Immunoepidemiología, immunodiagnóstico y vacunación basada en la evidencia con ADN-proteina contra leishmaniasis canina usando antígenos producidos en larvas biorreactoras

The WHO considers the leishmaniases A MAJOR PROBLEM. These zoonoses, in which dogs are the main peridomestic reservoirs, are threatening 350 million men; women and children in 88 countries around the world, 12 million of these people are already affected by the disease which, in its worst form, is fatal. AIDS and other immunosuppressive conditions increase the risk of Leishmania-infected people to develop visceral illness, and in certain areas of the world the risk of co-infection with HIV is considered a real threat. Current treatments are not satisfactory and relapses are too many frequents , in this setting the best option is to develop a vaccine, situation where conventional vaccines have failed. Our group has demonstrated that it is possible to elicit an immune response using a multigènica naked DNA vaccine against Leishmania. The purpose of the study is to optimize and improve this prophylactic naked DNA vaccination, using evidence based vaccinology, by means of an heterologous prime-bost strategy with plasmids followed with antigens obtained in living insect larvae used as "bioreactors" and also get more information on the pathology and epidemiology using above mentioned antigens in order to develop new diagnostics