The Impact of Nucleotide Sequence Analysis on Meningococcal Vaccine Development and Assessment

Since it became available as a routine tool in biology, the determination and analysis of nucleotide sequences has been applied to the design of vaccines and the investigation of their effectiveness. As vaccination is primarily concerned with the interaction of biological molecules with the immune s...

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Main Author: Martin Christopher James Maiden
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2019-01-01
Series:Frontiers in Immunology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fimmu.2018.03151/full
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author Martin Christopher James Maiden
author_facet Martin Christopher James Maiden
author_sort Martin Christopher James Maiden
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description Since it became available as a routine tool in biology, the determination and analysis of nucleotide sequences has been applied to the design of vaccines and the investigation of their effectiveness. As vaccination is primarily concerned with the interaction of biological molecules with the immune system, the utility of sequence data is not immediately obvious and, indeed, nucleotide sequence data are most effective when used to complement more conventional immunological approaches. Here, the impact of sequencing on the field of vaccinology will be illustrated with reference to the development and implementation of vaccines against Neisseria meningitidis (the meningococcus) over the 30-year period from the late-1980s to the late-2010s. Nucleotide sequence-based studies have been important in the fight against this aggressive pathogen largely because of its high genetic and antigenic diversity, properties that were only fully appreciated because of sequence-based studies. Five aspects will be considered, the use of sequence data to: (i) discover vaccine antigens; (ii) assess the diversity and distribution of vaccine antigens; (iii) determine the evolutionary and population biology of the organism and their implications for immunization; and (iv) develop molecular approaches to investigate pre- and post-vaccine pathogen populations to assess vaccine impact. One of the great advantages of nucleotide sequence data has been its scalability, which has meant that increasingly large data sets have been available, which has proved invaluable in the investigation of an organism as diverse and enigmatic as the meningococcus.
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spelling doaj.art-5e064e3a5cef4fe8a03e34b1a710b6ff2022-12-22T01:31:51ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Immunology1664-32242019-01-01910.3389/fimmu.2018.03151431768The Impact of Nucleotide Sequence Analysis on Meningococcal Vaccine Development and AssessmentMartin Christopher James MaidenSince it became available as a routine tool in biology, the determination and analysis of nucleotide sequences has been applied to the design of vaccines and the investigation of their effectiveness. As vaccination is primarily concerned with the interaction of biological molecules with the immune system, the utility of sequence data is not immediately obvious and, indeed, nucleotide sequence data are most effective when used to complement more conventional immunological approaches. Here, the impact of sequencing on the field of vaccinology will be illustrated with reference to the development and implementation of vaccines against Neisseria meningitidis (the meningococcus) over the 30-year period from the late-1980s to the late-2010s. Nucleotide sequence-based studies have been important in the fight against this aggressive pathogen largely because of its high genetic and antigenic diversity, properties that were only fully appreciated because of sequence-based studies. Five aspects will be considered, the use of sequence data to: (i) discover vaccine antigens; (ii) assess the diversity and distribution of vaccine antigens; (iii) determine the evolutionary and population biology of the organism and their implications for immunization; and (iv) develop molecular approaches to investigate pre- and post-vaccine pathogen populations to assess vaccine impact. One of the great advantages of nucleotide sequence data has been its scalability, which has meant that increasingly large data sets have been available, which has proved invaluable in the investigation of an organism as diverse and enigmatic as the meningococcus.https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fimmu.2018.03151/fullNeisseria meningitidisconjugate polysaccharide vaccinesouter membrane vesicle vaccinespopulation biologyherd immunityefficacy
spellingShingle Martin Christopher James Maiden
The Impact of Nucleotide Sequence Analysis on Meningococcal Vaccine Development and Assessment
Frontiers in Immunology
Neisseria meningitidis
conjugate polysaccharide vaccines
outer membrane vesicle vaccines
population biology
herd immunity
efficacy
title The Impact of Nucleotide Sequence Analysis on Meningococcal Vaccine Development and Assessment
title_full The Impact of Nucleotide Sequence Analysis on Meningococcal Vaccine Development and Assessment
title_fullStr The Impact of Nucleotide Sequence Analysis on Meningococcal Vaccine Development and Assessment
title_full_unstemmed The Impact of Nucleotide Sequence Analysis on Meningococcal Vaccine Development and Assessment
title_short The Impact of Nucleotide Sequence Analysis on Meningococcal Vaccine Development and Assessment
title_sort impact of nucleotide sequence analysis on meningococcal vaccine development and assessment
topic Neisseria meningitidis
conjugate polysaccharide vaccines
outer membrane vesicle vaccines
population biology
herd immunity
efficacy
url https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fimmu.2018.03151/full
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