Study of the effect of vaccination on periodic structures of measles epidemics in Japan

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of vaccination on periodic structures of measles epidemics in Japan. We carried out spectral analysis for time series data of measles notifications collected in Japan. It was confirmed that the interepidemic period, which corresponds to the interval between major epidemics of measles, increases as the vaccination ratio increases. This result was supported by a theory based on a mathematical model for epidemics of infectious diseases. It was suggested that the interepidemic period is useful to estimate the effect of vaccination on measles incidences quantitatively.     

Simple method for differentiating measles vaccine from wild‐type strains using loop‐mediated isothermal amplification

Because of increasing measles vaccine coverage, the proportion of patients with modified measles has been increasing. Such patients have low‐grade fever with very mild eruptions similar to vaccine‐related adverse events. Differentiation between these two pathogenic conditions is required to improve the quality of laboratory‐based measles surveillance. In this study, vaccine‐specific and wild‐type specific primer sets were designed for loop‐mediated isothermal amplification in the N gene, and vaccine strains, C1, D3, D4, D5, D8, D9, G3 and H1 wild strains were examined. Three vaccine strains were efficiently amplified using a vaccine‐specific primer set with an approximately 10‐times higher sensitivity than wild‐type primer. Modified measles was differentiated from vaccine‐associated cases by this system, but limitations were encountered with the other genotypes.     

钩端螺旋体外膜疫苗的反应性和免疫效果研究

对国内首次研制的钩端螺旋体外膜疫苗接种人体的反应性,血清学效果和流行病学效果进行研究。先后对两价（含黄疸出血群赖型,七日热群七日热型）,三价（含黄疸出血群赖型,七日热群七日热型,流感伤寒群流感伤寒型,五价（含黄疸出血群赖型,七日热群七日热型,流感伤寒群流感伤寒型,秋季热群秋季热型,犬群犬型）外膜疫苗,菌体疫苗和安慰剂,分组进行全身和局部反应观察;并以显微镜凝集试验测定各型抗体;对两价外膜疫苗进行流行病学保护效果考核。结果两价和多价钩体外膜疫苗反应轻微,安全性良好;血清学效果显示,抗体阳转率和滴度均高于同期相应菌体疫苗诱导的同型抗体水平2倍以上,提示外膜疫苗有较好的免疫原性,流行病学效果在湖北省荆州和石首两市考核,按血清学阳性病例统计,其保护率可达95．57％以上。说明上述疫苗性质稳定,反应轻微,安全性良好,血清学效果理想,两价疫苗有较好的保护效果,可以逐步推广应用。     

沪191麻疹疫苗免疫持久性和影响因素的评价

１９９１～１９９８年,我们对荆州区川店镇５０３名６～１５月龄儿童进行了现行沪１９１麻疹疫苗血清流行病学效果观察,结果表明,初次免疫后１个月麻疹ＩｇＧ抗体阳转率为９１６５％,ＧＭＴ为１∶２６６７４,达保护滴度者比例为４６５％。随着时间的推移,第４年上述指标迅速下降到４６８６％、１∶１２７４和１８５％,第６年时低至２９４３％、１∶４８９和１３６％。０２ｍｌ、０３ｍｌ和０５ｍｌ麻疹疫苗组的近期和远期效果是类似的,初免后１个月时ＩｇＧ滴度越高,其免疫持久性越好;初免月龄是影响麻苗免疫效果的主要原因,６月龄初免组的免疫效果明显低于≥８月龄组。结果提示麻苗８月龄初免是可行的。     

Immunogenicity of recombinant measles vaccine expressing fusion protein of respiratory syncytial virus in cynomolgus monkeys

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common cause of respiratory infections in infants. Effective vaccines are currently being sought, but no vaccine is thus far available. In our previous study, recombinant AIK‐C measles vaccine expressing the RSV fusion protein (MVAIK/RSV/F) was developed and protective immunity against RSV demonstrated in cotton rats. In the present study, the immunogenicity and protective effects were investigated in three cynomolgus monkeys immunized with MVAIK/RSV/F. Neutralizing test antibodies against RSV were detected and no infectious virus was recovered from the lungs of monkeys immunized with MVAIK/RSV/F after challenge. MVAIK/RSV/F has the potential to inhibit RSV infection.

     

Cities and villages: infection hierarchies in a measles metapopulation

An important issue in the dynamics of directly transmitted microparasites is the relationship between infection probability and host density. We use models and extensive spatio-temporal data for the incidence of measles to examine evidence for spatial heterogeneity in transmission probability, in terms of urban–rural hierarchies in infection rate. Pre-vaccination measles data for England and Wales show strong evidence for urban–rural heterogeneities in infection rate – the proportion of urban cases rises significantly before major epidemics. The model shows that this effect is consistent with a higher infection rate in large cities, though small towns have epidemic characteristics intermediate between town and country. Surprisingly, urban and rural areas of the same population size have a similar propensity for local extinction of infection. A spatial map of urban–rural correlations reveals complex regional patterns of synchronization of towns and cities. The hierarchical heterogeneities in infection persist into the vaccine era; their implications for disease persistence and control are discussed.     

冻干麻疹减毒活疫苗残余水分影响因素的探讨

影响冻干制品残余水分的因素很多,但西林瓶胶塞的含水量是其关键因素。使用经干烤工艺处理和未干烤处理的药用溴丁基胶塞进行麻疹减毒活疫苗冻干试验,结果显示,用未经干烤工艺处理及处理的药用溴丁基胶塞冻干的麻疹减毒活疫苗,存储18个月后,水分上升的平均值分别为2.03%和0.08%,经单一因素的方差分析,两者有统计学意义(P0.01)。证明经处理的药用溴丁基胶塞,对保持麻疹减毒活疫苗在存储期内的残余水分稳定作用效果明显。     

新城疫壳聚糖微球疫苗免疫效果的研究

鸡新城疫是由新城疫病毒引起的鸡的一种急性、烈性、高度接触性传染病,是危害养禽业的最严重疫病之一。控制新城疫最根本的措施是进行有效的疫苗接种,目前常用的疫苗是弱毒活疫苗和灭活疫苗,但二者在实际应用中均存在一定的局限性。口服微球疫苗可以诱导较强的粘膜免疫;同时还能够诱导产生系统的体液免疫和细胞免疫,已成为ND疫苗研究的热点。以壳聚糖为囊材,新城疫La Sota抗原液为芯材,戊二醛为交联剂,制备出新城疫壳聚糖微球疫苗,通过了实验室安全检验和效力检验。将新城疫壳聚糖微球疫苗与LaSota活疫苗和新城疫油乳剂灭活苗分别免疫SPF鸡,利用MTT、血凝抑制法(HI)和ELISA等分别检测不同疫苗免疫后的细胞免疫、体液免疫和粘膜免疫抗体IgA,并在当免疫鸡HI抗体降到23的情况下进行了攻毒试验。结果表明,新城疫壳聚糖微球疫苗安全性好,免疫后可刺激机体产生较强的细胞免疫、体液免疫和局粘膜免疫,具有较好的保护作用。     

麻疹、腮腺炎二联活疫苗的研制

用于生产麻诊活疫苗的“沪191”毒株和由武汉生物制品研究所引进的腮腺炎疫苗“Wms4”毒株生产各自的病毒原液,全面检定合格后,对麻疹与腮腺炎两种病毒原液进行配比试验、热稳定性试验等,最终选定联合疫苗中麻疹与腮腺炎病毒CCID50之比1：30,试制出二批麻－腮二联活疫苗,经全面检定,完全符现行规程要求,目前正在I期临床研究。     

建立膜抗原荧光抗体试验评价北京株冻干水痘疫苗免疫效果

为了建立用于水痘疫苗接种后血清中特异性抗体检测的膜抗原荧光抗体(FAMA)法,并对接种水痘疫苗后儿童血清中水痘特异性抗体进行检测,评价北京株水痘疫苗的免疫效果。以水痘带状疱疹病毒(VZV)感染细胞作为抗原制备成固定抗原玻片,以异硫氰酸荧光素(FITC)标记的羊抗人IgG作为二抗建立FAMA法,并对该法的敏感性、特异性进行验证。运用此法对不同剂量北京株水痘疫苗接种后儿童血清中特异性抗体进行检测,分析儿童血清中水痘特异性抗体水平以及免后抗体阳转率,并与Oka株水痘疫苗进行比较。结果显示,FAMA法敏感性可达0.0196IU/ml,特异性好。应用此法检测300名观察者免前免后双份血清样本中抗VZVIgG,易感者中北京株水痘疫苗原苗(39810PFU/0.5ml)、2000PFU/0.5ml、500PFU/0.5ml接种组儿童血清免后抗体阳转率分别为100%、98.77%、85.42%,抗体几何平均滴度(GMT)分别为36.4、34.3、18.6,原苗与2000PFU间的抗体阳转率和GMT均无显著性差异(P>0.05),但原苗与500PFU、2000PFU与500PFU间的抗体阳转率和GMT均有显著性差异(P<0.05)。对照国产、进口Oka株水痘疫苗接种后抗体阳转率分别为95.35%、96.97%,抗体GMT分别为13.3、16.0,不同剂量北京株疫苗抗体阳转率与国产、进口Oka株疫苗相比,差别无显著性(P>0.05),但北京株疫苗原?     

Remarkable similarity in genome nucleotide sequences between the Schwarz FF-8 and AIK-C measles virus vaccine strains and apparent nucleotide differences in the phosphoprotein gene

The Schwarz FF-8 (FF-8) and AIK-C measles virus vaccine strains are currently used for vaccination in Japan. Here, the complete genome nucleotide sequence of the FF-8 strain has been determined and its genome sequence found to be remarkably similar to that of the AIK-C strain. These two strains are differentiated only by two nucleotide differences in the phosphoprotein gene. Since the FF-8 strain does not possess the amino acid substitutions in the phospho- and fusion proteins which are responsible for the temperature-sensitivity and small syncytium formation phenotypes of the AIK-C strain, respectively, other unidentified common mechanisms likely attenuate both the FF-8 and AIK-C strains.     

用蚀斑法进行麻疹疫苗的病毒滴定

按世界银行中国疫苗项目对麻疹疫苗检定的要求,建立了麻疹疫苗病毒滴定的蚀斑方法。以蚀斑法对Ｈｕ１９１株生产的冻干麻疹活疫苗样品进行了测定。结果发现,Ｈｕ１９１株生产的麻疹疫苗在琼脂和甲基纤维素覆盖下所形成的蚀斑大小及形状不同,但滴度无显著性差异;在室温和３７℃吸附的滴度无显著性差异,但细胞在３７℃生长较好;在本实验条件下,蚀斑滴定和ＣＣＩＤ５０测定的滴度呈正相关,蚀斑滴定相对较敏感;采用国产６孔聚苯乙稀培养板,Ｖｅｒｏ细胞单层,在３７℃吸附,用甲基纤维素覆盖,经结晶紫及甲醛固定染色后计数空斑,操作简便易行,结果特异敏感,重复性好,可用于麻疹疫苗病毒滴定     

Think globally,act locally: the role of local demographics and vaccination coverage in the dynamic response of measles infection to control

The global reduction of the burden of morbidity and mortality owing to measles has been a major triumph of public health. However, the continued persistence of measles infection probably not only reflects local variation in progress towards vaccination target goals, but may also reflect local variation in dynamic processes of transmission, susceptible replenishment through births and stochastic local extinction. Dynamic models predict that vaccination should increase the mean age of infection and increase inter-annual variability in incidence. Through a comparative approach, we assess national-level patterns in the mean age of infection and measles persistence. We find that while the classic predictions do hold in general, the impact of vaccination on the age distribution of cases and stochastic fadeout are mediated by local birth rate. Thus, broad-scale vaccine coverage goals are unlikely to have the same impact on the interruption of measles transmission in all demographic settings. Indeed, these results suggest that the achievement of further measles reduction or elimination goals is likely to require programmatic and vaccine coverage goals that are tailored to local demographic conditions.     

Metapopulation dynamics of rabies and the efficacy of vaccination

Spatial structure in a host population results in heterogeneity in transmission dynamics. We used a Bayesian framework to evaluate competing metapopulation models of rabies transmission among domestic dog populations in villages in Tanzania. A proximate indicator of disease, medical records of animal-bite injuries, is used to infer the occurrence (presence/absence) of suspected rabid dog cases in one month intervals. State-space models were used to explore the implications of different levels of reporting probability on model parameter estimates. We find evidence for a relatively high rate of infection of these populations from neighbouring districts or from other species distributed throughout the study area, rather than from adjacent wildlife protected areas, suggesting wildlife is unlikely to be implicated in the long-term persistence of rabies. Stochastic simulation of our highest ranked models in vaccinated and hypothetical unvaccinated populations indicated that pulsed vaccination campaigns occurring from 2002 to 2007 reduced rabies occurrence by 57.3 per cent in vaccinated villages in the 1 year following each pulse, and that a similar regional campaign would deliver an 80.9 per cent reduction in occurrence. This work demonstrates how a relatively coarse, proximate sentinel of rabies infection is useful for making inferences about spatial disease dynamics and the efficacy of control measures.     

On estimation of vaccine efficacy using validation samples with selection bias

Using validation sets for outcomes can greatly improve the estimation of vaccine efficacy (VE) in the field (Halloran and Longini, 2001; Halloran and others, 2003). Most statistical methods for using validation sets rely on the assumption that outcomes on those with no cultures are missing at random (MAR). However, often the validation sets will not be chosen at random. For example, confirmational cultures are often done on people with influenza-like illness as part of routine influenza surveillance. VE estimates based on such non-MAR validation sets could be biased. Here we propose frequentist and Bayesian approaches for estimating VE in the presence of validation bias. Our work builds on the ideas of Rotnitzky and others (1998, 2001), Scharfstein and others (1999, 2003), and Robins and others (2000). Our methods require expert opinion about the nature of the validation selection bias. In a re-analysis of an influenza vaccine study, we found, using the beliefs of a flu expert, that within any plausible range of selection bias the VE estimate based on the validation sets is much higher than the point estimate using just the non-specific case definition. Our approach is generally applicable to studies with missing binary outcomes with categorical covariates.     

Mucosal vaccination with a multicomponent adenovirus-vectored vaccine protects against Streptococcus pneumoniae infection in the lung

Streptococcus pneumoniae is a major bacterial respiratory pathogen. Current licensed pneumococcal polysaccharide and polysaccharide–protein conjugate vaccines are administered by an intramuscular injection. In order to develop a new-generation vaccine that can be administered in a needle-free mucosal manner, we have constructed early 1 and 3 gene regions (E1/E3) deleted, replication-defective adenoviral vectors encoding pneumococcal surface antigen A (PsaA), the N-fragment of pneumococcal surface protein A (N-PspA), and the detoxified mutant pneumolysin (PdB) from S. pneumoniae strain D39. Intranasal vaccination with the three adenoviral vectors (Ad/PsaA, Ad/N-PspA, and Ad/PdB) in mice resulted in robust antigen-specific serum immunoglobulin G responses, as demonstrated by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. In addition, nasal mucosal vaccination with the combination of the three adenoviral vectors conferred protection against S. pneumoniae strain D39 colonization in mouse lungs. Taken together, these data demonstrate the feasibility of developing a mucosal vaccine against S. pneumoniae using recombinant adenoviruses for antigen delivery.     

含乙型肝炎病毒S-PreS1 基因的DNA疫苗与蛋白颗粒疫苗联合免疫可增强免疫应答

为研制新型有效的HBV治疗性疫苗,构建了含PreS1与S融合基因的HBV DNA疫苗,即pVRC-HBSS1 (PreS1 21–47 aa融合在S抗原1–223的羧基端),并制备了CHO表达相同结构的蛋白颗粒亚单位疫苗HBSS1。在Balb/C小鼠中采用不同的DNA免疫方式 (即肌肉注射、皮内注射加电转) 初免3次,蛋白颗粒亚单位疫苗 (不同佐剂) 肌肉注射加强免疫1次,然后我们分析比较了各组疫苗所引起的免疫应答特点。抗体检测结果表明：皮内注射结合电转初免组产生的PreS1与 S特异性抗体水平皆高于肌肉直接注射组。进一步还发现DNA疫苗与蛋白颗粒亚单位疫苗两种疫苗联合应用后S抗原特异的细胞免疫应答 (IFN-γ ELISpot分析) 明显高于DNA疫苗或蛋白颗粒亚单位单独应用,其中皮内注射+电转结合蛋白颗粒亚单位疫苗联合免疫组可产生最强的细胞免疫应答。这些研究为新型HBV 治疗性疫苗的优化设计与合理应用提供了依据。     

CpG-enriched plasmid enhances the efficacy of the traditional foot-and-mouth disease killed vaccine

A CpG-enriched recombinant plasmid (pUC18-CpG) as an adjuvant of FMD killed vaccine was tested for immunization and vaccination challenge in a porcine model. Our preliminary results had indicated that the recombinant plasmid could enhance the humoral immune response triggered by the traditional oil-adjuvant vaccine after the initial inoculation. A subsequent vaccination-challenge test showed an increased PD(50) value. Thus, coadministration of the recombinant plasmid with the oil-adjuvant vaccine helped illicit an immune response earlier than that elicited by giving the vaccine alone. Our results showed that pUC18-CpG can be a potent immunoadjuvant for the traditional FMD killed vaccine and can greatly enhance the traditional vaccine's efficacy when given in combination with it.     

Modelling studies to estimate the prevalence of foot-and-mouth disease carriers after reactive vaccination

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious and economically significant viral disease of cloven-hoofed animals. Vaccination can be used to help restrict the spread of the infection, but evidence must be provided to show that the infection has been eradicated in order to regain the FMD-free status. While serological tests have been developed, which can identify animals that have been infected regardless of vaccination status, it is vital to know the probable prevalence of herds with FMD carriers and the within-herd prevalence of those carriers in order to design efficient post-epidemic surveillance strategies that establish freedom from disease. Here, we present the results of a study to model the expected prevalence of carriers after application of emergency vaccination and the impact of this on the sensitivity of test systems for their detection. Results showed that the expected prevalence of carrier-containing herds after reactive vaccination is likely to be very low, approximately 0.2%, and there will only be a small number of carriers, most likely one, in the positive herds. Therefore, sensitivity for carrier detection can be optimized by adopting an individual-based testing regime in which all animals in all vaccinated herds are tested and positive animals rather than herds are culled.