Neisseria meningitidis News and Research

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Study suggests new approach to help prevent meningococcal outbreaks

Nasal drops of harmless bacteria can inhibit a related bug that sometimes causes meningococcal disease, according to new findings published online in Clinical Infectious Diseases. The study--conducted among college students, a group at higher risk for this often serious illness--suggests a new approach that could help suppress outbreaks of the disease, if supported by future research.

30 Mar 2015

Scientists shed new light on how LAMR1 and Gal-3 proteins can cause meningitis, septicaemia

Previously undiscovered secrets of how human cells interact with a bacterium which causes a serious human disease have been revealed in new research by microbiologists at The University of Nottingham.

5 Oct 2014

FDA approves use of Menactra for booster vaccination against meningococcal disease

Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines division of Sanofi, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved use of Menactra® [Meningococcal (Groups A, C, Y and W-135) Polysaccharide Diphtheria Toxoid Conjugate Vaccine] for booster vaccination against meningococcal disease in persons 15 years through 55 years of age.

9 Sep 2014

Prevalence of bacterial meningitis drops in the United States

Advances in the prevention and treatment of an often fatal condition called bacterial meningitis appear to be paying dividends in the United States, report infectious disease experts at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) in the journal The Lancet Infectious Diseases.

13 Aug 2014

Scientists shed new light on why teenagers are susceptible to meningitis and septicaemia

University of York scientists have shed new light on why teenagers and young adults are particularly susceptible to meningitis and septicaemia.

4 Aug 2014

Researchers explain how meningitis-causing bacteria evade body's immune system

Every once in a while in the U.S., bacterial meningitis seems to crop up out of nowhere, claiming a young life.

29 May 2014

Pfizer reports positive results from rLP2086 Phase 2 study for invasive meningococcal disease

Pfizer Inc. announced today the results from two Phase 2 studies of bivalent rLP2086, Pfizer's recombinant vaccine candidate, currently under development for the prevention of invasive meningococcal disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis serogroup B in 10 to 25 year olds.

12 May 2014

Low dose injections of artificial properdin provides protection against septic diseases in mice

Breakthrough MRC-funded study from University of Leicester shows low dose injections of artificial properdin provides substantial protection against septic diseases in mice

26 Mar 2014

Low dose injections of artificial properdin provide protection against septic diseases

Researchers at the University of Leicester have produced an artificial version of a naturally occurring protein, properdin, which has been found to successfully combat bacterial pneumonia and meningitis when tested in mice.

25 Mar 2014

Scientists establish a goal of creating vaccine gene chip to speed up vaccine testing

Testing the efficacy of vaccines in clinical trials takes years, even decades. Yet challenging infections like HIV, malaria and dengue are striking today. To speed up vaccine testing, scientists at the Emory Vaccine Center have established a goal of creating a "vaccine gene chip."

17 Dec 2013

Researchers create an efficient technique to target and repair defective genes

Using human pluripotent stem cells and DNA-cutting protein from meningitis bacteria, researchers from the Morgridge Institute for Research and Northwestern University have created an efficient way to target and repair defective genes.

13 Aug 2013

Researchers discover role of TonB bacterial protein that causes various diseases

A Kansas State University-led study has discovered the role of a protein in bacteria that cause a wide variety of diseases, including typhoid fever, plague, meningitis and dysentery. The results may lead to new and improved antibiotics for humans and animals.

2 Jul 2013

Common sugar molecule promising target for development of broad-spectrum vaccine

Developing new vaccines to protect against diseases that plague humans is fraught with numerous challenges-one being that microbes tend to vary how they look on the surface to avoid being identified and destroyed by the immune system. However, researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) have discovered a sugar polymer that is common on the cell surface of several pathogens.

28 May 2013

Neisseria meningitidis causes life threatening meningitis, meningococcal sepsis in humans

"Neisseria meningitidis is an important human pathogen that can cause rapidly progressing, life threatening meningitis and meningococcal sepsis in humans," Professor Jennings said.

24 May 2013

CRISPR helps some bacteria evade mammalian immune system

CRISPR, a system of genes that bacteria use to defend themselves against viruses, has been found to be involved in helping some bacteria evade the mammalian immune system.

18 Apr 2013

Pneumococcal vaccine: an interview with Graham Clarke, CEO ImmBio

The pathogen that we are talking about is called streptococcus pneumoniae. That is a fairly common bacteria and if you did a nasal swab you would find that quite a lot of people have this bacterium living in their nasal passages.

16 Apr 2013

Nuron Biotech announces acquisition of Meningitec from Pfizer

Nuron Biotech Inc., a specialty biologics and vaccines company, today announced it has acquired from Pfizer Inc. Meningitec, which is a vaccine for the prevention of invasive disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis serogroup C.

10 Dec 2012

New vaccines and drug treatments urgently needed for bacterial meningitis

New vaccines and drug treatments are urgently needed for bacterial meningitis, a devastating disease which kills or maims around a fifth of people who contract it, according to medical experts writing in a new Series on bacterial meningitis, published in The Lancet.

9 Nov 2012

FDA approves GSK’s MenHibrix to treat meningococcal and Hib diseases

GlaxoSmithKline plc announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the vaccine MenHibrix [Meningococcal Groups C and Y and Haemophilus b Tetanus Toxoid Conjugate Vaccine].

15 Jun 2012

FDA approves Menhibrix for vaccination against meningococcal and Hib diseases

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Menhibrix, a combination vaccine for infants and children ages 6 weeks through 18 months, for prevention of invasive disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis serogroups C and Yand Haemophilus influenzae type b.