Mucosal Immunology and Vaccine Development

The Immunity and Host Defense section covers the interface between the Innate and acquired immune responses that protect the host from deleterious effects of pathogens, including basic mechanisms of immune responses to limit pathogen invasion and toxicity, and development of animal models of potential bioterrorism agents.

There is currently great interest in developing mucosal vaccines against a variety of microbial pathogens. Mucosally induced tolerance also seems to be a promising form of immunomodulation for treating certain autoimmune diseases and allergies. Mucosal tissues (e.g. nasal, oral, ocular, rectal, vaginal) cover a large surface of the body. Since many infections are initiated at mucosal sites, it is critical to develop strategies for neutralising the infectious agent at these surfaces.

Recent advances in the immunology, pathogenesis, and prevention of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection continue to reveal clues to the mechanisms involved in the progressive immunodeficiency attributed to infection.  HIV selectively infects, eliminates, and/or dysregulates several key cells of the human immune system, thwarting multiple arms of the host immune response, and inflicting severe damage to mucosal barriers, resulting in tissue infiltration of 'symbiotic' intestinal bacteria and viruses that essentially become opportunistic infections promoting systemic immune activation. Mucosal tissues are the major targets exposed to the HIV during transmission. In the majority of subjects the initial acquisition of HIV involves passage of virus across a mucosal surface. The sexual route is the most important route of transmission- (1) homosexuals wherelymphoid cells are likely to be the prime target and (2) heterosexuals where the genital tract provides the virus access to lymphoid cells.

Most infectious agents enter the body at mucosal surfaces and therefore mucosal immune responses function as a first line of defence. Protective mucosal immune responses are most effectively induced by mucosal immunization through oral, nasal, rectal or vaginal routes, but the vast majority of vaccines in use today are administered by injection. Immunisation involves the delivery of antigens to the mucosal immune system (dispersed or organised into units such as Peyer’s patches in the intestine or the nasal-associated lymphoid tissue in the oropharangeal cavity). The antigen delivery systems may comprise a simple buffer solution with/without adjuvants or an advanced particulate formulation, such as liposomes or nanoparticles. The most commonly evaluated route for mucosal antigen delivery is oral, but other routes have also been explored.

Most infectious agents enter the body at mucosal surfaces and therefore mucosal immune responses function as a first line of defence. Protective mucosal immune responses are most effectively induced by mucosal immunization through oral, nasal, rectal or vaginal routes, but the vast majority of vaccines in use today are administered by injection. Immunisation involves the delivery of antigens to the mucosal immune system (dispersed or organised into units such as Peyer’s patches in the intestine or the nasal-associated lymphoid tissue in the oropharangeal cavity). The antigen delivery systems may comprise a simple buffer solution with/without adjuvants or an advanced particulate formulation, such as liposomes or nanoparticles. The most commonly evaluated route for mucosal antigen delivery is oral, but other routes have also been explored.

Most infectious agents enter the body at mucosal surfaces and therefore mucosal immune responses function as a first line of defence. Protective mucosal immune responses are most effectively induced by mucosal immunization through oral, nasal, rectal or vaginal routes, but the vast majority of vaccines in use today are administered by injection. Immunisation involves the delivery of antigens to the mucosal immune system (dispersed or organised into units such as Peyer’s patches in the intestine or the nasal-associated lymphoid tissue in the oropharangeal cavity). The antigen delivery systems may comprise a simple buffer solution with/without adjuvants or an advanced particulate formulation, such as liposomes or nanoparticles. The most commonly evaluated route for mucosal antigen delivery is oral, but other routes have also been explored.

The main goals of veterinary vaccines are to progress the health and welfare of companion animals, increase production of livestock in an economical manner, and prevent animal to human transmission from both domestic animals and wildlife. Animals, just like humans, suffer from a range of infectious diseases. As veterinarymedicine has advanced, prevention of disease has become a priority. One of the best means of prevention is by creating immunity in the animal. This is usually achieved by vaccination. Vaccination also reduces the amount of pharmaceutical treatments (such as antibiotics) used to control conventional diseases and, in many instances, has prevented long term suffering and death.

The mechanisms controlling host microbe interactions at barrier sites such as the skin and the gut. These two sites represent the first portal of pathogen exposure and are major anatomical sites for development of inflammatory disorders. The skin and the gut also represent highly specialized environments with distinct structures, cell types, and innate defense mechanisms tailored to support their individual challenges.

Children vaccines that ought to be administered to humans during childhood stage of life can be termed as childhood vaccines. These vaccines are primarily responsible for the induction of immune system and development of immunogenic response within the child. Immunisation protects people against harmful infections before they come into contact with them. Technically ‘vaccination’ is the term used forgiving a vaccine that is actually getting the injection or swallowing the drops. Immunisation is the term used for the process of both getting the vaccine and becoming immune to the disease as a result of the vaccine.

Asthma is a chronic condition in which the airways that carry air to the lungs are inflamed and narrowed. It’s caused by a combination of both genetic and environmental factors. Many genes have been related to asthma.Inflamed airways are very sensitive, and they tend to react to things in the environment called triggers, such as substances that are inhaled. When the airways react, they swell and narrow even more, and also produce extramucus, all of which make it harder for air to flow to the lungs. The muscles around the airways also tighten, which further restricts air flow. There are also many environmental factors connected to asthma in children. With so many variables, preventing the development of asthma can be challenging, if not impossible. Immunotherapyin the form of allergy shots, works to enhance or suppress the immune system. The goal of immunotherapy is to reduce sensitivity to allergens over time. 

Diseases of the mucous membranes are frequently more difficult to diagnose than skin diseases. This is somewhat due to alteration of the primary lesion either by the continuous mouth moisture or by different elements in the mouth or those reaching in the mouth from outside, either through food, mouthwashes or others.  A mucous cyst, also known as a mucocoele, is a fluid-filled swelling that arises on the lip or the mouth. Most cysts are on the lower lip but it can occur anywhere inside the oral cavity. Mucosal inflammation typically refers to inflammation or irritation of the mucus membranes. These are areas of the body which can produce mucus in an effort to filter out bacteria, viruses, and other intruders. This includes the nasal cavities, mouth, throat, eyes, vagina, lungs, and intestines. Inflammation can occur if bacteria or viruses cause an infection, if the area is cross by allergens or other foreign bodies, or due to fungal infection. The cyst grows when mucus from the mouth’s salivary glands becomes plugged. Some of the Skin diseases which associated with mucous membrane manifestations such as Pemphigus vulgaris, Lichen planus, Lupus erythematosus, Mucosal candidiasis, Viral diseases such as Koplik‘s spots of measles and herpes simplex, Syphilis.

The sinuses are hollow, bone and mucus lined spaces that lie just to the side of the nose and extend up to the bottom of our skull. There are several different sinuses in the human head and include two large pairedmaxillary (sometimes referred to as cheek sinuses), two frontal and sphenoid sinuses and multiple ethmoid sinuses. Sinus disease occurs in several forms, but all are related to a combination of infection and the inability of air to get into sinus cavities from the nose. Similar to the ear and mastoid, the sinuses are air-filled spaces surrounded by thin bone and lined by mucosa. When the air is absorbed by the mucosa faster than air can get through the sinus openings (ostia) into the sinuses, a relative vacuum develops and fluid is pulled from the lining tissues of the sinuses into the sinus cavities.  This fluid easily becomes infected.  Allergy causes mucous glands to release thicker fluids (mucous), which can also become infected and which are harder to clean from the sinuses. Sinus disease is not just one entity but many. Overall infectious or inflammatory sinus disease can be broken up into acute (quick onset) or chronic (over a long period of time). Acute sinusitis is the most common form of sinusitis and is typically treated with a combination of antibiotics and agents to decrease inflammation in the nose.

Mucosal surfaces are a major gateway for many human pathogens that are the cause of infectious diseasesworldwide. Vaccines capable of eliciting mucosal immune responses can fortify defenses at mucosal front lines and protect against infection. However, most permitted vaccines are administered parenterally and fail to produce protective mucosal immunity. Immunization by mucosal routes may be more effective at inducing protective immunity against mucosal pathogens at their sites of entry. Recent advances in mucosal immunity and identification of correlates of protective immunity against specific mucosal pathogens have renewed interest in the development of mucosal vaccines.

Mucosal immunology is so important since most infectious agents enter the body through the various mucous membranes, and many common infections take place in or on mucous membranes. Mucosal infections induce mucosal and systemic immune response.

Semaphorins are a large family of proteins involved in the pathogenesis of inflammatory diseases through the regulation of immune homeostasis and tissue inflammation. Several members of semaphorin family proteins have been recently defined as active and non-redundant players in the inflammatory response regulatingimmune cells, smooth muscle cells, endothelial cells and eosinophils.

Urology is a surgical speciality that deals with the treatment of conditions involving the male and female urinary tract and the male reproductive organs. The organs under the domain of urology include the kidneys, adrenal glands, ureters, urinary bladder, urethra, and the male reproductive organs (testes, epididymis, vas deferens, seminal vesicles, prostate and penis).The field of urology involves the medical management of conditions such as urinary tract infection and prostate enlargement through to the surgical management of conditions such as bladder cancer, prostate cancer, kidney stones and stress incontinence.