We thank Elva Garavito for assistance in the preparation of

click here the manuscript. Fundings: This work was supported by funds awarded to GenVec Inc. and NMRC by PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative, and by funds allocated to NMRC by the U.S. Army Medical Research & Material Command (work units 6000.RAD1.F.A0309 and 62236N.4127.3696.A0258). The GIA Reference Center is supported by the PATH/Malaria Vaccine Initiative. DLD was supported in part by a Pfizer Australia Senior Research Fellow. The experiments reported herein were conducted in compliance with the Animal Welfare Act and in accordance with the principles set forth in the “Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals,” Institute of Laboratory Animals Resources, National Research Council, National Academy Press, 1996. TLR is a military service member and CAL an employee of the U.S. Government. This work was prepared as part of their official duties. Title 17 U.S.C. §105 provides that ‘Copyright protection under this title is not available for any work of the United States Government.’ Title 17 U.S.C. §101 defines a U.S. Government work as a work prepared by a military service member or employee of the U.S. Government as part of that person’s official duties. The views

expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy

or position Selleckchem ZD1839 of the Department of the Navy, Department of Defense, nor the U.S. Government. “
“Neisseria meningitidis is an important cause of morbidity and mortality with approximately 500,000 reported cases and 50,000 deaths annually worldwide [1]. Though antibiotic treatment is effective and reduces case fatality, the rapid development of disease and the associated next permanent neurological damage make prophylactic vaccination the preferred approach to the prevention of meningococcal disease [2] and [3]. Meningococcal polysaccharide-based vaccine formulations offer protection against disease caused by N. meningitidis expressing serogroup A, C, Y and W-135 capsules. However, there is no vaccine against serogroup B meningococci, which are responsible for the majority of disease in developed countries [3]. The poor immunogenicity of the serogroup B polysaccharide together with its similarity to glycosylated antigens on human cells [3], have led to the development of vaccines based on outer membrane vesicles (OMVs). The first OMV vaccines, shown to be protective in efficacy trials against clonal serogroup B outbreaks [4] and [5], were developed by the Finlay Institute in Cuba and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health from strains CU385 (B:4:P1.19,15) and 44/76 (B:15:P1.