Research hints at powerful new TB vaccine

A breakthrough vaccine for tuberculosis (TB) may be in the works. An experimental version has shown that it can completely eliminate the deadly disease in mice.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - The current TB vaccine, the BCG jab, isn't particularly effective and TB is one of the top 10 causes of death in the world. According to the World Health Organization, as many as 1/3 of all people in the world are infected and approximately 1.7 million die each year. 

Rapid development of a vaccine for TB is an important concentration for researchers as yet new strains of TB emerge, often that are wholly resistant to antibiotics and therefore untreatable. 
The vaccine is the result of genetically modified bacteria. Scientists started with a strain of TB that is harmless to humans and removed the gene that allowed the bacteria to essentially evade the body's immune system, then injected the bacteria into mice. Despite normally being lethal, their immune systems  suppressed and destroyed the bacteria within three days.

After the first successful tests, the bacteria was crossed with another strain of TB and tested again. After the second test, researchers found the mice had a long lasting immunity to Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacteria that causes deadly TB in humans.
 Not all of the mice enjoyed long-term immunity, only about 20% were classified as long-term survivors by scientists, but the number is still significant and represents progress.

The next step will be to develop the vaccine for testing in humans. There is no guarantee it will be successful, and there is no timeframe for the research, but given the deadly nature of TB, it is likely researchers will continue following this promising development. The research was conducted at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York and was reported in the current online issue of Nature Medicine. 

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