1. Protective antibodies target cryptic epitope unmasked by cleavage of malaria sporozoite protein.
- Author
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Dacon C, Moskovitz R, Swearingen K, Da Silva Pereira L, Flores-Garcia Y, Aleshnick M, Kanatani S, Flynn B, Molina-Cruz A, Wollenberg K, Traver M, Kirtley P, Purser L, Dillon M, Bonilla B, Franco A, Petros S, Kritzberg J, Tucker C, Paez GG, Gupta P, Shears MJ, Pazzi J, Edgar JM, Teng AA, Belmonte A, Oda K, Doumbo S, Krymskaya L, Skinner J, Li S, Ghosal S, Kayentao K, Ongoiba A, Vaughan A, Campo JJ, Traore B, Barillas-Mury C, Wijayalath W, Idris A, Crompton PD, Sinnis P, Wilder BK, Zavala F, Seder RA, Wilson IA, and Tan J
- Subjects
- Animals, Mice, Humans, Antigens, Protozoan immunology, Protozoan Proteins immunology, Plasmodium falciparum immunology, Sporozoites immunology, Malaria, Falciparum immunology, Malaria, Falciparum prevention & control, Malaria, Falciparum parasitology, Malaria Vaccines immunology, Antibodies, Protozoan immunology, Antibodies, Monoclonal immunology, Epitopes immunology
- Abstract
The most advanced monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and vaccines against malaria target the central repeat region or closely related sequences within the Plasmodium falciparum circumsporozoite protein (PfCSP). Here, using an antigen-agnostic strategy to investigate human antibody responses to whole sporozoites, we identified a class of mAbs that target a cryptic PfCSP epitope that is only exposed after cleavage and subsequent pyroglutamylation (pGlu) of the newly formed N terminus. This pGlu-CSP epitope is not targeted by current anti-PfCSP mAbs and is not included in the licensed malaria vaccines. MAD21-101, the most potent mAb in this class, confers sterile protection against Pf infection in a human liver-chimeric mouse model. These findings reveal a site of vulnerability on the sporozoite surface that can be targeted by next-generation antimalarial interventions.
- Published
- 2025
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