Abstract

Although there has been major recent progress in malaria vaccine development, substantial challenges remain for achieving highly efficacious and durable vaccines against Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax malaria. Greater knowledge of mechanisms and key targets of immunity are needed to accomplish this goal, together with new strategies for generating potent, long-lasting, functional immunity against multiple antigens. Implementation considerations in endemic areas will ultimately affect vaccine effectiveness, so innovations to simplify and enhance delivery are also needed. Whereas challenges remain, recent exciting progress and emerging knowledge promise hope for the future of malaria vaccines.

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Funding

This work was supported by funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council, Australia (program grant nos. 1092789 and GNT1132975); a Senior Research Fellowship to J.G.B.; a Career Development Award to M.J.B.; a Senior Principal Research Fellowship to M.F.G.; the Australian Centre for Research Excellence in Malaria Elimination; and an Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship to L.K. The Burnet Institute is supported by an Operational Infrastructure Grant of the Victorian State Government, Australia, and the NHMRC Independent Research Institutes Infrastructure Support Scheme. ISGlobal is supported by the CERCA Institute, Generalitat de Catalunya.