Abstract
Development of a vaccine against leprosy is not an easy undertaking. The causative organism, Mycobacterium leprae, even though discovered more than 100 years back, has not been cultivated so far in vitro in a cell-free medium. No experimental animal model exactly simulating human lepromatous leprosy, the form of leprosy against which a vaccine is ideally required, is available. The latent period of the disease is several years. The difficulty of evaluating a potential immunoprophylactic agent is compounded by the fact that most humans are naturally resistant to the disease and do not require a vaccine. In highly endemic areas, where everyone is expected to be exposed to infection, fewer than 0.5 to 1.0% develop the disease (28). Not withstanding these limitations, attempts have been made to develop vaccines. Seven vaccines have been proposed (Table 28.1), and at present four candidate vaccines are in clinical trials.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Bechelli LM, Gallego Garbojosa P, Engler V, et al: BCG vaccination of children against leprosy: preliminary findings of the WHO-controlled trial in Burma. Bull WHO 1970; 42: 235–281.
Brown JAK, Stone MM, Sutherland I: Trial of BCG vaccination against leprosy in Uganda. Lepr Rev 1969; 40: 3–7.
Chaudhuri S, Fotedar A, Talwar GP: Lepromin conversion in repeatedly le¬promin negative BL/LL patients after immunization with autoclaved Myco¬bacterium w. IntJ Lepr 1983; 51: 159–168.
Convit J, Aranzazu M, Zuniga M, et al: Immunotherapy and immunoprophy- laxis of leprosy. Lepr Rev 1983;(special)475–605.
Deo MG, Bapat CV, Chullawalla RG, Bhatki WS: Potential anti leprosy vaccine from killed ICRC bacilli: clinicopathological study. Indian J Med Res 1981; 74: 164–177.
Expanded programme on immunization global status report. WHO Weekly Epidemiol Rec 1985, 60: 261–263.
Fine PEM, Ponnighaus JM, Maine N: The relationship between delayed type hypersensitivity and protective immunity induced by mycobacterial vaccines in man. Lepr Rev 1986; 57 (suppl 2): 275–283.
Fotedar A, Mehra NK, Mustafa AS, Talwar GP: Local reactions to intradermal instillation of Mycobacterium w and ICRC bacilli in mice. Lepr India 1978; 50: 520–533.
Fotedar A: Immunology of leprosy: experimental induction of immunity to leprosy. PhD thesis, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, 1982.
Fotedar A, Mustafa AS, Narang BS, Talwar GP: Improved leukocyte migration inhibition response of leukocytes from lepromatous leprosy patients with hapten modified M. leprae. Clin Exp Immunol 1982; 49: 317–324.
Gill HK, Mustafa AS, Godal T: Induction of delayed hypersensitivity in human volunteers immunised with a candidate leprosy vaccine consisting of Mycobacterium leprae. Bull WHO 1986; 64: 121–126.
Girdhar BK, Desikan KV: Results of skin tests with five different Mycobacteria. Lepr India 1978; 50: 555–559.
Govil DC, Bhutani LK: Delayed hypersensitivity skin reactions to lepromin and antigens prepared from four other Mycobacteria. Lepr India 1978; 50: 550–554.
Gupte MD: Working papers for joint ICMR/WHO meeting on leprosy vaccine trials, Madras, India, 1986.
Hogerzeil LM, Prabhudass N: Delayed hypersensitivity skin reactions to lepromins prepared from M. leprae and selected cultivable Mycobacteria. Lepr India 1978; 50: 560–565.
Mehra V, Bloom BR: The induction of cell-mediated immunity to human M. leprae in the guinea pig, in Talwar GP (ed): Progress in Immunology of Leprosy London, Heinemann, 1983, pp 123–130.
Mustafa AS, Talwar GP: Delayed hypersensitivity skin reaction to homologous and heterologous antigens in guinea pigs immunized with M. leprae and four selected cultivable mycobacterial strains. Lepr India 1978; 50: 509–519.
Mustafa AS, Talwar GP: Enlargement of draining lymph nodes in mice by four selected cultivable strains of Mycobacteria. Lepr India 1978; 50: 534–538.
Mustafa AS, Talwar GP: Five cultivatable mycobacterial strains giving blast transformation and leukocyte migration inhibition of leukocytes analogous to Mycobacterium leprae. Lepr India 1978; 50: 498–508.
Russel DA, Scott GC, Wigley SC: BCG and prophylaxis—the Karimui trial. Int J Lepr 1968; 36: 618.
Sahib HSM, Vellut C: Some observations on skin reactions induced by lepromin and four other mycobacterial antigens. Lepr India 1978; 50: 579–587.
Saxena VK, Singh US, Singh AK: Bacteriological study of a rapidly growing strain of Mycobacterium. Lepr India 1978; 50: 588.
Sharma RC, Singh R: Comparative study of skin reactions in leprosy patients to M. leprae-lepromin and to antigens from cultivable saprophytic mycobacteria. Lepr India 1978; 50: 572–578.
Shepard CC: Vaccination of mice against M. leprae. Int J Lepr 1976; 44: 222–622.
Stanford JL, Shield MJ, Rook GAW: How environmental mycobacteria may predetermine the protective efficacy of BCG: hypothesis I. Tubercle 1981; 62: 55–62.
Talwar GP: Towards development of a vaccine against leprosy. Lepr India 1978; 50: 442–497.
Tripathy SP: The case for BCG. Ann Natl Acad Med Sci (India) 1983; 19: 11–12.
Wardekar RV: Some aspects of epidemiology of leprosy. Indian J Med Res 1972; 60: 1733–1743.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1989 Springer-Verlag New York Inc.
About this paper
Cite this paper
Talwar, G.P. et al. (1989). Present Approaches to Immunotherapy and Immunoprophylaxis for Leprosy. In: Talwar, G.P. (eds) Progress in Vaccinology. Progress in Vaccinology, vol 2. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-3508-8_28
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-3508-8_28
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-0-387-96734-9
Online ISBN: 978-1-4612-3508-8
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive