The larval stage of Taenia solium is responsible for neurological morbidity and mortality in humans, and important economical loses because of porcine infection. On the basis of previous successful cestode vaccines, we propose to develop and optimize a vaccine against T. solium. Primarily using Excretory/Secretory antigens from T. solium oncospheres. A key element in this design is the availability of a novel intramuscular pig infection model (IMOA) developed by our group, that is reproducible, easy to perform, and permits to establish several infection points in each animal. The project aims to fractionate and biochemically characterize E/S antigens and determine the ability of each fraction to protect pigs from oncosphere challenge using the IMOA. In vitro protection will be tested by using the immune complement killing assay. Recombinant proteins will be produced from protective antigens, and the best single or combination of recombinants will be used as a vaccine to determine its ability to protect in a T. solium-endemic, sentinel pigs, litters born to immunized dams and seronegative pigs. Under endemic conditions, a vaccine against porcine Cysticerosis would assist in preventing the transmission of T. solium by blocking larval stage development and could serve as an integral part of Cysticerosis control.
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