New vaccines against bacterial enteric infections.

During the last 10 years, rapid progress in basic research and biotechnology related to enteric infection has now begun to have a substantial impact on vaccine development against these infections. Two new typhoid vaccines, one for oral administration and the other for injection, which have much fewer and milder side effects than previous whole-cell parenteral vaccines, have become available. An oral cholera vaccine has been developed which, without any adverse reactions at all, confers long-lasting protection against cholera. The new cholera vaccine also, through antitoxic immunologic cross-reactivity, protects significantly against diarrhea caused by enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC). Notable progress has also been made towards the development of an oral killed vaccine against ETEC diarrhoea as well as live attenuated vaccines against rotaviruses, cholera and shigellosis.