BALB-c mice immunized intramuscularly with a single dose (100 microg) of a plasmid DNA encoding the 5'-terminal region of the trans-sialidase (nTSA) gene of T. brucei brucei are able to produce IgG antibodies that bind to the bloodstream form of T. brucei-protein extract and recognize the recombinant nTSA protein, expressed in Escherichia coli. Furthermore, this DNA vaccination process was able to protect 60% of mice submitted to a challenge assay with the infective form of T. brucei brucei parasites (Silva et al., 2009).
Silva et al., 2009: Silva MS, Prazeres DM, Lança A, Atouguia J, Monteiro GA. Trans-sialidase from Trypanosoma brucei as a potential target for DNA vaccine development against African trypanosomiasis. Parasitology research. 2009; 105(5); 1223-1229. [PubMed: 19582478].
