Clinical Trial Details
— Status: Completed
Administrative data
NCT number |
NCT02947295 |
Other study ID # |
0445-12 EP |
Secondary ID |
|
Status |
Completed |
Phase |
|
First received |
|
Last updated |
|
Start date |
September 13, 2012 |
Est. completion date |
March 1, 2017 |
Study information
Verified date |
September 2023 |
Source |
University of Nebraska |
Contact |
n/a |
Is FDA regulated |
No |
Health authority |
|
Study type |
Observational
|
Clinical Trial Summary
To develop a rapid, sensitive, and inexpensive diagnostic method, as well as more efficacious
vaccine, for countries where typhoid fever remains a major public health burden.
Description:
Typhoid fever is caused by Salmonella enteric serovar Typhi (S. typhi), a human specific
pathogen. The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes typhoid fever as a global health
problem, with an estimated 21 million cases and 200,000-600,000 deaths annually. In Africa
and South Asia, young children represent a subgroup with the highest disease burden. The
onset of the illness is insidious and clinical diagnosis is often unreliable. Definitive
diagnosis through blood or bone-marrow culture is labor-intensive, expensive, and invasive,
with a sensitivity of 40 to 70%. WHO recommends routine typhoid fever vaccination but
currently licensed vaccines provide only 55-75% protection against the disease. Therefore,
there is an urgent need to develop rapid, sensitive, and inexpensive diagnostic methods, as
well as more efficacious vaccines for countries where typhoid fever remains a major public
health burden. The long term goals are 1) to develop innovative molecular diagnostic assays
for rapid and inexpensive detection of typhoid fever and, 2) to better understand the
molecular mechanisms of host response to facilitate the development of next-generation
typhoid fever vaccines.
The immediate objective is to obtain global gene expression and proteomic profiles of S.
Typhi infected African children, identify and validate the classifier genes and proteins as
potential diagnostic biomarkers and vaccine targets. A bacteremia surveillance system was
established in central Nigeria in 2008; a pilot study was initiated from a small cohort from
this system composed of children with typhoid fever.
Preliminary data showed unique gene expression profiles of host response in peripheral blood
of children with typhoid fever compared with other bacteremic infections, as well as patients
in acute vs. convalescent phase. Here, it is hypothesized that distinct classifier genes and
proteins based on host response in the peripheral blood and serum can be obtained to
discriminate typhoid fever from other bacteremic infections and healthy controls.
Specific aims:
1. Define typhoid fever-specific host response classifier genes using gene expression (GE)
micro-arrays,
2. Discover specific serum anti-typhoid fever proteins using newly established S. Typhi
proteome micro-arrays and develop prototype serologic assay for acute typhoid (ELISA)
3. Validate classifier genes and field-test prototype ELISAs using new, independent
cohorts.
To accomplish these objectives, a multidisciplinary team with expertise in infectious
disease, immunology, molecular genomics/proteomics, micro-arrays, and bioinformatics has been
assembled to ensure success of this project. These studies will identify distinct classifier
genes and proteins of typhoid fever infection based on immunological responses. Classifiers
that discriminate S. Typhi from other bacteremia are possible to develop and offer rapid,
inexpensive, non-invasive, and sensitive molecular diagnostic assays specific for typhoid
fever. Classifier proteins obtained from the new, custom whole-proteome typhoid fever
micro-arrays will provide new insights of targeted proteins and antibodies for
next-generation vaccine development.