Choosing the best ingredient to boost a group A strep vaccine
Identifying the Most Effective Adjuvant(s) for Leading Group A Streptococcal Vaccine Antigens in Preclinical Mouse and Nonhuman Primate Models
This project tests different vaccine helper ingredients to find which most strongly improves protection against group A streptococcus for people at risk of strep infections.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California, San Diego NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (La Jolla, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11463912 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers will combine leading group A strep vaccine components with different adjuvants (vaccine helper ingredients) and give them to mice and nonhuman primates to compare immune responses and protection. They will measure antibody types, T-cell responses (including Th1-type immunity), and protection in infection models that mimic strep throat and invasive disease. The team will compare new adjuvants to the standard alum formulation to identify formulations that give stronger or broader protection. Promising combinations will be advanced toward the formulations most likely to be tested in humans.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Eventual human trials would likely recruit people at risk for group A strep—especially children and adults prone to recurrent strep throat, skin infections, or those in regions with high rheumatic heart disease rates.
Not a fit: Because this is preclinical vaccine optimization in animals, people without risk of group A strep or those who cannot receive vaccines (for example due to severe allergic reactions) would not directly benefit from this work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to safer and more effective group A strep vaccines that prevent strep throat, skin infections, and long-term complications like rheumatic heart disease.
How similar studies have performed: Prior animal work, including mouse and nonhuman primate experiments by this team, showed that changing adjuvants can improve protection compared with standard alum, but human testing is still needed.
Where this research is happening
La Jolla, United States
- University of California, San Diego — La Jolla, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Nizet, Victor — University of California, San Diego
- Study coordinator: Nizet, Victor
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.