Computational Prioritization of T Cell Epitopes to Overcome HLA Restriction and Antigenic Diversity in <i>Plasmodium falciparum</i>.

ABSTRACT: Developing a highly effective malaria vaccine remains challenging due to Plasmodium falciparum 's antigenic diversity and human leukocyte antigen (HLA) polymorphisms, which complicate vaccine antigen selection and limit immune protection. The first recommended malaria vaccine, RTS,S, provides only partial, allele-specific protection with waning immunity over time, and the more recently developed R21 vaccine will likely encounter the same hurdles. To address these challenges, we developed a computational tool that integrates P. falciparum sequence diversity, predicted T cell epitope-HLA binding affinities, and HLA allele frequencies from sub-Saharan Africa to identify conserved, immunogenic epitopes with broad population coverage. We analyzed 42 P. falciparum proteins,

SUBMITTER: Laurenson AJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12338633 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature