title: Bacterial spores as heat stable vaccine vehicles.
abstract: Recently, the first use of bacterial spores as vaccine vehicles was reported, showing that mice orally immunised with Bacillus subtilis spores expressing a tetanus antigen could be protected against lethal challenge with tetanus toxin. Unlike many second generation vaccine systems currently under development, none offer the heat stability of bacterial spores or the flexibility for genetic manipulation. The current use of Bacillus spores as probiotics for both humans and animals may facilitate their eventual licensing as oral vaccines. This review reports the progress that has been made in the establishment of bacterial spores as vaccine vehicles and outlines the potential advantages of the spore vaccine approach.
authors.affiliation: School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, Surrey, TW20 0EX, UK.
authors.forename: Le H
authors.initials: le H
authors.lastname: Duc
authors.forename: Simon M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Cutting
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000818:Animals; D000941:Antigens / Q000737:chemistry; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D001412:Bacillus subtilis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology*; D001428:Bacterial Vaccines; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D009092:Mucous Membrane / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D019936:Probiotics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D013171:Spores, Bacterial; D013742:Tetanus / Q000276:immunology; D014612:Vaccines
chemical_list: D000941:Antigens; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D001428:Bacterial Vaccines; D014612:Vaccines