Department of Tropical Medicine Seminar Series:

Michelle Galeas-Pena, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow – Morici´s Lab (TU)

Pertussis cases increased after the introduction of the acellular pertussis vaccine (DTaP). A contributing factor is the persistent asymptomatic bacterial colonization of the respiratory tract, even in vaccinated individuals. We developed and tested an intranasal vaccine composed of acellular pertussis antigens combined with T-vant, a novel adjuvant derived from bacterial outer membrane vesicles that can elicit both mucosal and systemic immune responses. Our data shows that, by clearing bacteria from the respiratory tract, Tvant is an adjuvant with a strong potential in the development of an improved vaccine against pertussis.