Immune therapy against diarrheagenic escherichia coli / Asmaa Mahmoud Ibrahim Gohar ; Supervised Magdy Ali Amin , Ali Fahmy Mohamed , Nourtan F. Abdeltawab

Thesis (M.Sc.) - Cairo University - Faculty of Pharmacy - Department of Microbiology and Immunology

Enteric and diarrheal diseases are important causes of childhood death in the developing world. These diseases are responsible for more than 750 thousand deaths in children under 5 years old worldwide annually, ranking second cause of death, after lower respiratory diseases, in this age group. Among the major causative agents of diarrhea in the world is escherichia coli. There are several vaccine trials for diarrheagenic E. coli. However, diarrheagenic E. coli has seven pathotypes and vaccines are directed for one or two of the five main pathotypes causing diarrhea. Currently, there are no combined vaccines available in the market for all five diarrheagenic E. coli pathotypes. Therefore, the aim of our work is to develop a low cost vaccine candidate combining the five main diarrheagenic E. coli to offer wide spectrum protection. Formalin killed whole cell mixture of enteroaggregative, enteropathogenic, enteroinvasive, enterohaemorrhagic, and enterotoxigenic E. coli pathotypes was formulated as a combined vaccine candidate. Balb / C mice were immunized subcutaneously with 109 CFU of combined vaccine candidate and it was found that there was a significant increase in survival rate post challenge compared to unimmunized controls. Next the immunological response of mice to the combined vaccine candidate was assessed in comparison to each individual pathotypes immunization. To do so, the mice groups were immunized with combined vaccine candidate and biomarkers levels were monitored over six weeks and post challenge

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