The Sabin Vaccine Institute said it began vaccinating participants for a Phase 1 clinical trial of a novel human hookworm vaccine in partnership with the George Washington University and the Children’s National Medical Center,. The trial will investigate the Na-GST-1 antigen developed by the Sabin Vaccine Institute Product Development Partnership (Sabin PDP) to prevent hookworm infections in endemic areas. Dr. Peter Hotez, president of the Sabin Vaccine Institute and director of the Sabin Vaccine Institute and Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, said, “This trial signifies the great progress global health leaders are making to help combat diseases of poverty. This trial helps advance our goal to develop a safe, efficacious and low-cost vaccine to reduce the global burden of human hookworm, which infects nearly 600 million people worldwide.” This study will help to quickly determine the optimal vaccine formulation for future clinical testing of the Na-GST-1 antigen. A critical component of the vaccine being tested is a novel adjuvant developed by the Infectious Disease Research Institute (IDRI) of Seattle, Washington. The adjuvant, GLA-AF, could potentially help to stimulate the immune system for an improved specific antibody response to the vaccine antigen.
Established in 2000 with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and with additional support from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Brazilian Ministry of Health, the George Washington University, and the Children’s National Clinical and Translational Science Institute, the Sabin PDP is “the first and only program that aims to reduce the prevalence of human hookworm infection by developing the world’s first vaccine targeting the disease.”
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