Study Highlights Potential of a Vaccine Strategy to Combat UTIs

(Newswire.net — July 8, 2021) Orlando, FL — Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are undeniably common today, and this type of infection continues to be a major reason for the increased use of and demand for antibiotics.

While antibiotics are undeniably helpful, it is also worth noting that they are closely linked with side effects. Experts continue to investigate some remedies that could be helpful for battling this infection.

A study was carried out and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

This research, which was carried out by Duke researchers, highlights the discovery of a new vaccination strategy that may be helpful for re-programming the body to battle UTI-causing bacteria. 

UTIs are undeniably troublesome, and they are the type of infection that requires timely and proper treatment. It is worth noting that this pesky, persistent, and painful infection is common in women. 

According to Soman Abraham, Ph.D., although several vaccines against UTIs have been investigated in clinical trials, they have so far had limited success.

Abraham is Grace Kerby Distinguished Professor of Pathology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics & Microbiology in the School of Medicine and senior author on the paper.

“There are currently no effective UTI vaccines available for use in the U.S. in spite of the high prevalence of bladder infections,” Abraham said. “Our study describes the potential for a highly effective bladder vaccine that can not only eradicate residual bladder bacteria but also prevent future infections,” he adds. 

The research team suggests that this strategy is effective in mouse models. It involves re-programming an inadequate immune response, which they identified last year. They found that when E. coli bacteria-infected mouse bladders, the immune system of the subjects dispatched repair cells to heal the damaged tissue.

Further, it launched very few warrior cells to fight off the attacker. This leads bacteria to never fully clear, staying on in the bladder to attack again.

Lead author Jianxuan Wu, Ph.D., said that the new vaccine strategy attempts to ‘teach’ the bladder to more effectively fight off the attacking bacteria. 

Wu has recently earned his doctorate from the Department of Immunology at Duke, 

“By administering the vaccine directly into the bladder where the residual bacteria harbor, the highly effective vaccine antigen, in combination with an adjuvant known to boost the recruitment of bacterial clearing cells, performed better than traditional intramuscular vaccination,” Wu explained further.

Today, there are many individuals suffering from UTIs who resort to the use of all-natural remedies like Divine Bounty D-mannose. This formula is widely used to reduce the odds of having the infection.

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