Current Topics in Infectious Diseases - Scientists have developed a vaccine for listeria

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Infectious Diseases Current Topics in Infectious Diseases

Scientists have developed a vaccine for listeria

By modifying the bacteria which causes listeria, researchers seem to have created a vaccine against this dangerous food-borne illness. Listeria is a serious infection that mostly affects newborns, pregnant women and adults with weakened immune systems, causing fever, muscle aches, nausea, headache, confusion and even convulsions. The Centers for Disease Control estimates that 2,500 people in the United Stated will contract listeria this year, resulting in 500 deaths. Darren Higgins, associate professor of microbiology at Harvard Medical School, created a strain of listeria that is unable to replicate inside the body's cells, thereby preparing the body in case it is infected with actively-replicating listeria bacteria. While the vaccine has yet to be used in humans, it did protect mice from becoming infected. Higgins is hopeful that his method can be applied to other types of bacteria. "In theory, we could apply this vaccine strategy to other bacterial pathogens, like Salmonella," he said in a press release.

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