Synthetic "polysaccharide vaccine" for Streptococcus pneumoniae type 8

[ China Pharmaceutical Network Technology News ] On March 9, researchers from the Max Planck Institute of Germany said that they successfully synthesized a polysaccharide vaccine against Streptococcus pneumoniae type 8. This "sweet" vaccine is not only simple to make, but also cheaper than traditional vaccines.

(Synthetic "polysaccharide vaccine" can be targeted against type 8 S. pneumonia. Source: Baidu Pictures)

Polysaccharides on the surface of bacteria are strongly immunogenic and can stimulate the body to form antibodies. Scientists have used vaccines specific to bacterial surfaces for vaccines for many years, but the isolation of polysaccharides is not easy and costly. To this end, some researchers chose to artificially synthesize these polysaccharides and combine them with carrier proteins to make vaccines. Synthetic polysaccharide vaccines are much simpler to isolate than bacteria, but only if they know exactly which polysaccharides on the surface of the bacteria can stimulate the body to make an immune response.

Streptococcus pneumoniae type 8 is a highly toxic bacterium that causes severe pneumonia and meningitis and often exhibits resistance to existing antibiotics. To synthesize vaccines against this bacterium, an international team led by the Institute of Colloid and Interface under the Max Planck Society screened a combination of sugar molecules that were recognized by the relevant antibodies on the bacteria.

The researchers used an automated synthesis method to synthesize various polysaccharides in the S. pneumoniae capsule, and then screened out the polysaccharides that trigger the immune response in the animal. They found that this is a trisaccharide composed of two glucose molecules and one galactose molecule.

The researchers added the trisaccharide-synthesized vaccine to the existing 13-valent pneumococcal vaccine, and the vaccinated animals produced additional antibodies against Streptococcus pneumoniae type 8, which means that the vaccine is effective against Streptococcus pneumoniae. The species changed from 13 species to 14 species.

Researchers say that synthetic vaccines are more accurate, efficient, and easier to produce than traditional vaccines. Synthetic polysaccharide vaccines for Streptococcus pneumoniae 8 are a step further in developing a new generation of customized vaccines. This vaccine is used in humans.