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Want to make a stronger vaccine? It’s all about the carbs, according to BWH researchers who created a vaccine that is 50 to 100 times more effective than traditional vaccines that protect against common bacterial diseases, like pneumonia and meningitis.
The particular type of vaccine the researchers improved upon is called a glycoconjugate vaccine, which is made of carbohydrate and protein molecules. For some time, the scientific community believed that the body’s immune cells, called T-cells, were only able to recognize a vaccine’s protein molecules to generate an immune response. However, after studying how glycoconjugate vaccines stimulate immune response, the researchers found that this was not the case. T-cells are also able to recognize the carbohydrate molecules.
“One thing that is tremendously novel here is that we were able to find T-cells after immunization with a glycoconjugate [vaccine] that just recognized carbohydrates,” said Dennis L. Kasper, MD, director of the BWH Channing Laboratory. “So these may be the first true carbohydrate-specific T-cells found.”
Changing Shapes
Taking advantage of this carbohydrate recognition, researchers began to tinker with improving the design of traditional glycoconjugate vaccines.
Molecules in traditional vaccines appear as bulky, blob shapes, but BWH researchers used a streamlined design resembling a string of holiday lights to accommodate as many carbohydrate and protein molecules as possible. The more molecules immune cells recognize, the stronger the body’s immune response.
Kasper believes that the new design will improve vaccine effectiveness in high-risk populations.
“For example, pneumococcal conjugate vaccines are good in children, but not effective in protecting the elderly,” said Kasper.
Vaccine of the Future
For now, realizing that the immune system responds to carbohydrates provides hope for more effective vaccines of the future.
“Carbohydrates are extremely important in many biological functions,” said Fikri Avci, PhD, of the Channing Laboratory. “A better understanding of carbohydrate interaction is crucial. We are hoping that our findings will provide a framework for production of new-generation therapeutics and preventive medicines not only against bacterial infections, but also for cancer and viral diseases.”
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