Acute Plasmodium yoelii 17XNL Infection During BCG Vaccination Limits T Cell Responses and Mycobacterial Growth...

Tuberculosis and malaria overlap in many sub-Saharan African countries where Bacillus Calmette Guérin (BCG) vaccination is routinely administered. The aim of this study was to determine whether the timing of BCG vaccination in relation to a malaria infection has implications for BCG vaccine efficacy. Mice were intradermally vaccinated with BCG either 4 weeks before infection with blood-stage Plasmodium yoelii 17XNL, at 13 days post-infection (during an acute blood-stage malaria infection) or 21 days post-infection (after clearance of P. yoelii 17XNL infection). Ex vivo control of mycobacterial growth by splenocytes was used as a surrogate of protective efficacy, and PPD-specific T-cell responses were quantified by flow cytometry. No differences in mycobacterial growth control were detected between BCG vaccinated mice and groups receiving vaccination prior to or after clearance of P. yoelii 17XNL infection. Poorer control of mycobacterial growth was observed following BCG vaccination administered during an acute malarial infection compared to BCG vaccination only or BCG vaccination after blood-stage malaria infection, and mycobacterial growth negatively correlated with the magnitude of total cytokine production from PPD-specific CD4⁺ T cells (p < 0.0001). Delayed BCG vaccination beyond the neonatal period may increase the risk of concurrent malarial infections with the potential to reduce BCG efficacy in children in malaria-endemic areas.