Vaccines & Immune Biology

Venigalla Rao of The Catholic University of America in the U.S. will develop and test a DNA vaccine for HIV that encapsulates multiple HIV envelope genes into bacteriophages that will target antigen presenting dendritic cells. If successful, this could lead to a powerful multivalent DNA vaccine delivery platform against many diseases.

Michael Chan of the Ohio State Research Foundation in the U.S. will develop an engineered strain of bacteria used to ferment beans in traditional Asian and African diets, to display an antigen from the Tuberculosis bacterium. The engineered bacillus will then be used to make the traditional Asian dish natto, which can serve as a kind of oral vaccine to elicit a strong immune response. If successful, this strategy can be used to introduce a variety of disease antigens through culturally accepted foods.

Steven Meshnick and Carla Hand of the University of North Carolina in the U.S. will develop a bio-compatible, biodegradable polymer device that can be placed under the skin to introduce vaccines and antigens to the immune system. The device will attract immune cells and trigger their proliferation as well asact as an adjuvant at the site of injection. If successful, the device could help boost immune response to new and existing vaccines.

Frank Robb of the University of Maryland, Baltimore in the U.S. will genetically integrate heat shock proteins from thermopilic organisms, which thrive at relatively high temperatures, into attenuated bacterial vaccines to try to enhance the viability and immunogenicity of these vaccines during the freeze-drying process. If successful, this method could enhance the delivery of low -cost, highly-effective vaccines without the need for refrigeration.

Sam Lai of the University of North Carolina in the U.S. proposes to investigate methods that immobilize Herpes in mucus secretions that coat all surfaces in the body not covered by skin. If successful, his work may lead to new cost-effective approaches that block infections before viruses can infect cells.

Rong Wang of Wamax, Inc. in the U.S. will develop a tooth filler which can be applied by hand into cavities to provide long-lasting anti-viral and anti-bacterial functions. If successful, the low-cost dental filler could be applied by non-medical personnel and provide long-lasting protection from infectious diseases that enter the body through the mouth.

Sunil Joshi of the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in the U.S. will study the efficacy of delivering a non-invasive low-voltage electric wave pulse in the vicinity of lymphoid tissues to stimulate the activation and maturation of dendritic cells. If successful, this would be a method of boost long-term immunity.

Owain Millington and Gail McConnell of University of Strathclyde in the United Kingdom seek to adapt existing imaging systems to provide non-invasive in vivo imaging of Leishmania parasites present in macrophages and dendritic cells, and then use a targeted laser to destroy them. They will also test the hypothesis that targeting these cells for destruction will stimulate protective immunity against future Leishmania parasite infections.

Susanne Nylén Spoormaker of the Karolinska Institute in Sweden will test the theory that chronic parasitic worm infections not only increase susceptibility to certain infections, but also impair the ability of the immune system to respond effectively to vaccines. Spoormaker will research whether treatment of worms prior to vaccination will improve the efficacy of vaccination for Tuberculosis and Leishmanasis.

Heribert Warzecha of Darmstadt University of Technology in Germany will develop a peptide that can be reproduced in plants that generate nectar on which mosquitoes feed. This peptide, when ingested by the mosquitoes, interrupts the parasite transmission process in the insect gut, reducing the risk of transmission to humans.