Article
Immunology
Sudhanshu Shekhar, Heidi A. Amdal, Fernanda Cristina Petersen
Summary: Mucosal immunization with S. mitis serotype 5 protects mice against S. pneumoniae serotype 5 infection and induces Th17 and predominant serotype-specific IgG/IgA antibody responses against pneumococcal infection.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Kimberly A. Barker, Neelou S. Etesami, Anukul T. Shenoy, Emad I. Arafa, Carolina Lyon de Ana, Nicole M. S. Smith, Ian M. C. Martin, Wesley N. Goltry, Alexander M. S. Barron, Jeffrey L. Browning, Hasmeena Kathuria, Anna C. Belkina, Antoine Guillon, Xuemei Zhong, Nicholas A. Crossland, Matthew R. Jones, Lee J. Quinton, Joseph P. Mizgerd
Summary: The study found that lung-resident memory B cells play a crucial role in lung immunity, quickly producing antibodies after infection to help clear pathogens. These cells are elicited in mice after pneumococcal infections, are present in human lungs, and are involved in pulmonary antibacterial immunity.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL INVESTIGATION
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Zachary Tsai, Kyle A. Carver, Henry H. Gong, Kosuke Kosai, Jane C. Deng, Matthew J. Worley
Summary: Neutrophils eliminate Streptococcus pneumoniae through extracellular killing at lower bacterial concentrations, while both extracellular and intracellular elimination methods are used under higher bacterial burdens with TLR2 activation.
Article
Immunology
Fang-Feng Chiu, Ling-Ling Tu, Wangxue Chen, Hongyan Zhou, Bing-Sin Liu, Shih-Jen Liu, Chih-Hsiang Leng
Summary: In this study, the development of a broad-spectrum protein-based pneumococcal vaccine that provides protection against multiple serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae was presented. The vaccine induced higher titres of IgG and IgA, resulting in systemic mucosal immunity and enhanced opsonic phagocytosis. The immunogenicity of the vaccine reduced the bacterial load and increased the survival rate of mice.
EMERGING MICROBES & INFECTIONS
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Elisa Ramos-Sevillano, Giuseppe Ercoli, Jose Afonso Guerra-Assuncao, Philip Felgner, Rafael Ramiro de Assis, Rie Nakajima, David Goldblatt, Kevin Kweku Adjei Tetteh, Robert Simon Heyderman, Stephen Brian Gordon, Daniela Mulari Ferreria, Jeremy Stuart Brown
Summary: The study evaluated the protective efficacy of nasopharyngeal administration of unencapsulated Streptococcus pneumoniae strains in murine infection models, showing that these strains were significantly attenuated in virulence in invasive infection models and had reduced ability to colonize the nasopharynx. Serological responses to colonization with these strains were weaker. Mice previously colonized with these strains were protected against septicaemic pneumonia, but did not prevent recolonization with S. pneumoniae.
Article
Immunology
Moon H. Nahm, Jigui Yu, Juan J. Calix, Feroze Ganaie
Summary: Reports conflict on which lectin-microbial ligand interactions trigger a protective response from the lectin pathway (LP) of complement. In this study, researchers demonstrate the binding of human lectin ficolin-2 to the capsule polysaccharide of Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 11A, which leads to complement deposition and phagocytosis of the bacteria. The study also suggests that the gene wcjE plays a crucial role in ficolin-2's ligand expression and bacterial killing. The findings highlight the importance of glycopolymer-specific evaluation of LP's impact.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Mariano Elean, Fernanda Raya Tonetti, Kohtaro Fukuyama, Luciano Arellano-Arriagada, Fu Namai, Yoshihito Suda, Nadia Gobbato, Keita Nishiyama, Julio Villena, Haruki Kitazawa
Summary: In this study, nasally administered L. salivarius FFIG58 was found to modulate the innate immune response in the respiratory tract and provide long-term protection against Streptococcus pneumoniae infection. The strain enhanced the production of various immune factors and protected mice from secondary infection for up to 30 days.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Review
Immunology
Caroline M. Weight, Simon P. Jochems, Hugh Adler, Daniela M. Ferreira, Jeremy S. Brown, Robert S. Heyderman
Summary: Nasopharyngeal carriage of Streptococcus pneumoniae is common in humans, especially in older individuals. Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines have had some success in protecting young children and indirectly older people through herd immunity, but serotype replacement is still a concern. Older individuals often experience chronic inflammation, known as 'Inflammageing', which may increase mortality risk and affect the outcome of pneumococcal infection.
FRONTIERS IN CELLULAR AND INFECTION MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Nadia Mazarakis, Rachel A. Higgins, Jeremy Anderson, Zheng Quan Toh, Rodney B. Luwor, Kenneth J. Snibson, Tom C. Karagiannis, Lien Anh Ha Do, Paul Licciardi
Summary: L-sulforaphane (LSF) is an isothiocyanate derived from cruciferous vegetables known for its anticarcinogenic, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. Research shows that LSF has inhibitory effects on common respiratory pathogens such as Haemophilus influenzae, but not on Streptococcus pneumoniae.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ANTIMICROBIAL AGENTS
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Giuseppe Ercoli, Elisa Ramos-Sevillano, Emma Pearce, Sara Ragab, David Goldblatt, Gisbert Weckbecker, Jeremy S. Brown
Summary: Anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody therapy depletes most CD20(+) B cells and increases the risk of respiratory tract infections. However, vaccination still provides some protection against pneumococcal infections.
CLINICAL & TRANSLATIONAL IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Courtney D. Thompson, Jessica L. Bradshaw, Wesley S. Miller, Ana G. Jop Vidal, Jorge E. Vidal, Jason W. Rosch, Larry S. McDaniel, Lance E. Keller
Summary: Streptococcus pneumoniae can cause various diseases, but the emergence of nonencapsulated strains poses challenges to vaccination. The AliC and AliD proteins regulate gene expression in pneumococcus, protecting it from complement-mediated clearance by reducing CRP binding.
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.
Article
Immunology
Aaron D. Gingerich, Fredejah Royer, Anna L. McCormick, Anna Scasny, Jorge E. Vidal, Jarrod J. Mousa
Summary: Despite the use of polysaccharide-based vaccines, Streptococcus pneumoniae remains a major cause of bacterial pneumonia. The limited coverage of current vaccines has led to an increase in incidence of nonvaccine serotypes and antibiotic resistance. In this study, the authors investigated the protective mechanism of a human monoclonal antibody (mAb) against a surface protein of S. pneumoniae, PhtD3, and demonstrated its ability to reduce bacterial burden in a mouse model of infection. They also showed that combining PhtD3 with another mAb targeting a different epitope, PhtD7, restored robust protection against secondary pneumococcal infection. These findings provide new insights into the protection provided by anti-pneumococcal mAbs and highlight their potential in preventing secondary pneumococcal infections.
JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Edriss Yassine, Balazs Rada
Summary: This article discusses the antimicrobial mechanism of action of the natural product OSCN- against Streptococcus pneumoniae and elaborates on its potential therapeutic use as a treatment for infections.
Article
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Alisha Kang, Gluke Ye, Ramandeep Singh, Sam Afkhami, Jegarubee Bavananthasivam, Xiangqian Luo, Maryam Vaseghi-Shanjani, Fatemah Aleithan, Anna Zganiacz, Mangalakumari Jeyanathan, Zhou Xing
Summary: BCG vaccine can provide non-specific protection against unrelated pathogens by modulating the innate immune system, known as trained innate immunity. A study shows that subcutaneous BCG vaccination can enhance innate protection against heterologous respiratory bacterial infections, and this enhanced protection is mediated by increased neutrophilia in the lung, independent of centrally trained circulating monocytes. This study provides new insights for designing novel effective vaccination strategies against unrelated respiratory bacterial pathogens.
EMBO MOLECULAR MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Christine Tedijanto, McKenna Nevers, Matthew H. Samore, Marc Lipsitch
Summary: This study analyzed patterns of antibiotic use, infectious diagnoses, and microbiological laboratory results among hospitalized patients. The majority of antibiotic use could be linked to an infectious diagnosis or microbiological specimen. However, a significant proportion of antibiotic use occurred when there was no bacterial isolate, highlighting the need for improved diagnostics to optimize antibiotic use.
CLINICAL INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Samah Hayek, Galit Shaham, Yatir Ben-Shlomo, Eldad Kepten, Noa Dagan, Daniel Nevo, Marc Lipsitch, Ben Y. Reis, Ran D. Balicer, Noam Barda
Summary: Children who are not vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2 can still be protected by vaccinated parents. A study found that having a single vaccinated parent reduced the risk of infection for unvaccinated children by 26.0% and 20.8% in two different periods, while having two vaccinated parents reduced the risk by 71.7% and 58.1%, respectively.
Article
Mathematical & Computational Biology
Irene Man, Johannes A. Bogaards, Kishan Makwana, Krzysztof Trzcinski, Kari Auranen
Summary: This study developed a Bayesian estimation method to infer competition between different serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae. The results showed that the estimates of interaction parameters for acquisition and clearance were unbiased in settings with short sampling intervals between observation times.
STATISTICS IN MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Lisa M. Kolodziej, Steven F. L. van Lelyveld, Mildred E. Haverkort, Rob Mariman, Judith G. C. Sluiter-Post, Paul Badoux, Emma M. de Koff, Jeffrey C. D. Koole, Willem R. Miellet, Adriaan N. Swart, Elena C. Coipan, Adam Meijer, Elisabeth A. M. Sanders, Krzysztof Trzcinski, Sjoerd M. Euser, Dirk Eggink, Marianne A. van Houten
Summary: By utilizing repeated saliva self-sampling combined with nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swabs and serology, this study reveals the highest SARS-CoV-2 transmission rates within households to date. The findings underscore the significant role of households in the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and highlight the potential of salivary sampling for infection control in this setting.
CLINICAL INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Izabela Wrobel-Pawelczyk, Patrycja Ronkiewicz, Monika Wanke-Rytt, Dominika Rykowska, Aneta Gorska-Kot, Katarzyna Wlodkowska, Agnieszka Topczewska-Cabanek, Teresa Jackowska, Joanna Chruszcz, Walentyna Marchut, Agnieszka Mastalerz-Migas, Krzysztof Korzeniewski, Anna Skoczynska, Krzysztof Trzcinski
Summary: This study investigates pneumococcal carriage among unvaccinated children in Poland, and finds a relatively high carriage rate among the children. It also identifies daycare center attendees and the autumn/winter season as significant risk factors for carriage, and identifies the most common serotypes as 23A, 6B, 15BC, 10A, and 11A.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Willem R. Miellet, Janieke van Veldhuizen, David Litt, Rob Mariman, Alienke J. Wijmenga-Monsuur, Paul Badoux, Tessa Nieuwenhuijsen, Rebecca Thombre, Sanaa Mayet, Seyi Eletu, Carmen Sheppard, Marianne Alice van Houten, Nynke Y. Rots, Elizabeth Miller, Norman K. Fry, Elisabeth A. M. Sanders, Krzysztof Trzcinski
Summary: This study proposes a procedure to improve the accuracy of molecular detection of live pneumococci in polymicrobial respiratory samples for carriage surveillance and vaccine impact studies. By combining conventional culture and qPCR results, the detection rate of live pneumococcus can be significantly increased, and the specificity of serotype carriage detection can be enhanced.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Keya Joshi, Eva Rumpler, Lee Kennedy-Shaffer, Rafia Bosan, Marc Lipsitch
Summary: Vaccine allocation decisions during emerging pandemics are challenging due to ethical, practical, and political considerations. This study provides insights into optimal vaccine allocation strategies considering various population, vaccine, pathogen, and delivery characteristics. The findings suggest that proportional allocation based on population size performs well or comparably in minimizing the cumulative number of infections, supporting the sharing of vaccines between locations during epidemics caused by emerging pathogens.
Article
Microbiology
Willem R. Miellet, Sonia T. Almeida, Krzysztof Trzcinski, Raquel Sa-Leao
Summary: Streptococcus pneumoniae causes significant morbidity and mortality among older adults. The low sensitivity of culture-based approaches and nasopharyngeal samples has hindered adult S. pneumoniae carriage studies in the past. However, qPCR-based approaches and testing of oral samples can improve the accuracy of adult carriage detection.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Willem R. Miellet, Janieke van Veldhuizen, David Litt, Rob Mariman, Alienke J. Wijmenga-Monsuur, Tessa Nieuwenhuijsen, Jennifer Christopher, Rebecca Thombre, Seyi Eletu, Thijs Bosch, Nynke Y. Rots, Marianne Alice van Houten, Elizabeth Miller, Norman K. Fry, Elisabeth A. M. Sanders, Krzysztof Trzcinski
Summary: A study found that qPCR-based detection of pneumococcus in saliva samples increases the sensitivity and specificity, which is important for surveillance and vaccine studies.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Iris Kristinsdottir, Linda J. Visser, Willem R. Miellet, Rob Mariman, Gerlinde Pluister, Gunnsteinn Haraldsson, Asgeir Haraldsson, Krzysztof Trzcinski, Valtyr Thors
Summary: This study aimed to determine the prevalence, duration of carriage, and genogroup distribution of meningococcal colonization in Iceland. The results showed that pathogenic meningococci carriage is rare among young Icelanders, with non-groupable meningococci being the most common colonizing strain. Whole genome sequencing revealed the possibility of prolonged carriage of the same strains in persistent carriers.
Article
Immunology
Willem R. Miellet, Gerlinde Pluister, Meike Sikking, Marcia Tappel, Jurgen Karczewski, Linda J. Visser, Thijs Bosch, Krzysztof Trzcinski, Rob Mariman
Summary: We used molecular methods to assess the impact of menACWY vaccine implementation on meningococcal carriage and genogroup-specific prevalence in young adults in the Netherlands. The overall carriage rate of genogroupable meningococci was not significantly different compared to a pre-menACWY cohort. Of the carriers, almost all were positive for vaccine types or non-targeted genogroups. While there was a reduction in vaccine-type carriage rates, there was an increase in non-vaccine type menE prevalence, suggesting the implementation of the menACWY vaccine affected carriage.
Article
Immunology
Katherine M. Jia, Rebecca Kahn, Rebecca Fisher, Sharon Balter, Marc Lipsitch
Summary: To allocate more testing resources to communities with higher test positivity, we developed and evaluated quantitative approaches for geographic targeting. The simplest model based on recent test positivity performed well in predicting communities with high positivity 2 weeks ahead.
OPEN FORUM INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2023)
Article
Biology
Philip H. C. Kremer, Bart Ferwerda, Hester J. Bootsma, Nienke Y. Rots, Alienke J. Wijmenga-Monsuur, Elisabeth A. M. Sanders, Krzysztof Trzcinski, Anne L. Wyllie, Paul Turner, Arie van der Ende, Matthijs C. Brouwer, Stephen D. Bentley, Diederik van de Beek, John A. Lees
Summary: This study identified genetic variations in pneumococcal carriage that differ between infants and adults. Serotypes and genetic background were found to explain a proportion of the heritability in carriage. The findings support the proposal for adaptive vaccination strategies targeting dominant circulating serotypes and tailored to the composition of the pathogen populations.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Edward Goldstein, Bruce H. Fireman, Nicola P. Klein, Marc Lipsitch, G. Thomas Ray
Summary: This study estimated the proportion of influenza-associated antibiotic prescriptions in the Kaiser Permanente Northern California population. It found that children aged 5-17 had a higher proportion of influenza-associated antibiotic prescriptions compared to children under 5. For adults aged over 20, the majority of influenza-associated antibiotic prescriptions were for respiratory diagnoses without bacterial indication.
EPIDEMIOLOGY AND INFECTION
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Marc Lipsitch, Florian Krammer, Gili Regev-Yochay, Yaniv Lustig, Ran D. Balicer
Summary: The study evaluates the impact of breakthrough SARS-CoV-2 infections in vaccinated individuals and discusses the challenges in measuring breakthrough infections and determining the factors affecting vaccine effectiveness. The research also addresses key questions on transitioning to endemicity, tracking viral variants, identifying immune correlates of protection, and dealing with public health challenges in countering breakthrough infections amid global vaccine shortages.
NATURE REVIEWS IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)