The deadline for Small Grants funding applications is fast approaching. Applications MUST be received by September 30th, 2005. For more information about the program, on-going Small Grants projects and how to apply, visit us online at www.preventpneumo.org

Mark your calendars: November 23rd and 24th the UK’s Meningitis Research Foundation is sponsoring a major conference, “Meningitis and Septicaemia in Children and Adults: Burden of Illness, Management and Prospects for Prevention”. Meningitis Research Foundation is organizing this two-day international conference to bring together experts in critical care, infectious diseases, epidemiology, immunology, vaccinology and molecular medicine from both the paediatric and adult settings. The burden of disease, clinical management and current and future vaccines will be examined, including a session on control of pneumococcal disease featuring PneumoADIP’s research. Dr. Thomas Cherian, WHO, will chair the PneumoADIP session.

The Foundation is currently inviting submission of poster abstracts on any form of meningitis and associated infections, from a scientific or healthcare perspective, including prevention, diagnosis, management, outcome, pathophysiology, epidemiology, immunology, or microbiology. The deadline for submission is September 16th, 2005. Contact Meningitis Research Foundation to register or submit an abstract.

Journal of Infectious Disease – August 1, 2005. Two different lines of research report converging findings on the role of serum immunoglobulin G (IgG) in protecting against pneumococcal colonization. In a ‘natural history’ study of adults Goldblatt et al report that the serum anticapsular IgG are associated with prevention of new acquisitions of pneumococcal colonization. In another report from vaccinated children, Dagan et al report that serum IgG concentrations following immunization are inversely correlated with carriage; specifically, higher concentrations of serum IgG are correlated with decreasing probability of new acquisitions of pneumococci in the nasopharynx. Dagan said to PneumoADIP, “What makes this study interesting is that it suggests that a given pneumococcal conjugate vaccine that elicits higher serum IgG concentrations may be superior to its less immunogenic counterpart in providing herd immunity, a concept not widely discussed before."

Understanding the role of serum IgG in protecting against pneumococcal carriage provides insight into understanding the herd immunity effects observed with pneumococcal conjugate vaccines.

Journal of Infectious Disease – July 15, 2005. Typically when people think of epidemic meningitis in sub-Saharan Africa, they think meningococcal meningitis. However, a new study suggests that pneumococcal meningitis occurs in epidemic fashion in the same areas. Leimkugel et al report that like N. meningitides, S. pneumoniae caused annual meningitis epidemics in northern Ghana from 2000 to 2003. Both bacterial meningitis outbreaks exhibited similar characteristics – highly seasonal patterns, broad host age range, and clonal dominance. Majority of the pneumococcal meningitis cases were caused by a single clonal complex of serotype 1 S. pneumoniae, and generally preceded the meningococcal meningitis outbreaks. Given the substantially higher case-fatality ratio with pneumococcal meningitis as compared to meningococcal meningitis, this observation has serious implications for preventing and treating meningitis patients in epidemics.

In an editorial commentary to this study, Butler and Levine analyze the opportunities and challenges to prevent pneumococcal meningitis outbreaks in Africa. They argue that there is ample evidence to support the effectiveness of multi-valent pneumococal vaccines in Africa and call for political will and sustained commitment to accelerate routine immunization in order to make major health impacts in Africa and elsewhere.

Gleneagles, Scotland – July 6-8, 2005. This year’s G8 summit focused on Africa and the global climate. In the forum for “Investing in Africa’s People,” Advanced Market Commitments are cited as a mechanism to ultimately invest in the health of the citizens of Africa. As outlined in the official Gleneagles Communique, advance market commitments aim to create a competitive vaccine and drug market in developing countries for diseases that would otherwise remain neglected, such as pneumococcal disease. To find out more about advanced market commitments, read the report by the Center for Global Development and click here to read PneumoADIP’s briefing note, “Pneumococcal Vaccines and Advanced Market Commitments: Summary of Potential Impact on Market and Global Health.”

Philadelphia, USA & London, UK – June 30, 2005. According to a recent GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) press release, Streptorix – GSK’s childhood pneumococcal conjugate vaccine is expected to be launched in the next five years. This means that as early as 2010, pending licensure of Streptorix, two suppliers will be able to provide childhood multi-valent pneumococcal vaccines to the growing $3 billion global childhood pneumococcal vaccine market. This is exciting news for global prevention of pneumococcal disease and, if it is licensed, this makes it more likely that there will be adequate vaccine supply for the poorest countries of the world.

Baltimore, USA – June 23, 2005. Public and private organizations working in the field of new vaccines (such as pneumococcus, rotavirus, malaria, HIV and TB) gathered together to discuss common challenges and areas of potential collaborations. The key common challenge is the higher prices of new vaccines – dollars instead of cents; historically vaccines have been valued on price per dose instead of the value of the health impact of the vaccines. The challenge then is to change the paradigm – changing the perception from cost to investment in health. Participants agreed on the need to develop a strategic plan for new vaccines and on the potential areas for collaboration in establishing a platform for the introduction of new vaccines.