The development of more effective vaccines against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) remains a major goal in the effort to reduce the enormous global burden of disease caused by this pathogen. Whole-cell vaccines based on live mycobacteria with attenuated virulence represent an appealing approach, providing broad antigen exposure and intrinsic adjuvant properties to prime durable immune response...

Two US swine influenza virus (SIV) isolates, A/Swine/Iowa/15/1930 H1N1 (IA30) and A/Swine/Minnesota/00194/2003 H1N2 (MN03), were evaluated in an in vivo vaccination and challenge model. Inactivated vaccines were prepared from each isolate and used to immunize conventional pigs, followed by challenge with homologous or heterologous virus. Both inactivated vaccines provided complete protection ag...

Background The threat of pandemic A/H1N1 influenza remains a matter of considerable public concern. Recent influenza outbreaks underline the importance of rapid production of a reserve of vaccine sufficient for pandemic and interpandemic periods. Traditional vaccines intended for seasonal influenza do not satisfy this demand, because they are unable to induce cross-reactive antibodies to pandem...

of IBD patients (Table 1.7-8) These guidelines recommend against the use of live vaccines in patients on immunosuppressive medications, but encourage the use of non-live vaccines, such as the HPV vaccine. The HPV vaccine is one of the recommended vaccines for patients with IBD. HPV affects approximately 20 million Americans. Most HPV infections are transient and asymptomatic, but certain Immuno...

Recombination between influenza A viruses as a method of producing strains suitable for use in vaccines is discussed with particular reference to a recombination system involving an attentuated laboratory strain A/PR8/34 (HoNl) and a recent isolate of the epidemic strain A/Hong Kong/68 (H3N2). A variety of properties of the viruses were shown to be segregated independently of one another during...

Seasonal influenza continues to have a huge annual impact in the United States, accounting for tens of millions of illnesses, hundreds of thousands of excess hospitalizations, and tens of thousands of excess deaths. Vaccination remains the mainstay for the prevention of influenza. In the United States, 2 types of influenza vaccine are currently licensed: trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine ...

BACKGROUND The association of xenotropic murine leukemia virus (MLV)-related virus (XMRV) in prostate cancer and chronic fatigue syndrome reported in previous studies remains controversial as these results have been questioned by recent data. Nonetheless, concerns have been raised regarding contamination of human vaccines as a possible source of introduction of XMRV and MLV into human populatio...

The use of molecular virology is described. Emphasis is placed on molecular biology, especially methods involving gene technology. The respective techniques allow characterisation of viruses by molecular cloning and nucleotide sequencing as well as the development of new diagnostic tools and vaccines. Genetically engineered live viruses serve as examples to study potential risks of vaccines der...

Typhoid fever remains an underestimated important health problem in many developing countries, causing more than 600,000 deaths annually in the world. Because of the reactogenicity of the parenteral, killed whole-cell vaccine, research has been oriented towards vaccination orally using live organisms and purified antigen. Live vaccine Ty21a, given by the oral route, has been extensively tested ...

Streptococcus pneumoniae remains a major cause of acute respiratory infections worldwide and is responsible for approximately 1 million childhood deaths each year. Despite the widespread use of antibiotics, the mortality and morbidity of pneumococcal disease remains high. Therefore, effective vaccines to prevent pneumococcal disease are needed. Bacterial vaccine development in general follows a...