Pattamaporn Kittayapong of Mahidol University in Thailand will study how Wolbachia, a symbiotic bacteria which infects many species of insects, may to limit dengue virus infection in mosquitoes.
Dr. Yen Wah Tong of the National University of Singapore will attempt to fabricate nanoscale, imprinted particles that can capture viruses, effectively preventing them from infecting cells. These non-toxic and biocompatible polymers can then be excreted from the body. This synthetic equivalent to natural antibodies would eliminate the need for a human immune response and resulting mutations of the virus' DNA.
Huan Nguyen of the International Vaccine Institute in Korea will explore whether green fluorescent protein is endowed with unique immunological properties which could be used to develop a universal flu vaccine.
Teun Bousema of Radboud University in the Netherlands proposed that geographic "hotspots" of malaria disease drive local transmission, and therefore that interventions would most efficiently be deployed if they targeted these hotspots. This project's Phase I research demonstrated that hotspots of malaria transmission are present at all levels of endemicity and can be sensitively detected by serological markers of malaria exposure.
Humberto Lanz-Mendoza of Mexico's Instituto Nacional de Salud Publica will test whether mosquitoes can become resistant to dengue and malaria by the introduction of non-virulent pathogens, which might stimulate immune priming and protect against subsequent infections.
Hiroshi Kiyono of the University of Tokyo will work to advance a rice-based oral vaccine that can induce both mucosal and systemic immunity. If successful, the MucoRice system can be self-administered and will not require syringes or refrigeration.
Professor Hiroyuki Matsuoka of Jichi Medical University in Japan will attempt to design a mosquito that can produce and secrete a malaria vaccine protein into a host's skin. The hope is that such mosquitoes could deliver protective vaccines against other infectious diseases as well.
DNA vaccines, which can elicit killer T-cell response, have thus far failed to elicit reliable, strong immune response in humans. Cevayir Coban of Osaka University in Japan will use newly identified intracellular signaling molecules as components of DNA vaccines against malaria.
Allan Saul of the Novartis Vaccines Institute for Global Health in Italy will genetically modify gram-negative bacteria to generate large quantities of their outer membranes, which can be loaded with antigens that stimulate immune responses. This technology could prove to be a reliable and economic platform for generation of new vaccines.