Protective immunity of microsphere-based mucosal vaccines against lethal intranasal challenge with Streptococcus pneumoniae.

Mucosal vaccination of capsular polysaccharide (PS) of Streptococcus pneumoniae and subsequent creation of the first line of immunological defense in mucosa were examined. Mucosal as well as systemic antibody responses to PS were evoked by peroral or intranasal immunization of BALB/c mice with PS-cholera toxin B subunit (CTB) conjugates entrapped in the alginate microspheres (AM). The bacterial colonization at the lung mucosa was most profoundly inhibited (<95%) by intranasal immunization with the naked conjugate (PS-CTB). The mice vaccinated orally with encapsulated conjugate [AM(PS-CTB)] showed significant reduction on the level of pneumococcal bacteremia (<99%). Eighty percent of the mice perorally immunized with AM (PS-CTB) were protected from lethal intranasal challenge with S. pneumoniae, whereas more than 60% of the mice in the other control groups died of infection. Our novel approach may prove to be important in the development of a mucosal vaccine that will provide protection of mucosal surfaces of host.