Latest news with #AdFalciVax
Indian Express
4 days ago
- Health
- Indian Express
Knowledge Nugget: AdFalciVax and the fight against malaria — What you must-know for UPSC Exam
Take a look at the essential events, concepts, terms, quotes, or phenomena every day and brush up your knowledge. Here's your UPSC Current Affairs Knowledge Nugget for today on AdFalciVax and malaria. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has invited the country's vaccine manufacturers to partner with it to launch and sell a malaria vaccine, AdFalciVax, that its Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneshwar, has developed. In this context, let's know about this new vaccine and malaria. 1. AdFalciVax is a chimeric recombinant vaccine — a type of vaccine that uses different parts of the genes of a pathogen (in this case, Plasmodium) to create target proteins that trigger an immune response after being injected. 2. AdFalciVax uses two types of target proteins to prevent the spread of infection in two different ways. ↪ It uses the circumsporozoite protein (CSP) to prevent infection in the person who has been immunised. The CSP is produced during the sporozoite stage (when a parasite can infect a new host) and the liver stage (when a parasite enters liver cells, multiplies, and then infects red blood cells) of the parasite. 'Any immune response generated against these stages protects the immunised person from getting the infection.' Subhash Singh, project manager for development of the vaccine at the ICMR-Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar told The Indian Express. ↪ The vaccine also uses the Pro6C protein, a fusion of parts of two different proteins — Pfs230 and Pfs48/45 — produced by Plasmodium falciparum. This protein prevents the spread of infection in the community. 3. Researchers have found that AdFalciVax provided more than 90% protection against infection in mice. The candidate vaccine has yet to undergo rigorous human trials, and the preliminary results have been obtained only through testing on animals. 4. The ICMR wants to partner with a company that can further develop its candidate vaccine, carry out human clinical trials, and scale up for commercial production. Although the ICMR will share the technology of developing AdFalciVax with the chosen company, it will continue to hold the intellectual property rights. Any intellectual property rights generated during the collaboration will be held jointly by the ICMR and the company. 5. Notably, AdFalciVax mainly targets two parts of Plasmodium falciparum, a pathogen that is the most common source of malaria in humans. In India, however, the disease is caused by Plasmodium vivax against which AdFalciVax is ineffective. To combat malaria, scientists have been working to develop a vaccine for decades but with limited success. Recently, two vaccines—RTS,S and R21—were approved for use, but their efficacy, at 75%, is quite low. That's why the announcement about ICMR's candidate vaccine has given new hope in the fight against the disease. World Malaria Day is observed every year on 25th April by the World Health Organisation to raise awareness and drive action against malaria. The theme for World Malaria Day 2025 is 'Malaria Ends With Us: Reinvest, Reimagine, Reignite.' 1. Having claimed millions of lives, malaria has been one of the deadliest diseases in human history. Currently, the disease kills about four lakh people annually, according to World Health Organization (WHO) figures. 2. Malaria is a parasitic infection transmitted by mosquitoes, typically causing symptoms such as fever, chills, night sweats, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea. In some cases, it can lead to severe complications such as seizures, fluid in the lungs, organ damage, and death. 3. It is most endemic in Africa — Nigeria, Congo, Tanzania, Mozambique, Niger, and Burkina Faso together account for more than half the yearly deaths. 1. India has demonstrated significant progress in reducing malaria cases and associated mortality in the country's high-endemic states, according to the findings of the World Health Organisation's (WHO) 'World Malaria Report 2024′. 2. 'India exited the HBHI [high-burden to high-impact] group officially in 2024 due to significant progress in reducing the malaria incidence and mortality observed in its high-endemic states,' the report observed. 3.'Nationwide, the number of estimated malaria cases in India decreased from 6.4 million in 2017 (the year before the HBHI's introduction) to 2 million cases in 2023 (69 per cent decrease). Similarly, the estimated malaria deaths decreased from 11,100 to 3,500 (68 per cent decrease) during the same period,' it said. 4. The HBHI refers to a targeted WHO initiative aimed at the most acutely malaria-impacted regions of the world, including several countries in Africa. Widespread resistance of malarial parasite to drugs like chloroquine has prompted attempts to develop a malarial vaccine to combat malaria. Why is it difficult to develop an effective malaria vaccine? (UPSC CSE 2010) (a) Malaria is caused by several species of Plasmodium (b) Man does not develop immunity to malaria during natural infection (c) Vaccines can be developed only against bacteria (d) Man is only an intermediate host and not the definitive host (Sources: India registers 'significant progress' in reducing malaria cases: WHO, WHO report says India reduces malaria caseload, deaths by 69% each) Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter. Stay updated with the latest UPSC articles by joining our Telegram channel – Indian Express UPSC Hub, and follow us on Instagram and X. 🚨 Click Here to read the UPSC Essentials magazine for July 2025. Share your views and suggestions in the comment box or at
Indian Express
24-07-2025
- Health
- Indian Express
How new ICMR vaccine gives new hope in fight against malaria
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has announced a promising candidate vaccine for malaria, which it will now further develop, test and manufacture for commercial purposes in partnership with private companies. Known as AdFalciVax, the vaccine mainly targets two parts of Plasmodium falciparum, a pathogen that is the most common source of malaria in humans. In India, however, the disease is caused by Plasmodium vivax against which AdFalciVax is ineffective. Malaria is a parasitic infection transmitted by mosquitoes, typically causing symptoms such as fever, chills, night sweats, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea. In some cases, it can lead to severe complications such as seizures, fluid in the lungs, organ damage, and death. Having claimed millions of lives, malaria has been one of the deadliest diseases in human history. Currently, the disease kills about four lakh people annually, according to World Health Organization (WHO) figures. Malaria is most endemic in Africa — Nigeria, Congo, Tanzania, Mozambique, Niger, and Burkina Faso together account for more than half the yearly deaths. The disease is also present in India, although malaria deaths have sharply reduced in the country in recent years. According to the National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme (NVBDCP), reported malaria deaths stood at 1,151in 1995, and came down to only 93 in 2020 and 83 in 2022. Note that these figures are much lower than the numbers provided annually by the WHO. The organisation's 'World Malaria Report' says there were 5,511 deaths due to the disease in India in 2022. This discrepancy is due to WHO providing estimates and NVBDCP providing only the number of confirmed deaths, which may not have been officially reported. To combat malaria, scientists have been working to develop a vaccine for decades but with limited success. Recently, two vaccines—RTS,S and R21—were approved for use, but their efficacy, at 75%, is quite low. That's why the announcement about ICMR's candidate vaccine has given new hope in the fight against the disease. AdFalciVax is a chimeric recombinant vaccine — a type of vaccine that uses different parts of the genes of a pathogen (in this case, Plasmodium) to create target proteins that trigger an immune response after being injected. AdFalciVax uses two types of target proteins to prevent the spread of infection in two different ways. n It uses the circumsporozoite protein (CSP) to prevent infection in the person who has been immunised. The CSP is produced during the sporozoite stage (when a parasite can infect a new host) and the liver stage (when a parasite enters liver cells, multiplies, and then infects red blood cells) of the parasite. Subhash Singh, project manager for development of the vaccine at the ICMR-Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar, told The Indian Express: 'Any immune response generated against these stages protects the immunised person from getting the infection.' n The vaccine also uses the Pro6C protein, a fusion of parts of two different proteins — Pfs230 and Pfs48/45 — produced by Plasmodium falciparum. This protein prevents the spread of infection in the community. 'The Pro6C protein… stops further spread of the disease by disrupting the lifecycle of the pathogen. It disrupts the development of the parasite in the midgut of a mosquito preventing further transmission,' Singh said. Unlike AdFalciVax, RTS,S and R21 only use the CSP protein, and can prevent infection only in vaccinated persons. Unlike AdFalciVax, RTS,S and R21 vaccines also do not use full-length CSP proteins. This is why the ICMR's candidate vaccine is 'likely to produce a stronger immune response and better protect against infection,' according to Singh. Researchers have found that AdFalciVax provided more than 90% protection against infection in mice. The candidate vaccine has yet to undergo rigorous human trials, and the preliminary results have been obtained only through testing on animals. Studies have also suggested that AdFalciVax produces an immune response that may last longer than that produced by the other two vaccines. Singh said: 'One of the challenges of existing vaccines is that the immune response is short-lived. People need a fifth booster shot even after four primary doses. We do not know how this will work in humans, but preliminary indications show that three doses of the ICMR candidate vaccine produced robust protection against infection in mice for more than three months. This roughly translates to a decade in human life.' AdFalciVax also contains an adjuvant — a substance used in vaccines to boost the body's immune response against the targeted disease — called alum. Singh says the use of alum is beneficial as it does not pose a risk of causing chronic inflammation, unlike adjuvants such as AS01 and Matrix M, which are used in RTS,S and R21. Alum is also known to be reliable, and has been used in numerous vaccines used in childhood immunisation programs over the years. Another advantage is that alum in AdFalciVax can remain stable at room temperature for at least nine months, according to initial studies. This might make it possible to 'transport the vaccines without maintaining the cold chain,' Singh said. The ICMR wants to partner with a company that can further develop its candidate vaccine, carry out human clinical trials, and scale up for commercial production. Although the ICMR will share the technology of developing AdFalciVax with the chosen company, it will continue to hold the intellectual property rights. Any intellectual property rights generated during the collaboration will be held jointly by the ICMR and the company. The ICMR will also earn 2% royalty on any sales of the vaccine. Authors from both the company and the ICMR will be credited in any research papers generated, and all data will be jointly owned.
New Indian Express
22-07-2025
- Health
- New Indian Express
AdFalciVax: India's shot at stopping malaria on its tracks
India will soon have an advanced vaccine against malaria. In a major scientific breakthrough, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has developed an innovative recombinant, chimeric multi-stage malaria vaccine that could transform malaria prevention and control efforts in India and globally. Named AdFalciVax, the vaccine has been developed to offer both protection against Plasmodium falciparum infection in humans and interruption of community transmission, unlike the existing two vaccines that can partially prevent infection in humans but cannot stop transmission in the community. The novel vaccine developed by Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC), Bhubaneswar, one of the constituent institutes of ICMR, is now ready for technology transfer to manufacturers or organisations for production, clinical trials and its commercialisation. Preliminary trials on animal models have been highly successful. The pre-clinical validation of the vaccine has been conducted in collaboration with National Institute of Malaria Research (NIMR), another constituent institute of ICMR, and National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi, an autonomous research institute of the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India. A dual-stage game changer Unlike the currently available WHO-recommended vaccines - RTS, S/AS01 (Mosquirix), and R21/Matrix-M which have shown efficacies ranging between 33% and 67%, AdFalciVax promises dual-stage protection. It will not only shield people from contracting the deadliest strain of malaria but also prevent its spread within communities, considered an essential factor in breaking the chain of transmission. Dr Susheel Singh, scientist-D at RMRC, said AdFalciVax deploys a full-length PfCSP (circumsporozoite protein), a key surface antigen of P falciparum, for broader immune protection. It also incorporates a novel fusion of Pfs230 and Pfs48/45 proteins to induce potent transmission-blocking antibodies. 'The new vaccine can prevent human infection and interrupts transmission in the community, thereby tackling two critical developmental bottlenecks in the malaria parasite's life cycle,' Dr Singh said. The RMRC researchers said the vaccine has been developed using advanced protein engineering techniques and it leverages Lactococcus lactis, a safe bacterial host system, for antigen production. Additional director general of ICMR and director of RMRC Dr Sanghamitra Pati said preclinical trials conducted on mice showed robust and long-lasting immunity, even when exposed to 10,000 dual-transgenic Plasmodium berghei parasites engineered to express P falciparum antigens. 'The immune protection lasted over four months post-booster dose, which translates to more than a decade of protection in humans. The vaccine was administered with safe alum-based adjuvants and showed no adverse reactions,' said Dr Pati. Senior scientist Dr Subhash Singh was also a key contributor to the development of the vaccine. High stability at low cost The uniqueness of AdFalciVax over existing vaccines is its pharmaceutical stability. The formulation remains potent for over nine months at room temperature, doing away with the need for expensive cold chain logistics, which continue to be a long-standing challenge in vaccine distribution, especially in remote and under-resourced regions. The vaccine is also highly cost-effective, with an estimated production cost of just `20 per dose. The current vaccines are priced between `250 and `830 per dose. The affordability of the newly developed vaccine could make mass immunisation programmes significantly more viable. ICMR has now invited expressions of interest from eligible firms and manufacturers for technology transfer and commercial-scale production. The vaccine is expected to go for clinical trial stages soon and potentially be rolled out for public use in the next few years. However, the efficacy during the clinical trials will be the key.
Indian Express
20-07-2025
- Health
- Indian Express
ICMR invites partners to launch and sell its new malaria vaccine
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has invited the country's vaccine manufacturers to partner with it to launch and sell a malaria vaccine that its Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneshwar, has developed. Called AdFalciVax, it is a recombinant vaccine, meaning parts of the genes that encode for targets are inserted into a cell, the target proteins are expressed, and then used to trigger an immune response. Malaria is a parasitic infection transmitted by mosquitoes. While the current vaccine protects against the most common one that causes infection in humans called plasmodium falciparum, there are at least four other parasites from the same family known to cause infection in humans. P. vivax is the other one that commonly causes malaria infections, especially in India. The others — p malariae, p ovale, and p knowlesi — cause fewer infections. While the pre-clinical studies have already shown positive indications, the company that collaborates with the ICMR will be responsible for further development, human clinical trials, and scale-up for commercial production. The vaccine contains the genetic material of two targets — one for a major protein called CSP found on the surface of the malaria parasite and another for a combination of parts of two proteins that affect the pathogen's lifecycle. 'There are some key differences in the ICMR vaccine as compared to the other two currently in the market. One, this vaccine used the DNA for the whole CSP protein instead of just a few parts, meaning it is likely to produce a stronger immune response. Two, the other target that is used prevents the development of the p. falciparum in the mosquito's midgut during its lifecycle. What this essentially means is that it prevents the infection not only in the vaccinated person, but stops the further spread of the disease by disrupting the lifecycle of the pathogen even when it has already been picked up by a mosquito from an infected person for further transmission,' said Dr Subhash Singh, project manager for development of the vaccine. Senior scientist Dr Susheel Singh and director Dr Sanghamitra Pati were part of the development process. The pre-clinical validation was done in collaboration with ICMR-National Institute of Medical Research and the National Institute of Immunology. Anonna Dutt is a Principal Correspondent who writes primarily on health at the Indian Express. She reports on myriad topics ranging from the growing burden of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes and hypertension to the problems with pervasive infectious conditions. She reported on the government's management of the Covid-19 pandemic and closely followed the vaccination programme. Her stories have resulted in the city government investing in high-end tests for the poor and acknowledging errors in their official reports. Dutt also takes a keen interest in the country's space programme and has written on key missions like Chandrayaan 2 and 3, Aditya L1, and Gaganyaan. She was among the first batch of eleven media fellows with RBM Partnership to End Malaria. She was also selected to participate in the short-term programme on early childhood reporting at Columbia University's Dart Centre. Dutt has a Bachelor's Degree from the Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication, Pune and a PG Diploma from the Asian College of Journalism, Chennai. She started her reporting career with the Hindustan Times. When not at work, she tries to appease the Duolingo owl with her French skills and sometimes takes to the dance floor. ... Read More
Hans India
20-07-2025
- Health
- Hans India
India developing indigenous multi-stage Malaria vaccine 'AdFalciVax'
New Delhi: India has taken a major step forward in the fight against malaria with the development of a new indigenous vaccine candidate called AdFalciVax. This vaccine is being developed by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), through its institutes RMRC Bhubaneswar and the National Institute of Malaria Research (NIMR), in partnership with the Department of Biotechnology's National Institute of Immunology (DBT-NII). AdFalciVax is a unique malaria vaccine that targets two key stages of Plasmodium falciparum, the parasite responsible for the deadliest form of malaria. Most existing vaccines only focus on one stage of the parasite's life cycle, but AdFalciVax is designed to provide stronger and longer-lasting protection by targeting both the human infection stage and the stage responsible for transmission through mosquitoes. In early lab testing, the vaccine has shown excellent results. Scientists believe that it could offer several benefits over current vaccines like RTS, S/AS01 and R21/Matrix-M. These include broader protection, reduced chances of the parasite escaping the immune response, and improved long-term immunity. The vaccine also remains stable for over nine months at room temperature, making it easier to store and transport, especially in tropical regions. Additionally, it uses cost-effective ingredients like alum, which is commonly used as an adjuvant in vaccines. The vaccine is currently in the preclinical stage. If everything goes as planned, it could take around seven years for the vaccine to be ready for public use. The development timeline includes manufacturing under strict safety standards, clinical trials, and regulatory approvals. One of the key innovations of AdFalciVax is that it is made using 'Lactococcus lactis', a safe and well-known bacteria used in vaccine development. Its design makes it capable of protecting individuals from getting sick while also reducing the spread of malaria within communities. The ICMR plans to offer the vaccine technology to other organisations and manufacturers under non-exclusive agreements. This means multiple companies can work on producing the vaccine, helping it reach more people faster once approved. AdFalciVax is being developed entirely in India, supporting the government's 'Make in India' initiative.
