Pneumococcus

Worldwide, S. pneumoniae infection is the leading cause of death for children under five; it is responsible for approximately 1.2 million deaths annually. Current estimates indicate that 150 million episodes of pneumonia occur every year among children less than five in developing countries.

There is an existing conjugate pneumococcal vaccine, however, it is costly to produce and deliver. Although infants in the U.S. are routinely immunized, the high cost makes the conjugate vaccines inaccessible in much of the developing world, where most deaths occur. In addition, the current vaccines only protect against a few of the nearly 100 types of pneumococcus and do not cover many of the known strains. Genocea's program, which is funded through a partnership with the global non-profit organization, PATH, in collaboration with Children's Hospital Boston, is aimed at developing an affordable, pneumococcal vaccine that provides broad coverage across bacterial strains.

The company's program capitalizes on a recently discovered mechanism of T cell immunity, called Th17, which protects against infectious disease colonization in mucosal tissue. The mechanism was discovered by researchers led by one of Genocea's Scientific Advisory Board members, Richard Malley, MD, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Children's Hospital Boston. The company has made rapid, significant progress discovering human antigens that elicit Th17 responses and protect against pneumococcal colonization.

New Paradigm for Vaccine Discovery

The Th17 pathway to prevent mucosal colonization represents a fundamentally new approach to vaccine development to prevent or treat a number of major infectious diseases. Mucosal tissue colonization is a target for a number of infectious agents, including M. catarrhalis and non-typeable H. influenzae, which along with S. pneumoniae can cause otitis media (ear infections); H. pylori, which is linked to gastric ulcers and stomach cancer; S. aureus, the most common cause of staphylococcus infections; and Group A Streptococcus. Genocea's S. pneumoniae program provides an opportunity to demonstrate the potential of this innovative approach.