Publications by authors named "Laura de Bes-Roeleveld"
Hookworm infection remains a significant public health concern, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, where mass drug administration has not stopped reinfection. Developing a vaccine is crucial to complement current control measures, which necessitates a thorough understanding of host immune responses. By leveraging controlled human infection models and high-dimensional immunophenotyping, here we investigated the immune remodeling following infection with 50 Necator americanus L3 hookworm larvae in four naïve volunteers over two years of follow-up and compared the profiles with naturally infected populations in endemic areas.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSchistosomiasis is an infection caused by contact with -contaminated water and affects more than 230 million people worldwide with varying morbidity. The roles of T helper 2 (T2) cells and regulatory immune responses in chronic infection are well documented, but less is known about human immune responses during acute infection. Here, we comprehensively map immune responses during controlled human infection using male or female cercariae.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- The study focuses on how the age of Plasmodium falciparum sporozoites (SPZ) in mosquitoes affects their infectivity and the immune response they trigger in humans, specifically examining SPZ that are 14, 17, and 20 days old.* -
- Results indicated that while the number and viability of SPZ did not change with age, their motility decreased significantly over time, and the infectivity of SPZ dropped notably from 14 to 20 days.* -
- Additionally, immune responses showed that macrophages were more effective at taking up SPZ at 14 days, resulting in higher expression of inflammatory markers compared to those that were 20 days old.*
Article Synopsis
- - A new controlled human infection model for schistosomiasis (CHI-S) using female-only Schistosoma mansoni cercariae was developed to improve vaccine research and understand early immune responses.
- - Thirteen healthy participants were exposed to either 10 or 20 female cercariae, resulting in most experiencing rash or mild symptoms, with some showing detectable infection despite receiving praziquantel treatment.
- - The study found that female infections display similar symptoms and immune responses as male infections but show greater resistance to praziquantel, suggesting challenges for future research and disease control efforts.
Article Synopsis
- Current whole sporozoite (SPZ) vaccines show limited effectiveness in malaria-endemic regions, possibly due to reduced immune responses from prior malaria exposure.
- Researchers have developed a method to enhance SPZ vaccine immunogenicity by attaching a TLR7 agonist-based adjuvant, leading to significantly higher immune responses, including a 35-fold increase in pro-inflammatory IL-6 production.
- Mice immunized with this enhanced SPZ vaccine demonstrated improved production of specific immune cells, suggesting that this chemical augmentation strategy could make malaria vaccines more effective.