# Bacteriophage virus-like particle vaccines for Chlamydia trachomatis urogenital infection

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO HEALTH SCIS CTR · 2024 · $383,117

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Chlamydia trachomatis is an obligate intracellular bacteria that is the most common bacterial sexually transmitted
infection. Despite effective antibiotic treatment and screening programs, the prevalence of chlamydia continues
to rise. Although the infection can be asymptomatic, some women experience serious long-term sequelae,
including pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility, and ectopic pregnancy. For these reasons, a prophylactic
vaccine against chlamydia is needed. However, significant gaps exist in our knowledge of the natural immune
response to urogenital Chlamydia trachomatis infection. In particular, the specificity of antibodies elicited during
infection, their functions, and their protective capacity are not well understood. The overall goal of this research
is to design prophylactic antibody-eliciting vaccines against urogenital Chlamydia trachomatis infection. The
objective of this proposal is to define the range of protective functions antibodies can have against Chlamydia
trachomatis infection of the female urogenital tract, and use this knowledge to create vaccines that can elicit
those antibodies. Our working hypothesis is that antibody responses that target proteins known to be involved
in adhesion and entry into host cells or mediate pathology in the reproductive tract will be protective against
urogenital Chlamydia trachomatis infection. In Aim 1, we will engineer epitope-specific vaccine candidates that
will elicit high titer antibodies to Chlamydia trachomatis adhesion factors and define their immunogenicity in
mouse immunization studies. In Aim 2, we will investigate the specific functions of vaccine-elicited antibodies to
neutralize Chlamydia trachomatis infection in cell culture, mediate complement killing of Chlamydia trachomatis,
and facilitate uptake and killing by neutrophils. In Aim 3, we will investigate the protective capacity of our vaccines
in mouse models of Chlamydia infection. We will investigate the bacterial burden in the upper reproductive tract,
bacterial shedding, pathology, and male urogenital tract infection. Overall, these studies will define the role of
epitope-specific antibodies in urogenital Chlamydia trachomatis infection and lead to the identification of novel
targets for Chlamydia trachomatis vaccine design.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10749038
- **Project number:** 5R01AI166360-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO HEALTH SCIS CTR
- **Principal Investigator:** Kathryn M. Frietze
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $383,117
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2022-12-06 → 2027-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10749038

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10749038, Bacteriophage virus-like particle vaccines for Chlamydia trachomatis urogenital infection (5R01AI166360-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-07 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10749038. Licensed CC0.

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