With continuing efforts to achieve malaria eradication by 2030, vaccination has become one of our latest tools in combating the disease. Since malaria distribution often coincides with those of helminth infections, a hypothetical immunomodulatory effect looms in coendemic settings. To address the diverse findings of helminth infection against malaria infection responses, this systematic review and meta-analysis aim to provide a comprehensive narrative on the association of helminth infection against antimalarial antibody responses in human and animal studies. This study was registered in PROSPERO as CRD420251055839. A systematic search identified 29 eligible articles from 2705 screened. Statistical analyses were synthesized from eight human studies using standardized mean differences (SMD). Meta-analysis from four studies indicated that antimalarial IgG responses were higher in groups infected with any helminth (SMD -0.44; 95 % CI -0.61 to -0.27; I2 = 79.7 %; p < 0.0001) compared to helminth-uninfected, while another four studies conferred a marginally significant lower antimalarial IgG responses in those infected with Schistosoma haematobium (SMD 0.40; 95 % CI 0.00 to 0.80; I2 = 92.2 %; p = 0.0492). Conversely, another meta-analysis from three distinct studies showed trends of better IgG1 (SMD -0.76; 95 % CI -1.58 to 0.06; I2 = 92.7 %; p = 0.0697) and IgG3 (SMD -1.08; 95 % CI -1.75 to -0.42; I2 = 90.2 %; p = 0.0015) responses in Schistosoma haematobium infection. Due to study limitations, a defining conclusion remains uncertain. Further studies are required to assess factors such as length of exposure and malnutrition. Current evidences suggest helminth modulation depends on the infecting species and types of malaria antigen.
Keywords: Helminth infection; Hyporesponsiveness; Malaria vaccine; Plasmodium.
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