IMMUNOGENICITY OF MULTIPLE ANTIGEN PEPTIDES CONTAINING PLASMODIUM-VIVAX CS EPITOPES IN BALB C MICE/

Multiple antigen peptide systems (MAPs) allow the incorporation of var ious epitopes in to a single synthetic peptide immunogen. We have char acterized the immune response of BALB/c mice to a series of MAPs assem bled with different B and T cell epitopes derived from the Plasmodium vivax circumsporozoite (CS) protein A B-cell epitope from the central repeat domain and two T-cell epitopes from the amino and carboxyl flan king regions were used to assembled eight different MAPs. An additiona l universal T cell epitope (ptt-30) from tetanus toxin protein was inc luded Immunogenicity in terms of antibody responses and in vitro T lym phocyte proliferation was evaluated MAPs containing B and T cell epito pes induced high titers of anti-peptides antibodies, which recognized the native protein on sporozoites as determined by IFAT. The antibody specificity was also determined by a competitive inhibition assay with different MAPs. A MAP containing the B cell epitope (p11) and the uni versal epitope ptt-30 together with another composed of p11 and the pr omiscuous T cell epitope (p25) proved to be the most immunogenic. The strong antibody response and specificity for the cognate protein indic ates that further studies designed to assess the potential of these pr oteins as human malaria vaccine candidates are warranted.