New insights could lead to a better pneumococcal vaccine
Monday, September 22, 2008 - 15:56
in Health & Medicine
Discovery of a new, previously unknown mechanism of immunity suggests that there may be a better way to protect vulnerable children and adults against Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcal) infection, say researchers at Children's Hospital Boston and Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH). The findings, published in the open-access journal PLoS Pathogens on September 19, may aid the development of novel pneumococcal vaccines. (The current vaccine, Prevnar, is expensive and covers only 7 of the 91 known pneumococcal strains.)