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Bacteriophage virus-like particle vaccines for Chlamydia trachomatis urogenital infection

Award Number: R01AI166360
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY & INFECTIOUS DISEASES
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 12/06/2022
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 11/30/2027

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Bacteriophage virus-like particle vaccines for Chlamydia trachomatis urogenital infection - PROJECT SUMMARY Chlamydia trachomatis is an obligate intracellular bacteria that is the most common bacterial sexually transmitted infection. Despite effective antibiotic treatment and screening programs, the prevalence of chlamydia continues to rise. Although the infection can be asymptomatic, some women experience serious long-term sequelae, including pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility, and ectopic pregnancy. For these reasons, a prophylactic vaccine against chlamydia is needed. However, significant gaps exist in our knowledge of the natural immune response to urogenital Chlamydia trachomatis infection. In particular, the specificity of antibodies elicited during infection, their functions, and their protective capacity are not well understood. The overall goal of this research is to design prophylactic antibody-eliciting vaccines against urogenital Chlamydia trachomatis infection. The objective of this proposal is to define the range of protective functions antibodies can have against Chlamydia trachomatis infection of the female urogenital tract, and use this knowledge to create vaccines that can elicit those antibodies. Our working hypothesis is that antibody responses that target proteins known to be involved in adhesion and entry into host cells or mediate pathology in the reproductive tract will be protective against urogenital Chlamydia trachomatis infection. In Aim 1, we will engineer epitope-specific vaccine candidates that will elicit high titer antibodies to Chlamydia trachomatis adhesion factors and define their immunogenicity in mouse immunization studies. In Aim 2, we will investigate the specific functions of vaccine-elicited antibodies to neutralize Chlamydia trachomatis infection in cell culture, mediate complement killing of Chlamydia trachomatis, and facilitate uptake and killing by neutrophils. In Aim 3, we will investigate the protective capacity of our vaccines in mouse models of Chlamydia infection. We will investigate the bacterial burden in the upper reproductive tract, bacterial shedding, pathology, and male urogenital tract infection. Overall, these studies will define the role of epitope-specific antibodies in urogenital Chlamydia trachomatis infection and lead to the identification of novel targets for Chlamydia trachomatis vaccine design.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2026 ( Subtotal = $378,653 )
2026	2026	UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO	1 UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO	ALBUQUERQUE	NM	87131	BERNALILLO	USA	Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research	000	4	11/26/2025	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$378,653
														Subtotal = $378,653

Issue Date FY: 2025 ( Subtotal = $371,365 )
2025	2025	UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO	1 UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO	ALBUQUERQUE	NM	87131	BERNALILLO	USA	Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research	000	3	1/10/2025	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$371,365
														Subtotal = $371,365

Issue Date FY: 2024 ( Subtotal = $383,117 )
2024	2024	UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO	1 UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO	ALBUQUERQUE	NM	87131	BERNALILLO	USA	Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research	001	2	5/15/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$38,312
2024	2024	UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO	1 UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO	ALBUQUERQUE	NM	87131	BERNALILLO	USA	Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research	000	2	11/22/2023	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$344,805
														Subtotal = $383,117

Issue Date FY: 2023 ( Subtotal = $383,117 )
2023	2023	UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO	1 UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO	ALBUQUERQUE	NM	87131	BERNALILLO	USA	Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research	000	1	12/6/2022	NEW	$383,117
														Subtotal = $383,117

Grand Total All Awards = $1,516,252

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Bacteriophage virus-like particle vaccines for Chlamydia trachomatis urogenital infection

Award Number: R01AI166360

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY & INFECTIOUS DISEASES

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 12/06/2022

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 11/30/2027

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