Malaria Infection Diagnosed by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) as a Means of Evaluating Pre-erythrocytic Candidate Malaria Vaccines

The ability to test candidate pre-erythrocytic stage malaria vaccines, using a well-established sporozoite challenge model, in a field setting with group sizes of tens rather than hundreds of volunteers would greatly facilitate identification of the most promising vaccine candidates. The investigators assessed the suitability and acceptability of this method in a field trial in semi-immune volunteers exposed to natural infection during the high malaria transmission season.