Polysaccharide-containing conjugate vaccines for fungal diseases

Arturo Casadevall, Liise Anne Pirofski

Research output: Contribution to journalShort surveypeer-review

32 Scopus citations

Abstract

The recognition that antibodies are effective against fungal pathogens has spawned interest in developing vaccines that elicit antibody-mediated protection. Recently, a novel polysaccharide-protein conjugate vaccine that uses the algal antigen laminarin was shown to elicit antibodies to β-glucan in fungal cell walls and to mediate protection against both experimental candidiasis and aspergillosis. Remarkably, vaccine-induced antibodies manifested direct antifungal effects, suggesting that vaccine efficacy might not require cellular or other components of the immune system. The description of a vaccine that could protect against various fungal pathogens opens exciting new dimensions in the search for approaches to control fungal diseases.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)6-9
Number of pages4
JournalTrends in Molecular Medicine
Volume12
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 2006

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Molecular Medicine
  • Molecular Biology

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