- Harmless strains of the bacteria were used to create a vaccine capsule
- E.coli was mixed with polymer to create a case, vaccine was inserted into it
- Researchers fed them to mice, the capsules ‘targeted immune system’
- Study claims the capsules could be used as vehicle for cancer treatment
Mia De Graaf For Dailymail.com
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A superbug normally associated with severe food poisoning could be harnessed by scientists to prevent pneumonia, meningitis and even cancer.
Researchers show E.coli bacteria could deliver tomorrow’s vaccines with expert precision and at very little cost.
Ingesting some strains of E.coli can cause crippling stomach pains, chronic diarrhoea and even death, but the majority are safe and beneficial to the digestive system.
But using one of the safe varieties scientists have developed an E.coli-based transport capsule to target specific immune cells.
Using a safe variety scientists have developed an E.coli-based transport capsule to target immune cells
Researchers say the vaccines could prevent pneumococcal disease, which can lead to pneumonia, sepsis, ear infections and meningitis.
And they even believe it could be developed to transport treatment for cancer.
‘It’s a bit counterintuitive given what you hear about E.coli,’ the study’s lead author Blaine Pfeifer, associate professor at the University at Buffalo School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, said.
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‘But there are many strains of the bacteria, most of which are perfectly normal in the body, that have great potential to fight disease.’
In a study published in Science Advances, researchers tested the capsules on mice.
The harmless E.coli sits at the core of the capsule, encased by a chain-link-style synthetic polymer.
The negative-charged bacteria is a catalyst for the positive-charged polymer, creating a capsule shape.
Inside the capsule, the researchers then inserted a protein-based vaccine designed to fight pneumococcal disease.
That capsule was fed to mice.
The team was excited to find the capsules targeted specific immune cells to trigger a response against pneumococcal disease.
In the study, the capsule was fed to mice containing a vaccine to fight pneumococcal disease, which can lead to meningitis (pictured), pneumonia, sepsis, and ear infections
It also enhanced the body’s immune response.
Professor Pfeifer, who led the study with his former student, CEO of Abcombi Biosciences Charles Jones, is hoping the vaccines will one day be used on patients.
He added: ‘It’s also relatively inexpensive to create and flexible in terms of use.
‘For example, the capsule could be used as a delivery device for therapies that target cancer, viral-based infectious disease and other illnesses.’
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