A new, experimental aerosol tuberculosis, TB vaccine produced strong immune responses in a small number of rhesus monkeys and also protected against pulmonary infections with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb).
The Bacilli Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine is the only vaccine available to help protect against TB infection. The current vaccine has many limitations and could be improved.
According to Nature Communications, researchers funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), developed the vaccine with a modified form of Mtb bacteria that was genetically engineered to exclude a gene believed to be necessary for successful lung infection in monkeys.
In their research, seven monkeys were vaccinated with the experimental aerosolized vaccine and another seven received an aerosolized version of the BCG vaccine. A group of seven monkeys were used as the control group. All groups were given a lethal dose of TB eight weeks later. The experimental Mtb aerosol vaccine protected the animals from pulmonary TB infection more compared to the BCG vaccine. The researchers also found that the
vaccine induced strong T-cell responses in the lungs.
Although further testing is needed for this new vaccine, the new research appears to be a step in the right directions towards a more effective TB vaccine
