Article
Immunology
Emma Ispasanie, Lukas Muri, Anna Schubart, Christine Thorburn, Natasa Zamurovic, Thomas Holbro, Michael Kammuller, Gerd Pluschke
Summary: The study examined the protective effect of vaccination against invasive meningococcal disease in patients treated with alternative pathway inhibitors. The findings suggest that while alternative pathway inhibitors can impact the killing of meningococci, vaccination can still provide protection against invasive disease.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Wearn-Xin Yee, Christoph M. Tang, Hayley Lavender
Summary: This study generated CFHR-specific monoclonal antibodies and showed that CFHR5 bound to pathogenic Neisseria spp. It was demonstrated that CFHR5 bound to PorB expressed by both pathogens in the presence of sialylated lipopolysaccharide and enhanced complement activation on the surface of N. gonorrhoeae.
INFECTION AND IMMUNITY
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Serena Bettoni, Karolina Maziarz, M. Rhia L. Stone, Mark A. T. Blaskovich, Jan Potempa, Maria Luiza Bazzo, Magnus Unemo, Sanjay Ram, Anna M. Blom
Summary: The increasing antimicrobial resistance in Neisseria gonorrhoeae poses a significant challenge for the treatment of gonorrhea. A novel chimeric protein, C4BP-IgM, has been shown to enhance complement-mediated killing of gonococci and improve susceptibility to antibiotics, offering a potential new adjuvant therapy for drug-resistant gonorrhea.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Abigail Norris Turner, Alexandria Carter, Yih-Ling Tzeng, David S. Stephens, Morgan Brown, Brandon Snyder, Adam C. Retchless, Xin Wang, Jose A. Bazan
Summary: The study showed that urethral infection with the US_NmUC did not offer protection against gonorrhea despite high sequence similarity in shared protein antigens.
CLINICAL INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Yih-Ling Tzeng, Soma Sannigrahi, Zachary Berman, Emily Bourne, Jennifer L. Edwards, Jose A. Bazan, Abigail Norris Turner, James W. B. Moir, David S. Stephens
Summary: A new clade of nonencapsulated Neisseria meningitidis has emerged and caused clusters of urethritis cases. It has acquired the denitrification pathway from Neisseria gonorrhoeae, which contributes to its adaptation and survival in a microaerobic urogenital environment.
INFECTION AND IMMUNITY
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Kathryn A. Matthias, Kristie L. Connolly, Afrin A. Begum, Ann E. Jerse, Andrew N. Macintyre, Gregory D. Sempowski, Margaret C. Bash
Summary: Recent studies have found that Neisseria meningitidis vaccines lacking specific proteins can provide protection against Neisseria gonorrhoeae infections in mice, and the antibodies produced can cross-react with N. gonorrhoeae. This finding supports the development of a cross-protective vaccine against Neisseria infections.
JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Emma Ispasanie, Lukas Muri, Marc Schmid, Anna Schubart, Christine Thorburn, Natasa Zamurovic, Thomas Holbro, Michael Kammueller, Gerd Pluschke
Summary: Inhibitors of complement components C5 and/or C3 are used to treat diseases caused by dysregulation of complement activation. However, these inhibitors increase the risk of invasive disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis. In this study, the effect of inhibitors targeting different complement pathways on serum bactericidal activity (SBA) against serogroup B meningococci was compared.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Eve Bernet, Marthe Lebughe, Antony T. Vincent, Mohammad Mehdi Haghdoost, Golara Golbaghi, Steven Laplante, Annie Castonguay, Frederic J. Veyrier
Summary: The study suggests that a boron-based salt, sodium tetraphenylborate (NaBPh4), displays high bactericidal activity against Neisseria meningitidis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae, with limited impact on closely related commensal species. The drug candidate's target(s) are likely located intracellularly or within the cell envelope, and mutants with decreased susceptibility show reduced virulence. This narrow selectivity of NaBPh4 is observed to have potential therapeutic importance.
ANTIMICROBIAL AGENTS AND CHEMOTHERAPY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Elizabeth M. Parzych, Sunita Gulati, Bo Zheng, Mamadou A. Bah, Sarah T. C. Elliott, Jacqueline D. Chu, Nancy Nowak, George W. Reed, Frank J. Beurskens, Janine Schuurman, Peter A. Rice, David B. Weiner, Sanjay Ram
Summary: The study demonstrates that a recombinant human IgG1 chimeric variant antibody (2C7_E430G) performs better in vivo than the parental antibody (2C7_WT). Through optimized DNA-encoded monoclonal antibodies (DMAbs), the complement-enhancing 2C7_E430G variant shows stronger bactericidal activity, potentially serving as an effective platform against gonorrhea.
Review
Cell Biology
Simon Peters, Ingo Fohmann, Thomas Rudel, Alexandra Schubert-Unkmeir
Summary: Sphingolipids play crucial roles in cellular processes such as cell growth, apoptosis, inflammation, and migration, as well as in the occurrence of infectious diseases. Pathogens can manipulate sphingolipid metabolism to facilitate invasion and establish a favorable environment in the host. Additionally, certain sphingolipid metabolites can act as the first line of defense against microbes.
Article
Immunology
Sara Morselli, Valeria Gaspari, Alessia Cantiani, Melissa Salvo, Claudio Foschi, Tiziana Lazzarotto, Antonella Marangoni
Summary: The study found a negative association between Neisseria meningitidis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae in a cohort of men having sex with men, with meningococcal carriage being more common in younger individuals.
FRONTIERS IN CELLULAR AND INFECTION MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Freda E-C Jen, Jennifer L. Edwards, Ibrahim M. El-Deeb, Mark J. Walker, Mark von Itzstein, Michael P. Jennings
Summary: The ionophore PBT2, when used alone, has shown potential in killing both N.meningitidis and MDR N. gonorrhoeae, making it a candidate therapy for MDR N. gonorrhoeae infections.
ANTIMICROBIAL AGENTS AND CHEMOTHERAPY
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Sunita Gulati, Andreas Holm Mattsson, Sophie Schussek, Bo Zheng, Rosane B. DeOliveira, Jutamas Shaughnessy, Lisa A. Lewis, Peter A. Rice, Par Comstedt, Sanjay Ram
Summary: A safe and effective vaccine is urgently needed to combat multidrug-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae. In this study, a platform called EDEN was used to screen 26 potential vaccine antigens, and their efficacy was tested in a mouse model. The combination of NGO1549 and NGO0265 showed significant reduction in colonization by MDR strains.
Article
Microbiology
Elvis Achondou Akomoneh, Jolein Gyonne Elise Laumen, Said Abdellati, Christophe Van Dijck, Thibau Vanbaelen, Xavier Basil Britto, Sheeba S. Manoharan-Basil, Chris Kenyon
Summary: This study investigated the inhibitory effect of oropharyngeal microbiota and Listerine mouthwash on the growth of Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Neisseria meningitidis. It found that certain bacteria had inhibitory activity against these pathogens, but daily use of Listerine did not decrease their prevalence.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Boris Shaskolskiy, Dmitry Kravtsov, Ilya Kandinov, Ekaterina Dementieva, Dmitry Gryadunov
Summary: Chromosomal rearrangements and mobile elements were studied in N. gonorrhoeae and N. meningitidis, revealing a stronger correlation between gene order changes and phylogenetic proximity in N. meningitidis. Multiple mobile elements were identified to be involved in chromosomal rearrangements.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2022)
Editorial Material
Medicine, General & Internal
Sumanth Gandra, Sanjay Ram, Stuart M. Levitz
ANNALS OF INTERNAL MEDICINE
(2021)
Review
Immunology
Jutamas Shaughnessy, Aleyo Chabeda, Lisa A. Lewis, Sanjay Ram
Summary: The alternative pathway (AP) is an ancient part of the complement system that marks pathogens for elimination by phagocytes. Pathogens have evolved various mechanisms to evade the complement system, such as degrading AP proteins or blocking C3 convertase function. Many microbes recruit the AP inhibitor factor H (FH) by mimicking FH interactions with host cells.
IMMUNOLOGICAL REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Sunita Gulati, Andreas Holm Mattsson, Sophie Schussek, Bo Zheng, Rosane B. DeOliveira, Jutamas Shaughnessy, Lisa A. Lewis, Peter A. Rice, Par Comstedt, Sanjay Ram
Summary: A safe and effective vaccine is urgently needed to combat multidrug-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae. In this study, a platform called EDEN was used to screen 26 potential vaccine antigens, and their efficacy was tested in a mouse model. The combination of NGO1549 and NGO0265 showed significant reduction in colonization by MDR strains.