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The development of effective malaria vaccines may be hindered by extensive genetic diversity in the surface proteins being employed as vaccine antigens. Understanding of the extent and dynamics of genetic diversity in vaccine antigens is needed to guide rational vaccine design and to interpret the results of vaccine efficacy trials conducted in malaria endemic areas. Molecular epidemiological, population genetic, and structural approaches are being employed to try to identify immunologically relevant polymorphism in vaccine antigens. The results of these studies will inform choices of which alleles to include in multivalent or chimeric vaccines; however, additional molecular and immuno-epidemiological studies in a variety of geographic locations will be necessary for these approaches to succeed. Alternative means of overcoming antigenic diversity are also being explored, including boosting responses to critical conserved regions of current vaccine antigens, identifying new, more conserved and less immunodominant antigens, and developing whole-organism vaccines. Continued creative application and integration of tools from multiple disciplines, including epidemiology, immunology, molecular biology, and evolutionary genetics and genomics, will likely be required to develop broadly protective vaccines against Plasmodium and other antigenically complex pathogens.

Genetic diversity in malaria vaccine antigens may compromise malaria vaccine efficacy, so it is important to understand this diversity and the processes that generate it. By applying new high-throughput genotyping methods to a large sample of infections from Mali (N = 1369), seven new 19-kDa merozoite surface protein 1 (MSP-119) haplotypes were identified. Herein we report the sequences of these new haplotypes and discuss their possible origins. Although they are present in < 1% of the samples examined, the existence of these rare haplotypes reveals a greater degree of diversity at this locus than previously reported and highlights the potential for Plasmodium to evolve under selective pressure from the immune system and from such interventions as vaccines and drugs.

Vaccines directed against the blood stages of Plasmodium falciparum malaria are intended to prevent the parasite from invading and replicating within host cells. No blood-stage malaria vaccine has shown clinical efficacy in humans. Most malaria vaccine antigens are parasite surface proteins that have evolved extensive genetic diversity, and this diversity could allow malaria parasites to escape vaccine-induced immunity. We examined the extent and within-host dynamics of genetic diversity in the blood-stage malaria vaccine antigen apical membrane antigen-1 in a longitudinal study in Mali. Two hundred and fourteen unique apical membrane antigen-1 haplotypes were identified among 506 human infections, and amino acid changes near a putative invasion machinery binding site were strongly associated with the development of clinical symptoms, suggesting that these residues may be important to consider in designing polyvalent apical membrane antigen-1 vaccines and in assessing vaccine efficacy in field trials. This extreme diversity may pose a serious obstacle to an effective polyvalent recombinant subunit apical membrane antigen-1 vaccine.

Background Malaria vaccines based on the 19-kDa region of merozoite surface protein 1 (MSP-119) derived from the 3D7 strain of Plasmodium falciparum are being tested in clinical trials in Africa. Knowledge of the distribution and natural dynamics of vaccine antigen polymorphisms in populations in which malaria vaccines will be tested will guide vaccine design and permit distinction between natural fluctuations in genetic diversity and vaccine-induced selection. Methods and Findings Using pyrosequencing, six single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the nucleotide sequence encoding MSP-119 were genotyped from 1,363 malaria infections experienced by 100 children who participated in a prospective cohort study in Mali from 1999 to 2001. The frequencies of 14 MSP-119 haplotypes were compared over the course of the malaria transmission season for all three years, in three age groups, and in consecutive infections within individuals. While the frequency of individual MSP-119 haplotypes fluctuated, haplotypes corresponding to FVO and FUP strains of P. falciparum (MSP-119 haplotypes QKSNGL and EKSNGL, respectively) were most prevalent during three consecutive years and in all age groups with overall prevalences of 46% (95% confidence interval [CI] 44%–49%) and 36% (95% CI 34%–39%), respectively. The 3D7 haplotype had a lower overall prevalence of 16% (95% CI 14%–18%). Multiplicity of infection based on MSP-119 was higher at the beginning of the transmission season and in the oldest individuals (aged ≥11 y). Three MSP-119 haplotypes had a reduced frequency in symptomatic infections compared to asymptomatic infections. Analyses of the dynamics of MSP-119 polymorphisms in consecutive infections implicate three polymorphisms (at positions 1691, 1700, and 1701) as being particularly important in determining allele specificity of anti-MSP-119 immunity. Conclusions Parasites with MSP-119 haplotypes different from that of the leading vaccine strain were consistently the most prevalent at a vaccine trial site. If immunity elicited by an MSP-1-based vaccine is allele-specific, a vaccine based on either the FVO or FUP strain might have better initial efficacy at this site. This study, to our knowledge the largest of its kind to date, provides molecular information needed to interpret population responses to MSP-1-based vaccines and suggests that certain MSP-119 polymorphisms may be relevant to cross-protective immunity., Christopher Plowe and colleagues surveyed local malaria parasites for genetic diversity in MSP-1, a candidate vaccine antigen. These data are needed to interpret population responses to MSP-1-based vaccines during trials planned at this site., Editors' Summary Background. Malaria, a tropical parasitic disease, kills about one million people—mainly children—every year. Most of these deaths are caused by Plasmodium falciparum, which is transmitted to humans through the bites of infected mosquitoes. These insects inject a form of the parasite known as sporozoites into people that replicates inside liver cells without causing symptoms. Four to five days later, merozoites (another form of the parasite) are released from the liver cells and invade red blood cells. Here, they replicate 10-fold before bursting out and infecting other red blood cells. This massive increase in parasite burden causes malaria's flu-like symptoms. If untreated, it also causes anemia (a red blood cell deficit) and damages the brain and other organs where parasitized red blood cells sequester. Malaria can be treated with antimalarial drugs and partly prevented by reducing the chances of being bitten by an infected mosquito. In addition, researchers are developing vaccines designed to reduce the global burden of malaria. These contain individual malaria antigens (proteins from the parasite that stimulate an immune response) that should, when injected into people, prime the immune system so that it can rapidly control malaria infections. Why Was This Study Done? The development of an effective malaria vaccine is not easy, in part because people can be simultaneously infected with several parasite strains. These often carry different variants (alleles) of the genes encoding antigens, which means that the actual parasite proteins might differ from the ones used for vaccination. If this is the case, the immune response generated by the vaccine might be less effective or even ineffective. An ideal vaccine would therefore stimulate an immune response that recognizes all these strain-specific antigens. However, little is known about their distribution in parasite populations in malarial regions, or about how this distribution changes over time (its dynamics). This information is needed to aid vaccine design and development. In this study, the researchers have investigated the distribution and dynamics of genetic variants of a merozoite antigen called MSP-119, which is included in a vaccine currently being tested in Mali, West Africa. Although most of the MSP-119 sequence is conserved, it contains six strain-specific polymorphisms (genetic variations); the candidate vaccine contains MSP-119 from the 3D7 strain of P. falciparum. What Did the Researchers Do and Find? The researchers used rapid DNA sequencing (pyrosequencing) to examine the MSP-119 sequence in more than 1,300 malaria infections in 100 Malian children. They compared the frequencies of 14 MSP-119 haplotypes (sets of polymorphisms at the six variant sites) over three years, in three age groups, and in consecutive infections within individuals. They found that the frequency of individual MSP-119 haplotypes fluctuated in their study population but that those found in P. falciparum FVO and FUP strains were always the commonest, each being present in about 40% of the infections. By contrast, the P. falciparum 3D7 MSP-119 haplotype was present in only 16% of the infections. They also found that mixed infections were more common at the start of each malaria season and in older individuals. In addition, individuals who were infected repeatedly by parasites from different strains (with different MSP-119 variants) seemed to get sick with malaria more often than those infected multiple times by the same strain. The differences might, therefore, be important in determining the specificity of the immune response to MSP-119. What Do These Findings Mean? These findings indicate that most parasites that cause malaria at the Malian test site for the malaria vaccine that contains 3D7-specific MSP-119 have a different form of MSP-119. Although early results from field trials suggest that the 3D7-derived vaccine provides some protection against the more common FVO and FUP strains, the immunity stimulated by the vaccine might be mainly allele specific. If this turns out to be the case, these results suggest that a FVO- or FUP-derived vaccine might be more effective in Mali than the 3D7-derived vaccine, though not necessarily elsewhere. More generally, these results show the importance of determining the genetics of pathogen populations before starting vaccine trials. Without this information, a vaccine's ability to prevent infections with specific parasite strains cannot be determined accurately and potentially useful vaccines might be abandoned if they are tested in inappropriate populations. Importantly, baseline information of this sort will also allow vaccine developers to detect any vaccine-induced changes in the pathogen population that might affect the long-term efficacy of their vaccines. Additional Information. Please access these Web sites via the online version of this summary at http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.0040093. A related PLoS Medicine Perspective by Colin Sutherland discusses variation in malaria antigens as a challenge in vaccine development The malaria program of the University of Maryland Center for Vaccine Development performs research on many aspects of malaria Information on malaria and the development of vaccines is available from the Malaria Vaccine Initiative The World Health Organization provides links to general information on malaria plus some specific information on malaria vaccine development MedlinePlus encyclopedia has entries on malaria and on vaccination US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provides information for patients and professionals on malaria US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has information on malaria, including research into vaccines

Background Insecticide Treated Nets (ITNs) are an important tool for malaria control. ITNs are effective because they work on several parts of the mosquito feeding cycle, including both adult killing and repelling effects. Methods Using an elaborated description of the classic feeding cycle model, simple formulas have been derived to describe how ITNs change mosquito behaviour and the intensity of malaria transmission, as summarized by vectorial capacity and EIR. The predicted changes are illustrated as a function of the frequency of ITN use for four different vector populations using parameter estimates from the literature. Results The model demonstrates that ITNs simultaneously reduce mosquitoes' lifespans, lengthen the feeding cycle, and by discouraging human biting divert more bites onto non-human hosts. ITNs can substantially reduce vectorial capacity through small changes to all of these quantities. The total reductions in vectorial capacity differ, moreover, depending on baseline behavior in the absence of ITNs. Reductions in lifespan and vectorial capacity are strongest for vector species with high baseline survival. Anthropophilic and zoophilic species are affected differently by ITNs; the feeding cycle is lengthened more for anthrophilic species, and the proportion of bites that are diverted onto non-human hosts is higher for zoophilic species. Conclusion This model suggests that the efficacy of ITNs should be measured as a total reduction in transmission intensity, and that the quantitative effects will differ by species and by transmission intensity. At very high rates of ITN use, ITNs can generate large reductions in transmission intensity that could provide very large reductions in transmission intensity, and effective malaria control in some areas, especially when used in combination with other control measures. At high EIR, ITNs will probably not substantially reduce the parasite rate, but when transmission intensity is low, reductions in vectorial capacity combine with reductions in the parasite rate to generate very large reductions in EIR.

Background Malaria vaccine efficacy may be compromised if the frequency of non-target alleles increases following vaccination with a genetically polymorphic target. Methods are needed to monitor genetic diversity in polymorphic vaccine antigens, but determining which genetic variants of such antigens are present in infected individuals is complicated by the frequent occurrence of mixed infections. Methods Pyrosequencing was used to determine allele frequencies at each of six single nucleotide polymorphisms in the Plasmodium falciparum blood-stage vaccine antigen merozoite surface protein 1 19 kDa (MSP-119) in field samples from a vaccine-testing site in Mali. Mixtures of MSP-119 clones were created to validate a haplotype-estimating algorithm that uses maximum likelihood methods to determine the most probable combination of haplotypes given the allele frequencies for an infection and the haplotypes known to be circulating in the population. Results Fourteen unique MSP-119 haplotypes were identified among 351 genotyped infections. After adjustment to a standard curve, Pyrosequencing provided accurate and precise estimates of allele frequencies in mixed infections. The haplotype-estimating algorithm provided accurate estimates of haplotypes in mixed infections containing up to three haplotypes. Based on the MSP-119 locus, approximately 90% of the 351 infections contained two or fewer haplotypes. Conclusion Pyrosequencing in conjunction with a haplotype-estimating algorithm provides accurate estimates of haplotypes present in infections with up to 3 haplotypes, and can be used to monitor genetic diversity in parasite populations prior to and following introduction of MSP-1-based malaria vaccines.

Techniques based on amplification of 16S rRNA genes for comparing bacterial communities are now widely used in microbial ecology, but calibration of these techniques with traditional tools, such as cultivation, has been conspicuously absent. In this study, we compared levels of bacterial community diversity in two pinyon rhizosphere soil samples and two between-tree (interspace) soil samples by analyzing 179 cultivated bacterial isolates and 801 16S rRNA genes amplified from extracted soil DNA. Phylotypes were defined by performing a restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences with the enzymes Rsa I and Bst UI. The average level of 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity of members of a phylotype was 86.6% based on an analysis of partial sequences. A total of 498 phylotypes were identified among the 16S ribosomal DNA (rDNA) clones, while 34 phylotypes occurred among the cultivated isolates. Analysis of sequences from a subset of the phylotypes showed that at least seven bacterial divisions were represented in the clone libraries, whereas the isolates represented only three. The phylotype richness, frequency distribution (evenness), and composition of the four culture collections and the four clone libraries were investigated by using a variety of diversity indices. Although cultivation and 16S rRNA cloning analyses gave contradictory descriptions of the relative phylotype richness for one of the four environments, the two methods identified qualitatively consistent relationships when levels of evenness were compared. The levels of phylotype similarity between communities were uniformly low (15 to 31%). Both methods consistently indicated that one environment was distinct from the other three. Our data illustrate that while 16S rDNA cloning and cultivation generally describe similar relationships between soil microbial communities, significant discrepancies can occur.