EHI was invited to attend a dissemination on the clinical trial result from Sanaria’s latest vaccine trial in Indonesia – IDSPZV1 – on July 17th, 2024. Edwin Sutanto and Agatha Mia Puspitasari attended the dissemination, discussing Sanaria’s latest vaccine that blocks Plasmodium falciparum sporozoites infection, possibly preventing the spread of malaria. The vaccine was tested on Indonesian soldiers in a nonendemic malaria area that will be deployed to Papua, an area with high malaria endemicity. The clinical trial was done in collaboration with OUCRU Indonesia, Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI), and Sanaria. The IDSPZV1 trial was led by Prof. Dr. dr. Erni Juwita Nelwan, Ph.D, Sp.PD, K-PTI, FACP, FINASIM, with assistance from OUCRU Indonesia.
Two vaccine variants – PfSPZ and PfSPZ-CVac – were tested in this clinical trial. Different groups were administered different vaccine variants and then deployed to Papua after complete doses were administered. The soldiers were followed up to test the safety and efficacy of the two vaccines. The researchers found the vaccines had minimal adverse effects and were not significantly different compared to the placebo group, similar to studies done outside Indonesia. They found that after 24 weeks, the efficacy of PfSPZ and PfSPZ-CVac were 56% and 50%, respectively. This is an encouraging result, considering the present malaria genetic diversity in Papua, Indonesia.
Following this study, Sanaria hoped the collaboration between OUCRU Indonesia and TNI could continue. They discussed the possibility of a new clinical trial using Sanaria’s latest variant – PfSPZ-LARC2 – to observe the safety and efficacy of Indonesian soldiers soon. They also plan to develop vaccines that can target Plasmodium vivax, another malaria burden that is prevalent in Southeast Asia countries. Currently, Sanaria is applying to license the current vaccines to the FDA, EMA, and malaria-endemic countries, which can aid in malaria eradication in Indonesia by 2030.
