Identification of Vaccine Candidates Against Serogroup B Meningococcus by Whole-Genome Sequencing

[Rcjohnsen]

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Genetics   
Sci. "287:1816-1820       3-10-00
Identification of Vaccine Candidates Against Serogroup B Meningococcus by
Whole-Genome Sequencing 

Mariagrazia Pizza, 1* Vincenzo Scarlato, 1* Vega Masignani, 1 Marzia Monica
Giuliani, 1 Beatrice Aricò, 1 Maurizio Comanducci, 1 Gary T. Jennings, 1 Lucia
Baldi, 1 Erika Bartolini, 1 Barbara Capecchi, 1 Cesira L. Galeotti, 1 Enrico
Luzzi, 1 Roberto Manetti, 1 Elisa Marchetti, 1 Marirosa Mora, 1 Sandra Nuti, 1
Giulio Ratti, 1 Laura Santini, 1 Silvana Savino, 1 Maria Scarselli, 1 Elisa
Storni, 1 Peijun Zuo, 1 Michael Broeker, 2 Erika Hundt, 2 Bernard Knapp, 2 Eric
Blair, 3 Tanya Mason, 3 Hervé Tettelin, 3 Derek W. Hood, 4 Alex C. Jeffries, 4
Nigel J. Saunders, 4 Dan M. Granoff, 5 J. Craig Venter, 3 E. Richard Moxon, 4
Guido Grandi, 1 Rino Rappuoli 1 
Neisseria meningitidis is a major cause of bacterial septicemia and meningitis.
Sequence variation of surface-exposed proteins and cross-reactivity of the
serogroup B capsular polysaccharide with human tissues have hampered efforts to
develop a successful vaccine. To overcome these obstacles, the entire genome
sequence of a virulent serogroup B strain (MC58) was used to identify vaccine
candidates. A total of 350 candidate antigens were expressed in Escherichia
coli, purified, and used to immunize mice. The sera allowed the identification
of proteins that are surface exposed, that are conserved in sequence across a
range of strains, and that induce a bactericidal antibody response, a property
known to correlate with vaccine efficacy in humans. 

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