South Africa Tests First New TB Vaccine in 80 Years

Phase II studies of the first new vaccine against tuberculosis in more than 80 years are underway in South Africa's Western Cape, Oxford University scientists said Saturday.

The current standard TB vaccine is Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG). While it offers some protection against severe forms of TB in children, BCG is unreliable against the most common type of the bacteria, pulmonary TB. In Western Cape, where BCG vaccination is widespread, one in 100 infants suffers from TB.

The new vaccine candidate, known as MVA85A, works as a booster to the BCG shot. Though previous tests have shown MVA85A produces a very high immune response, the key will be whether it actually prevents disease. If the trials prove successful, the vaccine could be available within eight years.

TB kills around 1.7 million people annually, and the emergence of drug-resistant strains has exacerbated the problem. "The rise in the number of cases of multidrug-resistant forms of TB plus the increasing number of cases of TB in people living with HIV means a new vaccine is essential," said Dr. Helen McShane, MVA85A's co-developer. "We can no longer rely on antibiotics to treat the disease; we need to help the body's immune system prevent disease."

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