NCT02098590

Brief Summary

Malaria, a disease caused by the parasite Plasmodium, is one of the world's major infectious diseases. With approximately 627.000 deaths a year, it is both a chief cause of morbidity and mortality as well as a significant contribution to ongoing poverty in endemic countries. Ultimately, the key to malaria control, and hopefully eradication, would be an effective vaccine. Though a number of vaccine-candidates have entered the pipeline of pre-clinical and clinical development, they have yet to achieve the level of efficacy necessary for effective malaria prevention. It has been shown previously that if healthy human volunteers taking chloroquine chemoprophylaxis are repeatedly exposed to Plasmodium parasites through the bites of infected mosquitoes, they are fully protected against a later challenge infection with a 'homologous' (genetically similar) Plasmodium parasite. This process is known as ChemoProphylaxis and Sporozoites, or CPS-immunization. One of the obstacles to developing an effective vaccine is the genetic heterogeneity of malaria parasites. To further consider the development of whole-parasite based vaccines against malaria and in order to better understand the protective immunity induced by CPS-immunization, it is essential to investigate whether heterologous protection against genetically diverse (heterologous) P. falciparum clones can be induced. This is a single center, randomized, double-blind study to determine whether healthy volunteers immunized with P. falciparum NF54 parasites under chloroquine prophylaxis are protected against a challenge infection with the genetically distinct NF135.C10 or NF166.C8 P. falciparum clones.

Trial Health

87
On Track

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Enrollment
40

participants targeted

Target at P25-P50 for not_applicable

Timeline
Completed

Started Oct 2014

Geographic Reach
1 country

1 active site

Status
completed

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

Click on a node to explore related trials.

Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

March 25, 2014

Completed
3 days until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

March 28, 2014

Completed
6 months until next milestone

Study Start

First participant enrolled

October 1, 2014

Completed
1.1 years until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

November 1, 2015

Completed
Same day until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

November 1, 2015

Completed
Last Updated

February 23, 2016

Status Verified

February 1, 2016

Enrollment Period

1.1 years

First QC Date

March 25, 2014

Last Update Submit

February 22, 2016

Conditions

Keywords

MalariaPlasmodium falciparum

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

  • Parasitemia

    The effectiveness of CPS-immunization with NF54 sporozoites to protect against malaria challenge infection with heterologous NF135.C10 or NF166.C8 sporozoites will be determined by the time to parasitemia in immunized versus non-immunized volunteers after the challenge infection.

    day 1 - 28 after malaria challenge infection

Secondary Outcomes (2)

  • Antigen specificity of CPS-immunization induced antibodies against P. falciparum

    6-10 days after challenge infection

  • Specificity of CPS-immunization induced T-cell responses against P. falciparum

    14 days after each CPS-immunization

Study Arms (6)

NF54 CPS-immunization challenged by NF135.C10

EXPERIMENTAL

Subjects will receive CPS-immunization by bites from 3 x 15 NF54 P. falciparum infected mosquitoes under chloroquine prophylaxis. After stopping chloroquine subjects will receive a heterologous malaria challenge infection by exposure to the bites of 5 NF135.C10 P. falciparum infected mosquitoes. Subjects will be treated with Malarone if they develop a malaria infection or on day 28 after challenge infection.

Biological: CPS-immunizationBiological: malaria challenge infection, P. falciparum NF135.C10Drug: atovaquone/proguanil

NF54 CPS-immunization challenged by NF166.C8

EXPERIMENTAL

Subjects will receive CPS-immunization by bites from 3 x 15 NF54 P. falciparum infected mosquitoes under chloroquine prophylaxis. After stopping chloroquine subjects will receive a heterologous malaria challenge infection by exposure to the bites of 5 NF166.C8 P. falciparum infected mosquitoes. Subjects will be treated with Malarone if they develop a malaria infection or on day 28 after challenge infection.

Biological: CPS-immunizationBiological: malaria challenge infection, P. falciparum NF166.C8Drug: atovaquone/proguanil

NF54 CPS-immunization challenged by NF54

OTHER

\[Negative control group, to assess effectiveness of CPS-immunization.\] Subjects will receive CPS-immunization by bites from 3 x 15 NF54 P. falciparum infected mosquitoes under chloroquine prophylaxis. After stopping chloroquine subjects will receive a homologous malaria challenge infection by exposure to the bites of 5 NF54 P. falciparum infected mosquitoes. Subjects will be treated with Malarone if they develop a malaria infection or on day 28 after challenge infection.

Biological: CPS-immunizationBiological: malaria challenge infection, P. falciparum NF54Drug: atovaquone/proguanil

Control group challenged by NF135.C10

OTHER

\[Control group\] Subjects will receive bites from 3 x 15 uninfected mosquitoes under chloroquine prophylaxis. After stopping chloroquine subjects will receive a malaria challenge infection by exposure to the bites of NF135.C10 P. falciparum infected mosquitoes. Subjects will be treated with Malarone if they develop a malaria infection or on day 28 after challenge infection.

Biological: malaria challenge infection, P. falciparum NF135.C10Drug: atovaquone/proguanil

Control group challenged by NF166.C8

OTHER

\[Control group\] Subjects will receive bites from 3 x 15 uninfected mosquitoes under chloroquine prophylaxis. After stopping chloroquine subjects will receive a malaria challenge infection by exposure to the bites of NF166.C8 P. falciparum infected mosquitoes. Subjects will be treated with Malarone if they develop a malaria infection or on day 28 after challenge infection.

Biological: malaria challenge infection, P. falciparum NF166.C8Drug: atovaquone/proguanil

Control group challenged by NF54

OTHER

\[Control group\] Subjects will receive bites from 3 x 15 uninfected mosquitoes under chloroquine prophylaxis. After stopping chloroquine subjects will receive a malaria challenge infection by exposure to the bites of NF54 P. falciparum infected mosquitoes. Subjects will be treated with Malarone if they develop a malaria infection or on day 28 after challenge infection.

Biological: malaria challenge infection, P. falciparum NF54Drug: atovaquone/proguanil

Interventions

Subjects will be exposed 3 times to bites from 15 NF54 Plasmodium infected mosquitoes during each immunization, while taking chloroquin prophylaxis.

Also known as: chloroquin, Plasmodium falciparum NF54 sporozoites
NF54 CPS-immunization challenged by NF135.C10NF54 CPS-immunization challenged by NF166.C8NF54 CPS-immunization challenged by NF54

Subjects will receive bites from 5 Anopheles mosquitoes infected with Plasmodium falciparum NF135.C10 sporozoites.

Also known as: Plasmodium falciparum NF135.C10 sporozoites
Control group challenged by NF135.C10NF54 CPS-immunization challenged by NF135.C10

Subjects will receive bites from 5 Anopheles mosquitoes infected with Plasmodium falciparum NF166.C8 sporozoites.

Also known as: Plasmodium falciparum NF166.C8 sporozoites
Control group challenged by NF166.C8NF54 CPS-immunization challenged by NF166.C8

Subjects will receive bites from 5 Anopheles mosquitoes infected with Plasmodium falciparum NF54 sporozoites.

Also known as: Plasmodium falciparum NF54 sporozoites
Control group challenged by NF54NF54 CPS-immunization challenged by NF54

All participants will be treated with atovaquone/proguanil when they develop a malaria infection or on day 28 after malaria challenge infection.

Also known as: Malarone
Control group challenged by NF135.C10Control group challenged by NF166.C8Control group challenged by NF54NF54 CPS-immunization challenged by NF135.C10NF54 CPS-immunization challenged by NF166.C8NF54 CPS-immunization challenged by NF54

Eligibility Criteria

Age18 Years - 35 Years
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersYes
Age GroupsAdult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

  • In order to be eligible to participate in this study, a subject must meet all of the following criteria:
  • Subject is aged ≥ 18 and ≤ 35 years and in good health.
  • Subject has adequate understanding of the procedures of the study and agrees to abide strictly thereby.
  • Subject is able to communicate well with the investigator, is available to attend all study visits, lives in proximity to the trial centre (\<10 km) or (if \>10km) is willing to stay in a hotel close to the trial centre during part of the study (day 5 post-infection until three days post-treatment). Furthermore the subject will remain within the Netherlands during the challenge period, not travel to a malaria-endemic area during the study period, and is reachable (24/7) by mobile telephone throughout the entire study period.
  • Subject agrees to inform his/her general practitioner about participation in the study and to sign a request to release by the General Practitioner (GP) any relevant medical information concerning possible contra-indications for participation in the study.
  • Subject agrees to refrain from blood donation to Sanquin or for other purposes throughout the study period and for a defined period thereafter according to current Sanquin guidelines.
  • For female subjects: subject agrees to use adequate contraception and not to breastfeed for the duration of study.
  • Subject has signed informed consent.
  • Subject agrees to refrain from intensive physical exercise (disproportionate to the subjects usual daily activity or exercise routine) for ten days following each immunization and during the malaria challenge period.

You may not qualify if:

  • A potential subject who meets any of the following criteria will be excluded from participation in this study:
  • Any history, or evidence at screening, of clinically significant symptoms, physical signs or abnormal laboratory values suggestive of systemic conditions, such as cardiovascular, pulmonary, renal, hepatic, neurological, dermatological, endocrine, malignant, haematological, infectious, immunodeficient, psychiatric and other disorders, which could compromise the health of the volunteer during the study or interfere with the interpretation of the study results. These include, but are not limited to, any of the following.
  • Body weight \<50 kg or Body Mass Index (BMI) \<18.0 or \>30.0 kg/m2 at screening.
  • A heightened risk of cardiovascular disease, as determined by: an estimated ten year risk of fatal cardiovascular disease of ≥5% at screening, as determined by the Systematic Coronary Risk Evaluation (SCORE); history, or evidence at screening, of clinically significant arrhythmia's, prolonged QT-interval or other clinically relevant ECG abnormalities; or a positive family history of cardiac events in 1st or 2nd degree relatives \<50 years old.
  • A medical history of functional asplenia, sickle cell trait/disease, thalassaemia trait/disease or G6PD deficiency.
  • History of epilepsy in the period of five years prior to study onset, even if no longer on medication.
  • Positive Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) or Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) screening tests.
  • Chronic use of i) immunosuppressive drugs, ii) antibiotics, iii) or other immune modifying drugs within three months prior to study onset (inhaled and topical corticosteroids and oral anti-histamines exempted) or expected use of such during the study period.
  • History of malignancy of any organ system (other than localized basal cell carcinoma of the skin), treated or untreated, within the past 5 years.
  • Any history of treatment for severe psychiatric disease by a psychiatrist in the past year.
  • For female subjects: positive urine pregnancy test at screening or prior to infection.
  • Any history of malaria, positive serology for P. falciparum, or previous participation in any malaria (vaccine) study.
  • Known hypersensitivity to or contra-indications (including co-medication) for use of chloroquine, Malarone or artemether-lumefantrine, or history of severe (allergic) reactions to mosquito bites.
  • Receipt of any vaccinations in the 3 months prior to the start of the study or plans to receive any other vaccinations during the study period or up to 8 weeks thereafter.
  • Participation in any other clinical study in the 30 days prior to the start of the study or during the study period.
  • +2 more criteria

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (1)

Radboud university medical center

Nijmegen, Gelderland, 6525 GA, Netherlands

Location

Related Publications (3)

  • Roestenberg M, McCall M, Hopman J, Wiersma J, Luty AJ, van Gemert GJ, van de Vegte-Bolmer M, van Schaijk B, Teelen K, Arens T, Spaarman L, de Mast Q, Roeffen W, Snounou G, Renia L, van der Ven A, Hermsen CC, Sauerwein R. Protection against a malaria challenge by sporozoite inoculation. N Engl J Med. 2009 Jul 30;361(5):468-77. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa0805832.

    PMID: 19641203BACKGROUND
  • Roestenberg M, O'Hara GA, Duncan CJ, Epstein JE, Edwards NJ, Scholzen A, van der Ven AJ, Hermsen CC, Hill AV, Sauerwein RW. Comparison of clinical and parasitological data from controlled human malaria infection trials. PLoS One. 2012;7(6):e38434. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0038434. Epub 2012 Jun 11.

    PMID: 22701640BACKGROUND
  • Walk J, Reuling IJ, Behet MC, Meerstein-Kessel L, Graumans W, van Gemert GJ, Siebelink-Stoter R, van de Vegte-Bolmer M, Janssen T, Teelen K, de Wilt JHW, de Mast Q, van der Ven AJ, Diez Benavente E, Campino S, Clark TG, Huynen MA, Hermsen CC, Bijker EM, Scholzen A, Sauerwein RW. Modest heterologous protection after Plasmodium falciparum sporozoite immunization: a double-blind randomized controlled clinical trial. BMC Med. 2017 Sep 13;15(1):168. doi: 10.1186/s12916-017-0923-4.

MeSH Terms

Conditions

MalariaMalaria, Falciparum

Interventions

atovaquone, proguanil drug combination

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Protozoan InfectionsParasitic DiseasesInfectionsMosquito-Borne DiseasesVector Borne Diseases

Study Officials

  • Robert W Sauerwein, Prof

    Radboud University Medical Center

    PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
not applicable
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
QUADRUPLE
Who Masked
PARTICIPANT, CARE PROVIDER, INVESTIGATOR, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
Purpose
PREVENTION
Intervention Model
PARALLEL
Sponsor Type
OTHER
Responsible Party
SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

March 25, 2014

First Posted

March 28, 2014

Study Start

October 1, 2014

Primary Completion

November 1, 2015

Study Completion

November 1, 2015

Last Updated

February 23, 2016

Record last verified: 2016-02

Locations