Dear reader,
We open this issue of Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics with a Portrait of Dr. Ziad Memish (p 494) and a Profile of the biotech company SOTIO (Kapsa, p 499).
Next, the Immunotherapy section presents a bioinformatics approach to characterization of tumor-relevant immunoglobulin gene segments from exome-sequencing data (Tong, p 501), a review of IgG as a mediator of transmission of allergen tolerance from mother to child (Victor, p 507), studies on compliance with allergen immunotherapy among allergic rhinitis patients (Musa, p 514), IL-10 signalling blockade by sequence-modified peptides (Ni, p 518), and a commentary advocating the importance of therapeutic cancer vaccines despite some failures in clinical trials (Dillman, p 528).
We introduce five articles on Influenza: a cost-effectiveness analysis of quadri- versus tri-valent vaccine in the US (Brogan, p 533), immunogenicity study of trivalent vaccine in subjects with lung cancer (Nakashima, p 543), characterization of serological responses to vaccination among HIV-infected adults (Lau, p 551), a preclinical study on the long-term immunogenicity of a low-hemagglutinin vaccine (Yam, p 561), and a case report describing HSV2 reactivation following vaccination (Lieberman, p 572).
Articles on Licensed Vaccines include a safety and immunogenicity trial of subcutaneous and intramuscular administration of Herpes Zoster subunit vaccine in Japanese elderly (Vink, p 574), a product review of oral cholera vaccines (Desai, p 579), and analysis of safety and immune persistence of the combined DTPa-IPV/Hib vaccine in Chinese infants (Li, p 588).
In the Passive Vaccines section, you will find reports on cost-effectiveness of palivizumab for prevention of RSV infections in infants with cystic fibrosis (McGirr, p 599) and quality of Australian antibodies for post-exposure prophylaxis of measles (Young, p 607).
Research articles on Novel Vaccines introduce safety and immunogenicity of the VSV- and Ad5-vectored Ebola vaccine GamEvac-Combi (Dolzhikova, p 613) and a variant recombinant vaccine for Chagas disease (Seid, p 621), and a commentary looks at a mouse model for preclinical evaluation of tuberculosis vaccines (Aceves-Sánchez, p 634).
Two research articles on Meningococcal vaccines show antibody persistence after immunization against ACWY strains with a tetanus toxoid conjugate vaccine (Quiambao, p 636) and immunogenicity and safety of Bexsero MenB vaccine in laboratory workers (Hong, p 645). The Pneumococcal section includes a report on the effects of ibuprofen and paracetamol on the 10-valent vaccine PHiD-CV (Falup-Pecurariu, p 649) and long-term antibody profiling after four doses of PCVs in children (Wysocki, p 661).
Two HPV-related studies on the effect of stress on immunogenicity of the 4-valent vaccine (Wu, p 676) and vaccine attitudes and behavior of parents who refuse to have their children vaccinated (Gilkey, p 680) are followed by two articles on Acceptance: a report on parents’ confidence in recommended vaccinations (Nowak, p 687) and a Letter to the Editor on the importance of health education in overcoming barriers to immunization (Biasio, p 701).
Two articles on Rotavirus explore the risk of intussusception following vaccination (Hawken, p 703) and the link between strains and severity of gastrointestinal disease in Indian children (Saluja, p 711). Finally, we present a report on the Public Health surveillance system to monitor acute flaccid paralysis in Brazil (Sousa, p 717), and a systematic review of the impact of universal vaccination with monovalent inactivated hepatitis A vaccines (Stuurman, p 724).
Our monthly News, Policy and Profiles (NP&P) track offers a selection of the latest news in the field of vaccines and immunotherapeutics. In this section we also regularly publish opinion pieces on timely, interesting and controversial topics related to vaccines and immunotherapeutics, profiles of companies and organizations, as well as portraits of distinguished scientists in our field. Please contact Acquisitions Editor Adam Weiss ( [email protected]) with your ideas for commentaries, opinion pieces, profiles and portraits. Your suggestions for and contributions to our N&P&P track are always welcome!
Sincerely,
Ronald Ellis, PhD
Editor-in-Chief
Adam Weiss, PhD
Acquisitions Editor