Article
Microbiology
Feroze Ganaie, Karsten Maruhn, Chengxin Li, Richard J. Porambo, Pernille L. Elverdal, Chitrananda Abeygunwardana, Mark van der Linden, Jens O. Duus, Carmen L. Sheppard, Moon H. Nahm
Summary: Pneumococcal serotype epidemiology has changed with the emergence of a new capsule type, 24C, which resembles 24F but has unique serological features. Pneumococci can modulate their capsule structure and immunologic properties with small genetic changes to evade host immune responses. This suggests a potential for the development of new capsule types within serogroup 24.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Applied
Tiantian Sun, Shiyan Mai, Hongzhao Mao, Huiting Li, Yunyao Duan, Shuai Meng, Jiaolin Bao, Ning Ding, Chengli Zong
Summary: Around 100 serotypes of Streptococcus pneumonia (Spn) have been discovered, with 90% of severe diseases in children caused by 13 serotypes. The burden of pneumococcal disease has been significantly reduced with the success of pneumococcal bacterial polysaccharide conjugate vaccines (PCVs). The non-vaccine serotype 31 has increased in prevalence. The revised structure of the serotype 31 polysaccharide (s-31-ps) has been reported, and a conjugate vaccine has been prepared using organic solvent instead of water.
CARBOHYDRATE POLYMERS
(2022)
Article
Hematology
Hannah M. Garcia Garrido, Sabine Haggenburg, Marieke C. E. Schoordijk, Ellen Meijer, Michael W. T. Tanck, Mette D. Hazenberg, Caroline E. Rutten, Godelieve J. de Bree, Erfan Nur, Bob Meek, Martin P. Grobusch, Abraham Goorhuis
Summary: The immunogenicity of a 5-dose pneumococcal vaccination schedule was investigated in adult allo-HSCT recipients with and without immunosuppressive therapy. The study showed that immunosuppressive therapy resulted in a poor response to the vaccine, particularly for the PPSV23 serotypes. Further research on vaccination strategies with higher-valent T-cell-dependent pneumococcal vaccines is needed.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HEMATOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Immunology
L. F. van Beek, J. D. Langereis, H. B. van den Berg van Saparoea, J. Gillard, W. S. P. Jong, F. J. van Opzeeland, R. Mesman, L. van Niftrik, I. Joosten, D. A. Diavatopoulos, J. Luirink, M. I. de Jonge
Summary: Protein bodies (PBs) are insoluble, aggregated particles consisting of proteins that have the potential to be used as vaccine formulations. Studies show that PBs can provide superior protection against nasopharyngeal colonization by Streptococcus pneumoniae and elicit strong mucosal immune responses, making them a promising platform for next-generation vaccine development.
Article
Immunology
Matthew Cravens, Akhil S. Alugupalli, Vijay K. Sandilya, Stephen J. McGeady, Kishore R. Alugupalli
Summary: The study found that anti-PPS IgM alone is sufficient to confer protective immunity to Streptococcus pneumoniae, demonstrating that IgM response is adequate to generate an immune response.
JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Sarah Stabler, Catherine Lamblin, Sacha Gaillard, Nicolas Just, Mirela Mihailescu, Nathalie Viget, Thierno Sy Ndiaye, Arnaud Dzeing Ella, Guillaume Brunin, Pierre Weyrich, Anne Prevotat, Cecile Chenivesse, Olivier Le Rouzic, Geoffrey Mortuaire, Fanny Vuotto, Karine Faure, Amelie Leurs, Frederic Wallet, Caroline Loiez, Marie Titecat, Remi R. Le Guern, Eric Hachulla, Sebastien Sanges, Etienne N. Nicolas, Louis Terriou, David Launay, Benjamin Lopez, Mathilde Bahuaud, Frederic Batteux, Sylvain Dubucquoi, Cyrielle Gesquiere-Lasselin, Myriam Labalette, Guillaume Lefevre
Summary: This study aimed to evaluate a systematic research strategy for the diagnosis of specific polysaccharide antibody deficiency (SPAD) in adults with unexplained bacterial infections. The results showed that SPAD is the most common immunodeficiency in adults with recurrent and/or severe bacterial infections, and should be screened in these patients.
CLINICAL INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Jessica R. Lane, Muralidhar Tata, Rahena Yasmin, Hansol Im, David E. Briles, Carlos J. Orihuela
Summary: The virulence factor PspA plays a critical role in the aggregation and protection of Streptococcus pneumoniae during colonization, while lactoferrin counters this effect. PspA forms protein complexes with mGAPDH and lactoferrin on the surface of the bacteria, and changes in the levels of these proteins may have important implications on the colonization, survival on fomites, and transmission of S. pneumoniae.
Review
Immunology
Ninecia R. Scott, Beth Mann, Elaine I. Tuomanen, Carlos J. Orihuela
Summary: Streptococcus pneumoniae is a dangerous bacterial pathogen that causes serious diseases, and although current vaccines have limitations in controlling it completely, it is necessary to improve vaccine strategies to enhance protection.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Elisabeth Reithuber, Torbjorn Wixe, Kevin C. Ludwig, Anna Muller, Hanna Uvell, Fabian Grein, Anders E. G. Lindgren, Sandra Muschiol, Priyanka Nannapaneni, Anna Eriksson, Tanja Schneider, Staffan Normark, Birgitta Henriques-Normark, Fredrik Almqvist, Peter Mellroth
Summary: The compound class comprising a 1-amino substituted tetrahydrocarbazole (THCz) scaffold inhibits bacterial cell wall synthesis by targeting undecaprenyl pyrophosphate-containing lipid intermediates, displaying bactericidal activity against a broad range of gram-positive and selected gram-negative pathogens in low micromolar range. The ease of synthesizing and modifying THCz, compared to natural lipid II-binding antibiotics, makes it a promising scaffold for the development of cell wall-targeting antimicrobials.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Allison N. Dammann, Anna B. Chamby, Francisco J. Gonzalez, Molly E. Sharp, Karina Flores, Ifrah Shahi, Sophia Dongas, Thomas A. Hooven, Adam J. Ratner
Summary: This study found that specific capsule types may provide an advantage in GBS vaginal colonization, but the success of certain GBS lineages may involve both capsule and non-capsule genetic elements.
JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Raine Garrido, Barbara Baro, Jean Pierre Soubal, Darielys Santana
Summary: This study presents an improved quantitative P-31-NMR methodology for the quantification of C-polysaccharide in capsular polysaccharide preparations, allowing discrimination between phosphocholine residues linked in different positions. The method was successfully applied to samples of vaccine serotypes, showing good quantification performance with a signal/noise ratio of 16:1. Repeatability and intermediate precision evaluation demonstrated the method's stability, while also providing information on the structural identity of phosphate contained in capsular polysaccharides and C-polysaccharide species.
JOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICAL AND BIOMEDICAL ANALYSIS
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Giuseppe Ercoli, Elisa Ramos-Sevillano, Rie Nakajima, Rafael Ramiro de Assis, Algis Jasinskas, David Goldblatt, Philip Felgner, Gisbert Weckbecker, Jeremy Brown
Summary: Although B cell depletion significantly impairs antibody recognition of S. pneumoniae in colonized mice, some protective immunity is still maintained, perhaps mediated by cellular immunity.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Medicinal
Ravinder Mettu, Yu-Hsuan Lih, Hanmanth Reddy Vulupala, Chiang-Yun Chen, Mei-Hua Hsu, Hong-Jay Lo, Kuo-Shiang Liao, Yang-Yu Cheng, Cheng-Hsun Chiu, Chung-Yi Wu
Summary: In this study, a library of capsular polysaccharide fragments of Streptococcus pneumoniae was constructed through chemical synthesis. Eight selected fragments were found to induce opsonic antibodies with bactericidal activities and moderate cross-reactivities.
ACS INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Rei Nakamoto, Jeric Mun Chung Kwan, Jasmine Fei Li Chin, Hui Ting Ong, Josue Flores-Kim, Caroline Midonet, Michael S. VanNieuwenhze, Xue Li Guan, Lok-To Sham
Summary: Many pathogenic bacteria rely on a layer of capsular polysaccharide (CPS) for virulence, with the bacterial tyrosine kinase (BY-kinase) playing a crucial role in regulating capsule synthesis. The interaction between BY-kinase CpsCD and other proteins influences CPS polymer length and peptidoglycan synthesis in Streptococcus pneumoniae. Autophosphorylation of BY-kinases fine-tunes the activity of CpsC, providing spatiotemporal coordination between CPS and PG synthesis.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Heather Platt, Tosin Omole, Jose Cardona, Neil J. Fraser, Richard A. Mularski, Charles Andrews, Nizar Daboul, Nancy Gallagher, Aditi Sapre, Jianing Li, Adam Polis, Doreen Fernsler, Gretchen Tamms, Weifeng Xu, Rocio Murphy, Julie Skinner, Joseph Joyce, Luwy Musey
Summary: This study evaluated an investigational 21-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (V116) specifically targeting serotypes associated with residual disease burden in adults. The results showed that V116 had a similar safety and immunogenicity profile compared to PPSV23, and was superior to PPSV23 for nine unique serotypes. These findings support the use of V116 for prevention of pneumococcal disease in adults.
LANCET INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2023)