PAI LIFE SCIENCES INC — Department of Health and Human Services SBIR Phase I: NIAID

Description

Project Summary More thanbillion people are at risk worldwide for developing schistosomiasis caused by one of five species of SchistosomaTwo species that cause the most human diseaseSchistosoma japonicum and Schistosoma mansoniinfect the intestine and liver by similar processesbut differ in their geographically distributionNeither are thought to be containedand both have increased their global footprint to new regions of the worldIn addition to infecting humansSjaponicum infects cattle and water buffalowhich are greatly needed for meatmilkas well as for farmingInfection of livestock results in significant financial losses to farmers and is also considered to be a key factor in human transmissionThere currently is no vaccine for Sjaponicum in animals or humansand very few prospective vaccines are under considerationThe only cure for schistosomiasis is an anti parasitic drugpraziquanteland there is inherent fear that these parasites will eventually develop drug resistanceWe are proposing to develop a vaccine for Sjaponicum based on a similar vaccine we have developed for Smansoni called SchistoShieldSchistoShieldwhich is based on a single parasitic protein called Sm pis the only vaccine currently under evaluation that impacts nearly all phases of the Schistosoma life cycleWe have recently isolated the identical protein in Sjaponicumcalled Sj pthat it is nearly identical to Sm pBecause Sm pprovides partial protection against Sjaponicum infection in micewe predict that Sj pwill provide superior protection against this diseaseThe goals of this proposal areproduce Sj pprotein for immunization of micedemonstrate in mice that Sj pprotein exhibits superior protection against Sjaponicum compared to Sm panddevelop a low costminimally purified version of the Sj pthat would be a suitable veterinary vaccine while still providing complete protectionSuccessful completion of this grant will validate Sj pas a viable veterinary vaccine against Asiatic schistosomiasisIf the antigen holds promise in protection against Asian schistosomiasisthe proposed activities will allow us to move towards testing in cattle and commercialization of the veterinary vaccine in endemic countries as well as towards future human clinical trials Project Narrative Asiatic schistosomiasis caused by the blood fluke Sjaponicum is a debilitating disease of humans and animals in several Asiatic countriesBy producing a vaccine for this disease as proposed in this applicationwe will have a significant impact on global health