Models matter: the search for an effective Staphylococcus aureus vaccine

• Published in: Nature reviews. Microbiology Vol. 12; no. 8; pp. 585 - 591
• Main Authors: Salgado-Pabón, Wilmara, Schlievert, Patrick M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 01.08.2014; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 631/1647/334; 631/326/41/2531; 631/326/590; Animal models; Animals; Antibodies; Antigens; Cell culture; Cell surface; Drug resistance; Endocarditis; Failure; Humans; Immune system; Immunization; Infectious Diseases; Life Sciences; Medical Microbiology; Medical research; Medicine, Experimental; Menstruation; Methicillin; Mice; Microbiology; opinion-2; Parasitology; Pathogenesis; Pathogens; Physiology; Pneumonia; Prevention; Public health; Rodents; Sepsis; Staphylococcal Infections - prevention & control; Staphylococcal Vaccines - immunology; Staphylococcus aureus; Staphylococcus aureus - immunology; Staphylococcus aureus infections; Staphylococcus infections; Testing; Vaccines; Virology; Virulence; Virulence factors
• ISSN: 1740-1526; 1740-1534; 1740-1534
• DOI: 10.1038/nrmicro3308

The development of a vaccine against Staphylococcus aureus infection has been the subject of an intensive research effort, but none of the vaccine trials has been successful so far. In this Opinion article, the authors suggest that an over-reliance on mouse models and a focus on targeting cell surface components have been major contributing factors to this failure. Staphylococcus aureus is a highly successful bacterial pathogen owing to its abundance of cell surface and secreted virulence factors. It is estimated that 30% of the population is colonized with S. aureus , usually on mucosal surfaces, and methicillin-resistant S. aureus is a major public health concern. There have been multiple attempts to develop an S. aureus vaccine using one or more cell surface virulence factors as antigens; all of these vaccine trials have failed. In this Opinion article, we suggest that an over-reliance on rodent models and a focus on targeting cell surface components have been major contributing factors to this failure.