Vaccine hope for common but deadly infection with major new trial launched in UK

Scientists have launched a pioneering trial using tonsil cells in a bid to find a vaccine for Group A Strep.

Researchers at the University of Bristol are using a new technique called the tonsil organoid model as they investigate invasive Group A Strep – also known as iGAS – that can cause diseases like meningitis.

Group A Streptococcus is the name given to a type of bacteria sometimes found in the throat or on the skin. It usually results in mild but very infectious illness but can become the more serious invasive Group A Strep. It has been in the headlines following a concerning rise in cases with a number of young children across the UK dying due to complications linked to the infection last winter.

As well as meningitis, Invasive Group A streptococcus can lead to rheumatic fever and cause heart disease and sepsis while it is also the main cause of scarlet fever. There is currently no vaccine to protect against Group A strep but the research being done at Bristol University is aiming to find out what parts of the bacteria to include in the vaccine to make it successful.

Scientists Dr Anu Goenka, Dr Alice Halliday and Dr Darryl Hill have developed an innovative approach in order to do this using the tonsil organoid model. Tonsils are part of the immune system which help fight infection and the research involves growing cells from tonsils of patients that were removed during routine surgery.

The team will collect the tonsils, separate the cells, and then grow them in the laboratory alongside different parts of the Strep A bacteria. They will then measure the immune response to help them make decisions on which parts of the bacteria could be included in a successful vaccine.

The study is being funded by the Spencer Dayman Meningitis Research charity, which was founded by Dr Steve Dayman who lost his son Spencer to meningitis and sepsis 41 years ago. Dr Dayman told the BBC: “Back then there were no vaccines to protect against bacterial infections causing meningitis and sepsis, now we have five vaccines in the UK vaccine programme to protect against various strains of disease. Pioneering research such as this has always proven to be the starting point towards the development of successful vaccines.”

While Dr Anu Goenka added: “This project will offer unique insights into the nature of the adaptive immune response to iGAS. We are very grateful to Spencer Dayman Meningitis Research for their generous financial support to enable us to undertake this important project”