A US government-funded malaria vaccine trial led by the Oxford Vaccine Group at the University of Oxford and involving Oxford student volunteers has been stopped without warning. The pause comes after US President Donald Trump ordered a 90-day freeze on payments from USAID, the US government’s international aid bureau.
At least 42 students from Oxford and Oxford Brookes had already received varying doses of the experimental vaccine — the first time it had been tested on humans. Oxford Vaccine Group advertises to undergraduates at both universities’ Freshers Fairs, as well as in its colleges and online, paying volunteers £1,000 – £4,000.
The trial was testing two innovative vaccines designed to prevent the malaria parasite from entering the bloodstream. Unlike existing malaria vaccines, which aim to stop the parasite from multiplying in the liver, the new vaccines are designed to stop the infection reaching the blood – the most severe stage of the disease.Fourteen of the volunteers were planned to be infected with the malaria parasite to test the efficacy of the new jabs.
According to the information document given to volunteers, short-term risks include pain at the injection site, itching, swelling, and flu-like symptoms within 24 hours of vaccination. The document also says there is a “low risk of serious reaction”, including rare but potentially severe conditions such as anaphylaxis, a potentially fatal allergic reaction, and Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare neurological condition in which a person’s immune system attacks the peripheral nerves.
The document states that “study doctors” are available 24 hours a day, but it is unclear how this support will be funded following the withdrawal of USAID. Unless funding is renewed, the trial will not continue. A University of Oxford spokesperson said: “Our priority remains the safety and care of participants in any trials.”
A source with close knowledge of the trial told The Telegraph that researchers were attempting to obtain a waiver from the USAID freeze. This would mean the trial could continue and volunteers could be monitored going forward. Another source told The Telegraph that early results from the trial were “strong” and that they expected funding to be found elsewhere if a waiver was not obtained from USAID.The Oxford Vaccine Group, the world leader in malaria vaccine research, recently developed the groundbreaking R21 malaria vaccine in collaboration with Oxford’s Jenner Institute. Last year the vaccine was rolled out across Africa, where 94% of malaria cases and 94% of malaria deaths occur globally, and is expected to reduce malaria deaths in Africa by at least 30%.
