Last Updated: 13/10/2025

Malaria: from complement evasion to vaccines

Objectives

This study aim to design and optimize vaccine formulations targeting the complement evasion mechanism, assess their efficacy, and test promising candidates in transgenic mice to advance towards more effective malaria vaccines.

Principal Investigators / Focal Persons

Seppo Meri

Rationale and Abstract

Malaria results in significant morbidity and mortality in tropical regions. Despite available control measures, malaria persists. This underscores the urgent need for an effective vaccine for sustainable malaria control. The team’s previous work revealed that the infective stage of malaria parasite evades destruction by the complement system through a parasite surface protein, which binds the regulator of the classical pathway of complement activation. Disrupting this interaction makes the parasite susceptible to the complement system, reducing its motility and infectivity. Including this parasite protein in a vaccine could result in an efficacious vaccine. 

Date

Nov 2024 — Dec 2026

Total Project Funding

$297,127

Funding Details
Research Council of Finland (RCF), Finland

Grant ID: 365594
EUR 279,727
Project Site

Finland

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