MINI REVIEW article
Front. Malar.
Sec. Case Management
Volume 3 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmala.2025.1557371
This article is part of the Research TopicAdvancing Malaria Eradication: Innovations, Implementations, and InsightsView all articles
Targeting Mucosal Immunity in Malaria Control: The Underexplored Role of IgA
Provisionally accepted
- 1Department of Physiology, School of Biomedical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
- 2Lung Institute, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
- 3Central Public Health Laboratories, Ministry of Health (Uganda), Kampala, Uganda
- 4Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
- 5Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda
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Malaria remains a global health crisis, causing an estimated 263 million cases and 597,000 deaths in 2023. Current measures-including insecticide-treated nets, ACTs, and the RTS,S vaccine-have stalled in reducing mortality, highlighting the need for novel strategies. While studies IgG and IgM have dominated malaria immunology research, recent data reveal a broader role for Immunoglobulin A (IgA). Evidence suggests that IgA can block parasite entry, activate complement, and modulate inflammation, although its protective efficacy has yet to be established. This review synthesizes the emerging literature on sporozoite-and merozoite-specific IgA responses, examines how IgA arises in a "non-mucosal" infection like malaria, and explores vaccine platforms-oral, nasal, or prime-boost-that might harness IgA alongside IgG. We also identify critical gaps in correlating IgA levels with clinical immunity, emphasizing the need for specialized animal models and longitudinal human cohorts. Ultimately, leveraging IgA-driven mucosal immunity could significantly reinforce existing malaria interventions by preventing parasite establishment at mucosal or skin interfaces. By uniting mucosal and systemic immunity, research on IgA-based vaccines promises a next-generation approach to reducing malaria transmission, thereby creating a path towards global eradication.
Keywords: Immunoglobulin a (IgA), mucosal immunity, Malaria Vaccines, Plasmodium falciparum, Sporozoite neutralization, Complement Activation, Mucosal Vaccine Delivery, Malaria transmission blocking
Received: 08 Jan 2025; Accepted: 05 Jun 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Muwonge, Ssewanyana, Yeka and Byakika-Kibwika. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Haruna Muwonge, Department of Physiology, School of Biomedical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.