What’s New in Research April 2017

Newborn babies are especially susceptible to diseases and infections as their immune systems are not yet equipped to fight viruses, bacteria and other pathogens. Vaccines are available to protect against devastating diseases like pneumonia, but newborns fail to respond optimally to most vaccines and may require a series of shots in order to gain protection. Discoveries over the past 20 years have yielded new ways to strengthen the immune system’s response through the addition of an ingredient, known as an adjuvant, to standard vaccines. However, adjuvanted vaccines specifically tailored to boost the immune response of the newborn have not been developed. In new studies published in JCI Insight and The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, investigators examine novel vaccine formulations that protect against Streptococcus pneumoniae and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) respectively, as model vaccines to adjuvant.

Read more about Improving How Newborns Respond to Vaccines and other new research stories at BWH Clinical and Research News