Researchers have discovered a group of stable antigens in Plasmodium parasites that are recognized by human CD8+ T cells. This discovery could help scientists create a broad-spectrum vaccine that works against different types of malaria.

研究人員在瘧原蟲中發現了一組能被人類 CD8+ T 細胞識別的穩定抗原。這一發現可能有助於科學家開發一種能對抗不同類型瘧疾的廣譜疫苗。

In the past, creating effective malaria vaccines was difficult because there was a lack of proven T cell targets. To solve this problem, researchers analyzed infected red blood cells (reticulocytes) from Plasmodium vivax. This process identified 453 unique peptides from 166 proteins. Importantly, 75 of these were 'housekeeping proteins,' which means they are consistently present throughout the parasite's life cycle and are very similar across different malaria species.

過去開發有效的瘧疾疫苗十分困難，因為缺乏經證實的 T 細胞標靶。為了擬解決這個問題，研究人員分析了間日瘧原蟲（Plasmodium vivax）感染的紅血球（網織紅血球）。此過程從 166 種蛋白質中識別出 453 個獨特的肽段。重要的是，其中 75 個是「管家蛋白」，這意味著它們在原蟲的整個生命週期中持續存在，且在不同瘧疾物種之間非常相似。

These peptides were found in various types of human immune molecules (HLA alleles). The researchers then confirmed that these targets trigger an immune response in people infected with both P. vivax and P. falciparum. Furthermore, they observed T cell responses in the blood and liver of primates. In mouse models, two specific antigens provided protection, which suggests that these findings could be successfully applied to human vaccine development for multiple stages and species of the parasite.

這些肽段在各種人類免疫分子（HLA 等位基因）中被發現。研究人員隨後證實，這些標靶能觸發感染間日瘧原蟲與惡性瘧原蟲（P. falciparum）患者的免疫反應。此外，他們在靈長類動物的血液和肝臟中觀察到 T 細胞反應。在小鼠模型中，兩種特定抗原提供了保護，這表明這些發現可成功應用於人類疫苗的開發，以對抗原蟲的多個階段與物種。

The discovery of these shared antigens provides a proven scientific foundation for developing a malaria vaccine that targets several parasite species and developmental stages.

發現這些共享抗原，為開發一種能針對多個原蟲物種及發育階段的瘧疾疫苗提供了經證實的科學基礎。