From memory to antifungal vaccine design

Abstract

Fungal infections and related diseases have a high morbidity and mortality rate. Human antifungal vaccines are therefore of great interest, however, their development is challenging. Major hurdles include fungal species-specific differences in pathogenic mechanisms and strategies to escape immune surveillance, as well as the fact that individuals susceptible to infection do not necessarily share the same risk factors. Progress in antifungal vaccines demands the integration of immunology with systems biology, immunogenetics and bioinformatics in the arena of both fungal and host biology. Bridging the fields of basic immunology and vaccine research is needed to create individualized host immune profiles that will direct the rational development of customized adjuvants and vaccines with a predicted efficacy in each target population.