BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES Epitope-based vaccines (EVs) are specific, safe and easy to produce. However, vaccine failure has been frequently reported due to variation within epitopic regions. Therefore, development of vaccines based on conserved epitopes may prevent such vaccine failure. This study was undertaken to identify highly conserved antigenic regions in the four dengue serotypes to produc...

The genus Salmonella is named after the American veterinarian Daniel E. Salmon, who fi rst isolated Bacterium cholerae-suis (Salmonella enterica serotype Choleraesuis abbreviated to S. enterica serotype Choleraesuis or S. Choleraesuis) from a pig (Salmon and Smith, 1885). The members of this genus are gramnegative facultative-anaerobic and peritrichously fl agellated rods. Salmonella serotypes ...

From 2003 to 2005, we prospectively collected 118 isolates of pneumococci belonging to 7 serotypes to investigate their competence under the influence of the synthetic competence-stimulating peptides. The degree of competence of the various serotypes differed significantly. Serotype 6B had the highest competence, followed by serotypes 14, 19F, 9V, 23F, 3, and 18C. Isolates belonging to serotype...

BACKGROUND Streptococcus pneumoniae is a major causative agent of severe infections, including sepsis, pneumonia, meningitis, and otitis media, that has since become a major public health concern. In this study, the serotypes distribution of pneumococcal isolates was investigated to predict the efficacy of the 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7) among the Malaysian populations. MET...

Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines induce serotype specific protection, with cross-protection seen between serotypes within certain serogroups. Though most serious pneumococcal infections are caused by relatively small number of serotypes, choices need to be made on the serotypes to be included in the vaccine because of the complexity and cost related to developing and producing vaccines with incr...

Unambiguous assignment of restriction enzyme patterns to six individual serotypes of human rhinovirus was accomplished after amplification of a 380 bp DNA fragment derived from the 5' non-coding region. This was possible even though serotypes 1A and 1B and serotypes 2 and 49 differed only at 10 and 15 positions respectively. The method utilizes the conserved and variable components of this part...

BACKGROUND Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCV) reduce nasopharyngeal carriage of vaccine-serotype pneumococci but increase in the carriage of non-vaccine serotypes. We studied the epidemiology of carriage among children 3-59 months old before vaccine introduction in Kilifi, Kenya. METHODS In a rolling cross-sectional study from October 2006 to December 2008 we approached 3570 healthy childr...