Saint Louis University receives $2.9 million to study new TB vaccine

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation gave $2.9 million to Saint Louis University’s Center for Vaccine Development to study a new tuberculosis vaccine, according to a press release

Daniel Hoft, MD, PhD, director of the division of infectious diseases at Saint Louis University, as a part of the award, is scheduled to continue studying the role of gamma/delta T cells in fighting TB.

Hoft is expected to analyze using gamma 9/delta 2 T cells to assemble the immune system to fight TB by recognizing germs that live inside macrophages throughout the infected person’s body, and to prevent uncontrolled pathogen growth, according to the release.

Because TB is becoming more resistant to existing therapies, a new approach to fighting the infection is needed, Hoft said in the release.

“We are in grave danger of all current TB preventive and curative measures becoming useless,” he said. “The goal of this investment is to develop novel vaccines with the potential to significantly reduce TB infection and disease. Success in achieving this goal could lead to important new public health tools worldwide.”

The project is expected to focus on identifying specific TB antigens that induce protective gamma 9/delta 2 T cells as well as test a vaccine in an animal model that is made from gamma 9/delta 2 T cell-inducing TB antigens.

Bacille Calmette-Guerin is currently given to infants living in countries where TB is most common, and protects them for 5 years from TB meningitis and death. However, the vaccine is only about 50% in protecting adults from lung TB, according to the release.

The research is expected to take 3 years and is expected to include scientists from South Africa, the University of Illinois, Stanford University and Colorado State University.