A dual anthrax-plague vaccine has been developed using a bacteriophage platform. Two doses of this vaccine provided complete protection against both inhalational anthrax and pneumonic plague in animal models, according to research published today in mBio.
Using bacteriophage T4, the reseach team developed the nanoparticle vaccine against Bacillus anthracis and Yersinia pestis, the pathogens that cause anthrax and plague, respectively, by incorporating key antigens of both B. anthracis and Y. pestis into one formulation.
These viral nanoparticles elicited robust anthrax- and plague-specific immune responses and provided protection against inhalational anthrax and/or pneumonic plague in three animal challenge models, namely, mice, rats, and rabbits. Even when animals were threatened with lethal doses of both anthrax lethal toxin and Y. pestis CO92 bacteria, the vaccine was shown to be effective.
"This dual anthrax-plague vaccine is a strong candidate for stockpiling against a potential bioterror attack involving either one or both of these biothreat agents," the researchers noted in the study.