Future Vaccines
Meningococcal Group B
As yet, there is still no vaccine available to protect against meningococcal group B - the most common form of the disease in the UK. Although meningococcal vaccines have been developed in countries such as Cuba and New Zealand, these were mainly to control outbreaks and will not protect against the most prevalent strains in the UK.
Meningitis B employs particularly cunning ways to avoid the immune system, which in turn present serious challenges for the scientists trying to design a vaccine against it. The capsules of Meningitis B bacteria are decorated with sugar molecules that perfectly mimic molecules found on our own human cells. This means that the bacteria are not recognised as foreign when they are in the body. They effectively slip under the radar of the immune system, camouflaged to look like the host cells.
This clever trick makes vaccine design difficult because the capsule is no good to use as an antigen. Therefore, scientists have been searching for new, different antigens on the surface of Meningitis B bacteria that could be developed as potential vaccine targets. To make things even more difficult for them, Meningitis B continually changes the proteins displayed on its outer surface. It makes constant alterations, choosing from an enormous library of potential combinations. This means that the scientists must look for an antigen that remains the same so that antibodies against it will still work against all the different variations.
A number of potential Meningitis B vaccines are in the pipeline. These vaccines are using not one, but many Meningitis B proteins in an attempt to protect against this variable bacterium. In some cases, scientists have used proteins found on small bubbles of membrane that exist on the outside of the bacterium. Others are targeting specific groups of well-characterised proteins. Researchers are also looking at whether the non-disease causing sister bacterium, Neisseria lactamica, could hold the key to producing an effective vaccine against Meningitis B.
Pneumococcal
A new Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine called Prevenar 13 was introduced into the Childhood Immunisation Programme in the UK in April 2010. It protects against 13 different types of pneumococcal bacteria compared to the previous one which covers seven.
While the new pneumococcal vaccine will protect against the majority of disease-causing strains, there are over 90 known strains and people of all ages are still at risk.
Development of Existing Vaccines and Other Vaccines
The development of vaccines is a long process. Even when a vaccine has been introduced for use, a huge amount of work still needs to be undertaken to monitor the impact of the vaccine and to attain the ultimate level of efficacy - in terms of strain coverage, dosage and duration of protection.
As well as the vaccines which are being worked on above, there are also many other vaccines in development, including a vaccine for Group B Streptococcus.
Although great progress has been made over the last 20 years, it is important to remember that there is still no vaccine to protect against all forms of meningitis and associated diseases. Our researchers are working hard to make this a reality. In the meantime, it is vital that you remain vigilent - sadly, we are still being contacted regularly by families who have lost loved ones to the disease.
MeningitisUK · Registered Charity No.1076774