Development of an effective malaria vaccine could greatly contribute to disease control. RTS,S/AS02A is a pre-erythrocytic vaccine candidate based on Plasmodium falciparum circumsporozoite surface antigen. The aim was to assess vaccine efficacy, immunogenicity, and safety in young African children. Methods: They did a double-blind, phase IIb, randomised controlled trial in Mozambique in 2022 children aged 1–4 years.
The study included two cohorts of children living in two separate areas which underwent different follow-up schemes. The participants were randomly allocated three doses of either RTS,S/AS02A candidate malaria vaccine or control vaccines. The primary endpoint, determined in cohort 1 (n=1605), was time to first clinical episode of P falciparum malaria (axillary temperature ≥37·5°C and P falciparum asexual parasitaemia >2500 per μL) over a 6-month surveillance period. Efficacy…
