A perspective on malaria vaccines

Abstract

The data obtained with adjuvant-antigen vaccines against asexual malaria parasites in different host-parasite systems are reviewed. From these data the problems associated with antimalarial vaccine development and testing are considered. The requirement for an adjuvant to induce immunity and the type of adjuvant required depends primarily on the host. Since the immune response of man to malaria vaccines is unknown, it is impossible to predict which animal infection is most likely to be a faithful model of malaria in man although it is generally assumed that the monkey is the most appropriate analogue. Therefore careful studies of the immune response of monkeys to purified malarial antigens are needed to develop vaccines for testing in man.