Bacillus anthracis, the etiological agent of anthrax, is a major bioterror agent. Vaccination is the most effective prophylactic measure available against anthrax. Currently available anthrax vaccines have issues of the multiple booster dose requirement, adjuvant-associated side effects and stability. Use of biocompatible and biodegradable nanoparticles to deliver the antigens to immune cells c...

Altboum, Z., Y. Gozes, A. Barnea, A. Pass, M. White, and D. Kobiler 2002. Post exposure prophylaxis against anthrax: Evaluation of various treatment regimens in Intranasally infected guinea pigs. Infection and immunity 70:6231. Druett, H.A., D.W. Henderson, L. Packman, and Sory Infection with Anthrax Spores. Journal of Hygiene 51:359. Haas, C.N., 2002. On the risk of mortality to primates expos...

Anthrax is hyper-endemic in West Africa. Despite the effectiveness of livestock vaccines in controlling anthrax, underreporting, logistics, and limited resources makes implementing vaccination campaigns difficult. To better understand the geographic limits of anthrax, elucidate environmental factors related to its occurrence, and identify human and livestock populations at risk, we developed pr...

PURPOSE To evaluate the health status of Gulf War veterans who reported receipt of anthrax vaccination and a small group of Gulf War veterans for whom documentation of anthrax vaccination exists. METHODS Among the 11,441 Gulf War veterans who completed a health survey, 4601 reported receiving the anthrax vaccine during the war; 2979 veterans reported not receiving it; 3861 were uncertain. Als...

Bioterrorism poses a daunting challenge to global security and public health in the 21st century. Variola major virus, the etiological agent of smallpox, and Bacillus anthracis, the bacterial pathogen responsible for anthrax, remain at the apex of potential pathogens that could be used in a bioterror attack to inflict mass casualties. Although licensed vaccines are available for both smallpox a...

During 1923, the South African government began to issue free vaccine for the immunization of cattle against anthrax. Five years later, it introduced compulsory annual vaccination in parts of the Transkeian Territories, an area reserved for occupation by Africans. Thereafter, the state sought to extend both compulsory and discretionary vaccination. In 1942, scientists at the government’s Onders...

Sheena Hailin Wang: Novel Delivery Systems for Nasal Administration of Anthrax Vaccine (Under the direction of Dr. Anthony J. Hickey, Ph.D., D.Sc.) There is current biodefense interest in protection against Anthrax. The inhaled form of anthrax is difficult to diagnose and can be fatal without prompt antibiotic intervention. Prophylactic vaccination has become a critical measure for protection o...

CONTEXT To protect troops against the use of anthrax as a biological weapon, the US Department of Defense began an anthrax vaccination program in 1998. 14 years after the inception of the vaccination program, there is no evidence suggesting vaccination against anthrax carries long-term health risks for Active Duty Soldiers. OBJECTIVE To investigate the association between Anthrax Vaccine Adso...

A serological correlate of vaccine-induced immunity was identified in the rabbit model of inhalational anthrax. Animals were inoculated intramuscularly at 0 and 4 weeks with varying doses of Anthrax Vaccine Adsorbed (AVA) ranging from a human dose to a 1:256 dilution in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS). At 6 and 10 weeks, both the quantitative anti-protective antigen (PA) IgG ELISA and the toxin...

BACKGROUND The fatal disease caused by Bacillus anthracis is preventable with a prophylactic vaccine. The currently available anthrax vaccine requires a lengthy immunization schedule, and simpler and more immunogenic options for protection against anthrax are a priority for development. In this report we describe a phase I clinical trial testing the safety and immunogenicity of an anthrax vacci...