This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Arenas-Gamboa, A. M.
Right arrow Articles by Rice-Ficht, A. C.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Arenas-Gamboa, A. M.
Right arrow Articles by Rice-Ficht, A. C.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Infection and Immunity, June 2008, p. 2448-2455, Vol. 76, No. 6
0019-9567/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/IAI.00767-07
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Immunization with a Single Dose of a Microencapsulated Brucella melitensis Mutant Enhances Protection against Wild-Type Challenge{triangledown}

Angela M. Arenas-Gamboa,1 Thomas A. Ficht,1 Melissa M. Kahl-McDonagh,1 and Allison C. Rice-Ficht1,2*

Veterinary Pathobiology, Texas A&M University and Texas Agricultural Experiment Station,1 Department of Molecular and Cellular Medicine, Texas A&M Health Science Center, College Station, Texas 77845-11142

Received 6 June 2007/ Returned for modification 15 August 2007/ Accepted 16 March 2008

The development of safe and efficacious immunization systems to prevent brucellosis is needed to overcome the disadvantages of the currently licensed vaccine strains that restrict their use in humans. Alginate microspheres coated with a protein of the parasite Fasciola hepatica (vitelline protein B [VpB]) and containing live Brucella melitensis attenuated mutant vjbR::Tn5 (BMEII1116) were evaluated for vaccine efficacy and immunogenicity in mice. A single immunization dose in BALB/c mice with the encapsulated vjbR mutant improved protection against wild-type B. melitensis 16M challenge compared to the nonencapsulated vaccine strain (P < 0.05). The encapsulated mutant was also shown to induce a sustained elevation of Immunoglobulin G levels. Cytokine secretion from spleen cells of mice vaccinated with the encapsulated vjbR::Tn5 revealed elevated secretion of gamma interferon and interleukin-12, but no interleukin-4, suggesting an induction of a T helper 1 response reflecting the enhanced immunity associated with microencapsulation. Together, these results suggest that microencapsulation of live attenuated organisms offers the ability to increase the efficacy of vaccine candidates.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Molecular and Cellular Medicine, 440 Reynolds Medical Building, Texas A&M Health Science Center, College Station, TX 77845-1114. Phone: (979) 458-1024. Fax: (979) 862-7472. E-mail: a-ficht{at}neo.tamu.edu

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 24 March 2008.

Editor: V. J. DiRita

Infection and Immunity, June 2008, p. 2448-2455, Vol. 76, No. 6
0019-9567/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/IAI.00767-07
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Arenas-Gamboa, A. M., Ficht, T. A., Kahl-McDonagh, M. M., Gomez, G., Rice-Ficht, A. C. (2009). The Brucella abortus S19 {Delta}vjbR Live Vaccine Candidate Is Safer than S19 and Confers Protection against Wild-Type Challenge in BALB/c Mice When Delivered in a Sustained-Release Vehicle. Infect. Immun. 77: 877-884 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»