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Investigational vaccine MenABCWY produces strong immune response
Recent data showed that children and adolescents who received two or three doses of MenABCWY had immune responses greater than or comparable to a single dose of Menveo.
“We report the results of the first study to assess the persistence of immune responses against serogroups ACWY and serogroup B test strains following immunization with investigational MenABCWY [Novartis] vaccine formulations,” Xavier Saez-Llorens, MD, of the Hospital del Niño in Panama, and colleagues wrote in The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal. “Antibody persistence against serogroups ACWY following two doses of MenABCWY vaccines was at least comparable to (serogroup A) or higher than (serogroups C, W and Y) that of a single dose of the [Menveo (MenACWY-CRM, Novartis)] vaccine.”
The researchers administered vaccines to 428 adolescents aged 11 to 18 years in order to compare the effectiveness of MenABCWY. One group received two doses of rMenB, and another group received one dose of MenACWY-CRM and a placebo. The four remaining groups received one of four versions of investigational meningococcal ABCWY vaccine formulations, which contained components of MenACWY-CRM combined with varying levels of rMenB and outer membrane vesicles taken from a serogroup B vaccine.
At 10 months after the second dose of MenABCWY, participants had antibody persistence at least comparable to a single dose of MenACWY-CRM. Researchers found that MenABCWY vaccinations that contained outer membrane vesicles had a higher antibody persistence against serogroup B strains. A third dose of MenABCWY temporarily induced a robust immune response, before declining after 6 months.
The researchers found all studied vaccinations to be well-tolerated. They suggested further research be conducted to compare immune response against serogroup B of investigational MenABCWY vaccine and Bexsero (4CmenB, Novartis).
“The selected serogroup B test strains do not represent all B strains and, as such, caution may be needed in generalization of the study results,” Saez-Llorens and colleagues wrote. “Additional analyses using a larger panel of serogroup B test strains will be needed to define vaccine coverage against circulating serogroup B strains.” – by David Costill
Disclosure: Saez-Llorens reports receiving honoraria from GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi Pasteur for participation on advisory boards, and his hospital received funding from Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics. Please see the full study for a list of all other authors’ relevant financial disclosures.
