
Figure 3
Figure 3
Le vaccin antipaludique RTS,S est le résultat de 35 années de recherche et de développement, en plus d’être le premier vaccin jamais mis au point contre une maladie parasitaire humaine (crédit photo : UNICEF/U.S. CDC/UN0641055/Daylin Paul) The RTS,S malaria vaccine is the result of 35 years of research and development, and is the first vaccine ever developed against a human parasitic disease. Photo credit: UNICEF/U.S. CDC/UN0641055/Daylin Paul
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    Danis M. Danis M. Med Trop Sante Int. 2023 May 15;3(2):mtsi.v3i2.2023.375. doi: 10.48327/mtsi.v3i2.2023.375. eCollection 2023 Jun 30. Med Trop Sante Int. 2023. PMID: 37525676 Free PMC article. French.

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