The Shigella Vaccines Pipeline

Area of Science:

• Infectious Diseases
• Vaccinology
• Microbiology

Background:

• Shigella infection is a major cause of diarrheal mortality globally, particularly in children.
• Shigellosis contributes to antimicrobial resistance and economic losses due to growth faltering.
• Currently, no licensed vaccine exists for Shigella, despite significant disease burden.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the requirements for an effective Shigella vaccine.
• To describe the current landscape of Shigella vaccine candidates in clinical development.
• To contextualize the ongoing efforts against the backdrop of past vaccine failures.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature and ongoing clinical trial data for Shigella vaccines.
• Analysis of vaccine development pipelines, categorizing candidates into parenteral glycoconjugate and oral live attenuated approaches.
• Discussion of historical vaccine development challenges and requirements for licensure.

Main Results:

• Two main vaccine approaches are in development: parenteral glycoconjugate and oral live attenuated vaccines.
• Previous efficacy has been demonstrated, but no Shigella vaccine has been licensed to date.
• The success of current candidates hinges on safety and immunogenicity data in target populations.

Conclusions:

• The development of a Shigella vaccine is critical for global public health.
• Ongoing clinical trials are essential to determine the feasibility and timeline for a first-generation Shigella vaccine.
• Future licensure depends on robust data from trials in low- and middle-income countries.