Working towards the development of vaccines and chemotherapeutics against neosporosis—With all of its ups and downs—Looking ahead

Imhof, Dennis; Hänggeli, Kai Pascal Alexander; Ferreira de Sousa, Maria Cristina; Vigneswaran, Anitha; Hofmann, Larissa; Amdouni, Yosra; Boubaker, Ghalia; Müller, Joachim; Hemphill, Andrew (2024). Working towards the development of vaccines and chemotherapeutics against neosporosis—With all of its ups and downs—Looking ahead. Advances in Parasitology, 124, pp. 91-154. Elsevier 10.1016/bs.apar.2024.01.001

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Neospora caninum is an apicomplexan and obligatory intracellular parasite, which is
the leading cause of reproductive failure in cattle and affects other farm and domestic
animals, but also induces neuromuscular disease in dogs of all ages. In cattle, neosporosis
is an important health problem, and has a considerable economic impact. To
date there is no protective vaccine or chemotherapeutic treatment on the market.
Immuno-prophylaxis has long been considered as the best control measure. Proteins
involved in host cell interaction and invasion, as well as antigens mediating inflammatory
responses have been the most frequently assessed vaccine targets. However,
despite considerable efforts no effective vaccine has been introduced to the market
to date. The development of effective compounds to limit the effects of vertical
transmission of N. caninum tachyzoites has emerged as an alternative or addition to
vaccination, provided suitable targets and safe and efficacious drugs can be identified.
Additionally, the combination of both treatment strategies might be interesting to
further increase protectivity against N. caninum infections and to decrease the
duration of treatment and the risk of potential drug resistance. Well-established and
standardized animal infection models are key factors for the evaluation of promising
vaccine and compound candidates. The vast majority of experimental animal
experiments concerning neosporosis have been performed in mice, although in
recent years the numbers of experimental studies in cattle and sheep have increased.
In this review, we discuss the recent findings concerning the progress in drug and
vaccine development against N. caninum infections in mice and ruminants.

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