Child with malaria in Nigeria

WHO/Pierre Virot

A new vaccine approach that delivers a 'double punch' could give the immune system an edge against malaria, AIDS and other infectious diseases, according to a new study.

A team of US and UK-based researchers injected human volunteers with the malaria parasite's DNA, followed by a boost with a modified poxvirus that can produce parasite proteins.

They report in Nature Medicine that neither the parasite's DNA nor the poxvirus alone evoked a strong immune response. But the combination tricked the volunteers' immune systems into producing enough immune cells to attack malaria. Success against malaria raises hope for other diseases too, they say.
 
Link to Nature Science Update news story
Link to abstract of research paper in Nature Medicine