Invited Speaker 14th Lorne Infection and Immunity 2024

Can a meningococcal vaccine prevent gonorrhoea? (#23)

Kate L Seib 1
  1. Institute for Biomedicine and Glycomics, Griffith University, Gold Coast, QLD, Australia

Gonorrhoea, the sexually transmissible infection caused by Neisseria gonorrhoeae, is a global public health concern with an estimated 82 million new infections each year worldwide. Gonorrhoea antimicrobial resistance continues to increase and there is no proven effective vaccine available. However, there is increasing evidence from observational cohort studies that the serogroup B meningococcal vaccine 4CMenB (trade name Bexsero®), licenced to prevent invasive disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis, may provide cross-protection against the closely related bacteria N. gonorrhoeae. We are conducting a randomised control trial with 4CMenB in gay and bisexual men (MenGo; ACTRN12619001478101) to evaluate the efficacy of two doses of 4CMenB given 3 months against N. gonorrhoeae infection. We are also characterising vaccine-induced immune responses and have shown that vaccination with 4CMenB induces antibodies that can recognise and kill N. gonorrhoeae in vitro. Due for completion in 2024, the MenGo study will inform future gonorrhoea prevention strategies. If 4CMenB is proven to be effective against N. gonorrhoeae, this could help achieve the World Health Organization’s target for reducing gonorrhoea incidence by 90% by 2030 and improve sexual and repro­ductive health worldwide.