# Impact of P. falciparum diversity on transmission reducing immunity

> **NIH NIH K23** · UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE · 2020 · $191,029

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
 This revised K23 application is submitted by Lauren Cohee, M.D., a pediatric infectious disease specialist
in the Division of Malaria Research at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Dr. Cohee's long-term goal
is to become an independent investigator focused on advancing the elimination of malaria by designing and
evaluating interventions to decrease P. falciparum transmission. Towards this goal, she proposes a career
development plan which provides mentored training in mosquito feeding assays, genomics, and microarray
analysis.
 Interventions to decrease P. falciparum transmission are critical to achieving the goal of malaria
eradication. One promising approach is the development of transmission blocking vaccines. These vaccines aim
to induce antibodies that limit parasite development in the mosquito and prevent transmission to the next human
host. Current vaccine candidate antigens have been identified based on naturally-acquired immune responses
to these antigens resulting in decreased transmission. However, it is not known if either naturally-acquired or
vaccine-induced transmission reducing immune responses (TRI) are strain-specific. Strain specificity, meaning
failure of immune responses based on a single strain to provide protection from other strains, has led to limited
efficacy of prior malaria vaccines targeting the asexual disease-causing stage of the parasite. Understanding the
strain-specificity of naturally-acquired and vaccine-induced TRI has significant implications for the potential
success of transmission blocking vaccines as well as studies of the epidemiology of TRI. In the context of a
larger study of the dynamics of malaria transmission in Malawi, Dr. Cohee will evaluate the strain-specificity of
naturally-acquired and vaccine-induced transmission reducing immunity. Specifically, she will use mosquito
feeding assays to measure TRI against multiple parasite strains, including common laboratory strains and
Malawian field isolates, using serum from Malawian study participants and monoclonal antibodies to
transmission blocking vaccine candidate antigens (Aim 1). She will then identify antibody correlates of these
responses using a novel diversity-based peptide microarray (Aim 2). The knowledge gained from accomplishing
these aims will 1) inform the rational development of transmission blocking vaccines and 2) identify antibody
correlates that can be used on a large scale to study the development and epidemiology of TRI to advance our
understanding of the dynamics of P. falciparum transmission.
 Upon completion of this mentored research and training period, Dr. Cohee will be well-positioned to apply
for an R01 to evaluate the development of transmission reducing immunity and determine the dynamics of
transmission reducing immunity in response to malaria control interventions.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9966883
- **Project number:** 5K23AI135076-03
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE
- **Principal Investigator:** Lauren M Cohee
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $191,029
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-07-01 → 2023-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9966883

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9966883, Impact of P. falciparum diversity on transmission reducing immunity (5K23AI135076-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9966883. Licensed CC0.

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