Does vaccination with recombinant Mycobacterium tuberculosis PknD attenuate bacterial dissemination to the brain in guinea pigs?
Current recommendations for administering BCG at birth are based on protection gained against severe disease, such as TB meningitis, during infancy. We demonstrate that vaccination with recombinant M. tuberculosis PknD subunit offers a novel strategy to protect against TB meningitis, which is equivalent to BCG in a guinea pig model. Moreover, since BCG lacks the PknD sensor, BCG could also be boosted to develop a more effective vaccine against TB meningitis, a devastating disease that disproportionately affects young children.
This study suggests that IFs on brain MRI of VLBW infants are not rare. In our population, most of them required a diagnostic or therapeutic intervention. The need and appropriateness of routine MRI scanning in VLBW at term-equivalent age are still subject of debate, and we believe our data can contribute meaningfully to this discussion.