Trial of Group B meningococcal vaccines in adults

In this project, scientists are conducting trials of candidate vaccines in adult volunteers. 

Recently a vaccine has been developed to combat Group B disease in New Zealand, which could potentially protect against up to a third of Group B disease in the UK, based on current data.

However, one of the biggest obstacles to Group B vaccine development is the fact that there is no reliable way to find out whether a vaccine candidate triggers an immune response that can protect against Group B disease. 

One of the main aims of this research is to develop methods for evaluating this.  Successful methods arising from this work will be key to developing a Group B vaccine that protects all age groups, including babies and young children, who run the highest risk of Group B infection.

Therefore, methods developed and standardised through this project have been rolled out to the New Zealand laboratory to assist in evaluating their vaccine. Understanding how the vaccine works in New Zealand will be of great help in understanding how vaccines may work against the strains of meningococci circulating in the UK and Ireland.