AUTHOR=Silva Pedro H. , Vázquez Yaneisi , Campusano Camilo , Retamal-Díaz Angello , Lay Margarita K. , Muñoz Christian A. , González Pablo A. , Kalergis Alexis M. , Bueno Susan M. 

TITLE=Non-capsular based immunization approaches to prevent Streptococcus pneumoniae infection

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology

VOLUME=Volume 12 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cellular-and-infection-microbiology/articles/10.3389/fcimb.2022.949469

DOI=10.3389/fcimb.2022.949469

ISSN=2235-2988

ABSTRACT=Streptococcus pneumoniae is a Gram-positive bacterium and the leading cause of bacterial pneumonia in children and the elderly worldwide. Currently, two types of licensed vaccines are available to prevent the disease caused by this pathogen: the 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide-based vaccine and the 7-, 10, 13, and 15-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine. However, these vaccines, composed of the principal capsular polysaccharide of leading serotypes of this bacterium, have some drawbacks such as high production costs and serotype-dependent effectiveness. These problems have stimulated research initiatives to generate non-capsular-based vaccines in the search of a universal vaccine against S. pneumoniae. Several research groups have been developing various new vaccines against this bacterium basin the last decades ed on recombinant proteins, live attenuated bacterium, inactivated whole-cell vaccines, and other newer platforms. Here, we review and discuss the status of non-capsular vaccines against S. pneumoniae and the future of these alternatives.