Project description
A new vaccine against fungal pathogens
Treatment of fungal infections poses a significant medical challenge due to the few available drugs and the associated resistance. Efforts so far to develop vaccines have been met with limited success. VacCan is an EU-funded project that aims to develop a novel vaccine against Candida albicans, the leading cause of fungal infections in humans. Vaccine design will combine three proteins of the fungus, thereby providing multiple antigens against which a more robust immune response can be generated. The VacCan approach will advance vaccine research and pave the way for more effective management of fungal pathogens.
Objective
The fungal pathogen Candida albicans is the most pathogenic of the Candida species and causes millions of superficial mucosal infections and approximately 200,000 deaths per annum due to invasive and disseminated disease in susceptible patient populations. Fungal infections in immunocompromised patients have an unacceptably high mortality rate of approximately 40%, and the yearly healthcare expenditure for the treatment of fungal diseases is estimated to be $15 billion. The clinical treatment of fungal diseases is hampered by poor and time-consuming diagnostics, a limited repertoire of anti-fungal drugs, and increasing levels of resistance to anti-fungal prophylaxis. Crucially, there are currently no licensed vaccines against fungal pathogen. Recent attempts to formulate vaccines have involved delivering simple mixtures of peptide/protein components of the target fungi with adjuvants (without controlled chemical conjugation), and without specific synthetic control have met with limited success. This project will develop new vaccine candidates to Candida albicans, the leading cause of fungal infection in humans worldwide. Unlike previous efforts, a multi-valent approach will be employed, chemically coupling three proteins expressed by Candida albicans. This synthetic approach will ensure the concurrent delivery of multiple protein antigens to overcome barriers faced by previous attempts at developing vaccines. Specifically, the project will focus on the synthesis of multi-valent systems by conjugating proteins to the surface of either: i) dendrimeric scaffolds (3D nanoscale covalent structures) or ii) liposomes (3D nanoscale self-assembled structures). This multidisciplinary proposal will use cutting-edge methodologies to address an unmet clinical need in fungal immunology that will deliver exceptional value through innovative vaccine research against fungal pathogens that are an escalating threat to global health.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- medical and health sciences health sciences infectious diseases
- natural sciences biological sciences biochemistry biomolecules proteins
- natural sciences biological sciences microbiology mycology
- medical and health sciences basic medicine immunology
- medical and health sciences basic medicine pharmacology and pharmacy pharmaceutical drugs vaccines
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2020
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
WC2R 2LS London
United Kingdom
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.