Francisella tularensis vaccines.
Francisella tularensis is the causative agent of tularaemia, a disease which occurs naturally in some countries in the northern hemisphere. Recently, there has been a high level of interest in devising vaccines against the bacterium because of the potential for it to be used as a bioterrorism agent. Previous human volunteer studies have shown that a strain of F. tularensis [the live vaccine strain (LVS)] that has been attenuated by laboratory passage is effective in humans as a vaccine against airborne disease. However, for a variety of reasons it seems unlikely that the LVS strain will be licensed for use in humans. Against this background there is an effort to devise a licensable vaccine against tularaemia. The prospects for a killed whole-cell subunit of live attenuated vaccine are reviewed. A rationally attenuated mutant seems the most likely route to a new tularaemia vaccine.
Griffin
Kate F
KF
Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, Wiltshire, UK. rtitball@dstl.gov.uk
Oyston
Petra C F
PC
Titball
Richard W
RW
D001428:Bacterial Vaccines / Q000276:immunology*; D005604:Francisella tularensis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000472:pathogenicity; D006801:Humans; D014406:Tularemia / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014613:Vaccines, Attenuated / Q000276:immunology; D022223:Vaccines, Subunit / Q000276:immunology
D001428:Bacterial Vaccines; D014613:Vaccines, Attenuated; D022223:Vaccines, Subunit