Vaccine
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Rotavirus mortality is an important component of the total burden of rotavirus disease for children under 5 years old, but accurate estimation is difficult for many developing countries. Here we applied a more direct method to improve estimates of rotavirus mortality in China using 2002 Chinese-specific data. Results indicate that in 2002, approximately 13,400 children under 5 years old in China died from rotavirus and 70% of these deaths occur in rural areas. Thus, a national rotavirus immunization program targeting rural areas with high mortality from diarrhoea could dramatically reduce these deaths and urban areas could reduce childhood hospitalizations attributed to rotavirus by 43%.
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We used published and unpublished studies and national statistics to estimate the number of deaths, hospitalizations, and outpatient visits due to rotavirus diarrhoea and the associated national economic burden of disease in India. Annually in India, rotavirus diarrhoea causes an estimated 122,000-153,000 deaths, 457,000-884,000 hospitalizations, and 2 million outpatient visits in children <5 years of age. India spends Rs 2.0-3.4 billion (US$ 41-72 million) annually in medical costs to treat rotavirus diarrhoea. The use of specific interventions against rotavirus, such as newly available vaccines, would help prevent much of this large disease and economic burden.
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The availability of complete genome sequence of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup B strain MC58 and reverse vaccinology has allowed the discovery of several novel antigens. Here, we have explored the potential of N. meningitidis lipoprotein NMB0938 as a vaccine candidate, based on investigation of gene sequence conservation and the antibody response elicited after immunization in mice. This antigen was previously identified by a genome-based approach as an outer membrane lipoprotein unique to the Neisseria genus. ⋯ Using flow cytometry, it was also shown that anti-rNMB0938 antibodies bound to the surface of the homologous meningococcal strain and activated complement deposition. Moreover, antibodies against rNMB0938 elicited complement-mediated killing of meningococcal strains from both sequence variants and conferred passive protection against meningococcal bacteremia in infant rats. According to our results, NMB0938 represents a promising candidate to be included in a vaccine to prevent meningococcal disease.
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Neutralizing antibody is associated with the prevention and clearance of influenza virus infection. Microneutralization (MN) and hemagglutination inhibition (HI) assays are currently used to evaluate neutralizing antibody responses against human and avian influenza viruses, including H5N1. The MN assay is somewhat labor intensive, while HI is a surrogate for neutralization. ⋯ Here we demonstrate that HA/NA pseudotypes mimic release and entry of influenza virus and that the PN assay exhibits good specificity and reveals quantitative difference in neutralizing antibody titers against different H5N1 clades and subclades. Using immune ferret sera, we demonstrated excellent correlation between the PN, MN, and HI assays. Thus, we conclude that the PN assay is a sensitive and quantifiable method to measure neutralizing antibodies against diverse clades and subclades of H5N1 influenza virus.