Mahidol University is on the brink of commencing the world’s inaugural clinical trial for an mRNA vaccine targeting malaria.
Having successfully undergone testing on mice in prior lab trials, the vaccine candidate is now set to undergo trials on monkeys followed by human participants, as detailed by Prof. Jetsumon Prachumsri, a researcher from Mahidol’s Faculty of Tropical Medicine and head of the Mahidol Vivax Research Unit.
Unlike traditional vaccines containing weakened or inactivated forms of pathogens, this novel vaccine utilizes messenger RNA molecules. The crucial role of mRNA vaccines in combating the Covid-19 pandemic has been noted by scientists.
The Thai volunteer-based trial will be carried out by the Mahidol research team initially, evaluating the efficacy of the mRNA vaccine candidate on local participants before extending the study to encompass volunteers from various countries. This diversity in the trial aims to ensure the vaccine’s effectiveness across different populations.
Malaria, a severe disease transmitted to humans by certain mosquito species prevalent in tropical regions, accounts for over 6 million new cases worldwide annually.
The World Health Organization recorded around 249 million malaria cases and 608,000 deaths in 85 countries in 2022.
Prof. Jetsumon’s vision goes beyond the human trials, anticipating that the research will serve as a catalyst for further studies in the field, facilitating ongoing global progress in malaria vaccine research and development.
Previously, Mahidol’s Vivax Research Unit collaborated with the Mahidol-Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit to investigate Plasmodium vivax, a protozoal parasite and human pathogen’s transmission via mosquito bites.
The mRNA vaccine candidate from Mahidol will also be administered to participants who were part of the Mahidol-Oxford research project, targeting Plasmodium vivax infections.
Describing P. vivax as a parasite that causes malaria, Prof. Jetsumon pointed out that while it may be less fatal than Plasmodium falciparum, the most lethal of the five malaria parasite species, P. vivax infections could still result in fatalities.
