The human gastric pathogen H. pylori is listed among the top 10 bacterial threats listed by the WHO. However, no vaccine is currently available. To induce protective immunity against H. pylori, antibody and T-cellular responses, in particular balanced Th1/Th2 and Th17 T-cell responses, are essential.

We recently identified promising vaccine candidates with a surfome-shaving approach and bioinformatic pipeline, combining quantitative mass spectrometry and computational candidate prioritization (Hornburg et al. Scientific Reports 2019). Through combination of our surfome-derived antigens, novel (mucosal) adjuvants and new vaccine formulations, we are working towards developing improved prophylactic vaccines against H. pylori. Our team aims to create a more effective novel vaccine by targeting immune modulatory factors important for the establishment and maintenance of bacterial infections. The project is supported by the German Center of Infection Research (DZIF), and the EU Horizon Program Vax2Muc

Publications:

Hornburg D, Kruse T, Anderl F, Daschkin C, Semper RP, Klar K, Guenther A, Mejías-Luque R, Schneiderhan-Marra N, Mann M, Meissner F, Gerhard M. A Mass Spectrometry Guided Approach for the Identification of Novel Vaccine Candidates in Gram-Negative Pathogens. Sci Rep. 2019 Nov 22;9(1):17401. (Full Text; Abstract)

Friedrich V, Gerhard M. Vaccination against Helicobacter pylori - An approach for cancer prevention? Mol Aspects Med. 2023 Aug;92:101183. doi: 10.1016/j.mam.2023.101183. (Abstract)