Bactericidal antibody response to Neisseria meningitidis serogroup B in patients with bacterial meningitis: effect of immunization with an outer membrane protein vaccine.
We evaluated the bactericidal antibody response to Neisseria meningitidis serogroup B in convalescent patients (n=65) from bacterial meningitis. Patients infected with B meningococci were stratified according to their vaccination status (Cuban BC vaccine) into group 1 (immunized) (n=12) and group 2 (non-immunized) (n=15). The results suggested that antibody titers > or =2 (log(2)) indicate a specific immune response to N. meningitidis. In group 1, 64% of patients had a significant antibody titer (> or =2) in their acute sera against a B:4:P1.15 strain, compared to only 21% of group 2 patients. All patients from group 1 without bactericidal antibodies in their acute sera had a significant increase (at least 2-fold increase in log(2) titers) in antibody titers in their convalescent sera, in contrast, to only 27% of patients from group 2 (P=0.06). Using mutant strains lacking OMP1 or OMP5, it was shown that OMP1 was an important antigen recognized by immunized patients but not by non-immunized patients.
Milagres
L G
LG
Bacteriology Section, Adolfo Lutz Institute, São Paulo, Brazil. lucimar@uerj.br
Gorla
M C
MC
Rebelo
M C
MC
Barroso
D E
DE
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood*; D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins / Q000276:immunology; D001428:Bacterial Vaccines / Q000276:immunology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008585:Meningitis, Meningococcal / Q000276:immunology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D022401:Meningococcal Vaccines; D008875:Middle Aged; D009345:Neisseria meningitidis / Q000145:classification / Q000276:immunology*; D012703:Serotyping; D014611:Vaccination
D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins; D001428:Bacterial Vaccines; C114926:Cuban OMP vaccine; D022401:Meningococcal Vaccines