Neisseria meningitidis has acquired sequences within the capsule locus by horizontal genetic transfer by Clemence, MEA, Harrison, OB, Maiden, MCJ

“…<br><strong>Background: </strong>Expression of a capsule from one of serogroups A, B, C, W, X or Y is usually required for Neisseria meningitidis (Nme) to cause invasive meningococcal disease. …”

Complete genome and methylome analysis of Neisseria meningitidis associated with increased serogroup Y disease by Stenmark, B, Harrison, OB, Eriksson, L, Anton, BP, Fomenkov, A, Roberts, RJ, Tooming-Klunderud, A, Bratcher, HB, Bray, JE, Thulin-Hedberg, S, Maiden, MCJ, Mölling, P

“…<p>Invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) due to serogroup Y&nbsp;<em>Neisseria meningitidis</em>&nbsp;emerged in Europe during the 2000s. …”

Development of a PCR algorithm to detect and characterize Neisseria meningitidis carriage isolates in the African meningitis belt by Diallo, K, Coulibaly, MD, Rebbetts, LS, Harrison, OB, Lucidarme, J, Gamougam, K, Tekletsion, YK, Bugri, A, Toure, A, Issaka, B, Dieng, M, Trotter, C, Collard, JM, Sow, SO, Wang, X, Mayer, LW, Borrow, R, Greenwood, BM, Maiden, MCJ, Manigart, O

“…Improved methods for the detection and characterization of carried Neisseria meningitidis isolates are needed. We evaluated a multiplex PCR algorithm for the detection of a variety of carriage strains in the meningitis belt. …”

A genomic view of experimental intraspecies and interspecies transformation of a rifampicin-resistance allele into Neisseria meningitidis by Alfsnes, K, Frye, SA, Eriksson, J, Eldholm, V, Bynildsrud, O, Bohlin, J, Harrison, OB, Hood, DW, Maiden, MCJ, Tonjum, T, Ambur, OH

“…The identification of genetic transformation in genomic data from Neisseria meningitidis, the meningococcus (Mc), and other bacteria is problematic, since similar or even identical alleles may be involved. …”

Acquisition of the capsule locus by horizontal gene transfer in Neisseria meningitidis is often accompanied by the loss of UDP-GalNAc synthesis. by Bartley, SN, Mowlaboccus, S, Mullally, CA, Stubbs, KA, Vrielink, A, Maiden, MCJ, Harrison, OB, Perkins, TT, Kahler, CM

Genome-wide association studies reveal the role of polymorphisms affecting factor H binding protein expression in host invasion by Neisseria meningitidis by Earle, SG, Lobanovska, M, Lavender, H, Tang, C, Exley, RM, Ramos-Sevillano, E, Browning, DF, Kostiou, V, Harrison, OB, Bratcher, HB, Varani, G, Tang, CM, Wilson, DJ, Maiden, MCJ

“…Here, we describe bacterial genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of Neisseria meningitidis, a common commensal of the human respiratory tract that is nevertheless a leading cause of meningitis and sepsis. …”

Application of a Neisseria meningitidis antigen microarray to identify candidate vaccine proteins from a human Phase I clinical trial by Chang, C-M, Awanye, AM, Marsay, L, Dold, C, Pollard, AJ, Rollier, CS, Feavers, IM, Maiden, MCJ, Derrick, JP

“…Outer membrane vesicles (OMV) from Neisseria meningitidis have been used successfully as vaccines against the disease, although they only provide protection against a limited number of the many existing variants. …”

B Part of It protocol: a cluster randomised controlled trial to assess the impact of 4CMenB vaccine on pharyngeal carriage of Neisseria meningitidis in adolescents by Marshall, HS, McMillan, M, Koehler, A, Lawrence, A, MacLennan, JM, Maiden, MCJ, Ramsay, M, Ladhani, SN, Trotter, C, Borrow, R, Finn, A, Sullivan, T, Richmond, P, Kahler, CM, Whelan, J, Vadivelu, K

“…<strong>Introduction</strong> South Australia (SA) has the highest notification rate of invasive meningococcal disease in Australia with the majority of cases due to serogroup B. Neisseria meningitidis is carried in the pharynx, with adolescents having the highest rates of carriage. …”

Factor H binding protein (fHbp)-mediated differential complement resistance of a serogroup C Neisseria meningitidis isolate from cerebrospinal fluid of a patient with invasive meningococcal disease by Facchetti, A, Wheeler, JX, Vipond, C, Whiting, G, Lavender, H, Feavers, IM, Maiden, MCJ, Maharjan, S

“…During an outbreak of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) at the University of Southampton, UK, in 1997, two Neisseria meningitidis serogroup C isolates were retrieved from a student (‘Case’), who died of IMD, and a close contact (‘Carrier’) who, after mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on the deceased, did not contract the disease. …”

Changes in the incidence of invasive disease due to Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, and Neisseria meningitidis during the COVID-19 pandemic in 26 countries and territories in the Invasive Respiratory Infection Surveillance Initiative: a prospective analysis of surveillance data by Brueggemann, A, Jansen Van Rensburg, M, Shaw, D, Jolley, K, Maiden, MCJ, Hale, T, Et al.

“…<strong>Background</strong> Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, and Neisseria meningitidis, which are typically transmitted via respiratory droplets, are leading causes of invasive diseases, including bacteraemic pneumonia and meningitis, and of secondary infections subsequent to post-viral respiratory disease. …”

Changes in the incidence of invasive disease due to Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, and Neisseria meningitidis during the COVID-19 pandemic in 26 countries and territories in the Invasive Respiratory Infection Surveillance Initiative: a prospective analysis of surveillance data by Brueggemann, AB, Jansen van Rensburg, MJ, Shaw, D, McCarthy, ND, Jolley, KA, Maiden, MCJ, van der Linden, MPG, Amin-Chowdhury, Z, Bennett, DE, Borrow, R, Brandileone, M-CC, Broughton, K, Campbell, R, Cao, B, Casanova, C, Choi, EH, Chu, YW, Clark, SA, Claus, H, Coelho, J, Corcoran, M, Cottrell, S, Cunney, RJ, Dalby, T, Davies, H, de Gouveia, L, Deghmane, A-E, Demczuk, W, Desmet, S, Drew, RJ, du Plessis, M, Erlendsdottir, H, Fry, NK, Fuursted, K, Gray, SJ, Henriques-Normark, B, Hale, T, Hilty, M, Hoffmann, S, Humphreys, H, Ip, M, Jacobsson, S, Johnston, J, Kozakova, J, Kristinsson, KG, Krizova, P, Kuch, A, Ladhani, SN, Lâm, T-T, Lebedova, V

“…<br><strong>Background<br></strong> <i>Streptococcus pneumoniae</i>, <i>Haemophilus influenzae</i>, and <i>Neisseria meningitidis</i>, which are typically transmitted via respiratory droplets, are leading causes of invasive diseases, including bacteraemic pneumonia and meningitis, and of secondary infections subsequent to post-viral respiratory disease. …”

Localized hypermutation is the major driver of meningococcal genetic variability during persistent asymptomatic carriage by Green, LR, Al-Rubaiawi, AA, Al-Maeni, MARM, Harrison, OB, Blades, M, Oldfield, NJ, Turner, DPJ, Maiden, MCJ, Bayliss, CD

“…Genetic variation was investigated during persistent asymptomatic carriage of Neisseria meningitidis. Interrogation of whole-genome sequences for paired isolates from 25 carriers showed that de novo mutations were infrequent, while horizontal gene transfer occurred in 16% of carriers. …”

Microevolution of Neisseria lactamica during nasopharyngeal colonisation induced by controlled human infection by Pandey, A, Cleary, DW, Laver, JR, Gorringe, A, Deasy, AM, Dale, AP, Morris, PD, Didelot, X, Maiden, MCJ, Read, RC

“…Neisseria lactamica is a harmless coloniser of the infant respiratory tract, and has a mutually-excluding relationship with the pathogen Neisseria meningitidis. Here we report controlled human infection with genomically-defined N. lactamica and subsequent bacterial microevolution during 26 weeks of colonisation. …”

Neisseria lactamica Y92-1009 complete genome sequence. by Pandey, AK, Cleary, DW, Laver, JR, Maiden, MCJ, Didelot, X, Gorringe, A, Read, RC

“…This Gram negative, dipplococcoid bacterium is an organism of worldwide clinical interest because human nasopharyngeal carriage is related inversely to the incidence of meningococcal disease, caused by Neisseria meningitidis. The organism sequenced was isolated during a school carriage survey in Northern Ireland in 1992 and has been the subject of a variety of laboratory and clinical studies. …”

The impact of nucleotide sequence analysis on meningococcal vaccine development and assessment by Maiden, MCJ

“…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. …”

Profiling IgG and IgA antibody responses during vaccination and infection in a high-risk gonorrhoea population by Stejskal, L, Thistlethwaite, A, Ramirez-Bencomo, F, Rashmi, S, Harrison, O, Feavers, IM, Maiden, MCJ, Jerse, A, Barnes, G, Chirro, O, Chemweno, J, Nduati, E, Cehovin, A, Tang, C, Sanders, EJ, Derrick, JP

“…Retrospective epidemiological studies have shown that vaccines containing Neisseria meningitidis (Nm) outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) provide a degree of cross-protection against Ng infection. …”

Genome-wide association studies identify an association of transferrin binding protein B variation and invasive serogroup Y meningococcal disease in older adults by Maynard-Smith, L, Derrick, JP, Borrow, R, Lucidarme, J, Maiden, MCJ, Heyderman, RS, Harrison, OB

“…</strong></i> <i>Neisseria meningitidis</i> serogroup Y, especially ST-23 clonal complex (Y:cc23), represents a larger proportion of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) in older adults compared to younger individuals. …”

Genomic epidemiology of age-associated meningococcal lineages in national surveillance: an observational cohort study by Hill, DMC, Lucidarme, J, Gray, SJ, Newbold, LS, Ure, R, Brehony, C, Harrison, OB, Bray, JE, Jolley, KA, Bratcher, HB, Parkhill, J, Tang, CM, Borrow, R, Maiden, MCJ

“…In view of its sporadic nature and the high diversity of Neisseria meningitidis, epidemiological surveillance incorporating detailed isolate characterisation is crucial for effective control and understanding the evolving epidemiology of IMD. …”

‘Be on the TEAM’ Study (Teenagers Against Meningitis): protocol for a controlled clinical trial evaluating the impact of 4CMenB or MenB-fHbp vaccination on the pharyngeal carriage... by Carr, J, Plested, E, Aley, P, Camara, S, Davis, K, MacLennan, JM, Gray, S, Faust, SN, Borrow, R, Christensen, H, Trotter, C, Maiden, MCJ, Finn, A, Snape, MD

“…<p><strong>Introduction</strong> Capsular group B Neisseria meningitidis (MenB) is the most common cause of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) in many parts of the world. …”