Patricia Rubio Reyes
Doctor of Philosophy
Study Completed: 2017
College of Sciences
Citation
Thesis Title
Novel polyhydroxyalkanoate beads for use as a vaccine against tuberculosis
Read article at Massey Research Online: 
Tuberculosis has killed more people than any other infectious disease in the world. In 2015, there were 10.4 million new cases of tuberculosis and 1.4 million deaths worldwide. Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG), the only vaccine available against it, fails to prevent adult pulmonary tuberculosis which is the form of transmission. The evaluation of vaccine antigens discovered by Reverse vaccinology (Rv) offers the possibility to explore cell compounds that cannot be identified with traditional techniques. Ms Rubio Reyes studied the production and use of bacterially derived polyester beads as a vaccine delivery system for Mycobacterium tuberculosis Rv antigens and immune modulators. Her research demonstrated the potential of beads displaying the antigen Rv1626 to protect mice in an experimental model of tuberculosis infection. Further studies are needed to determine optimal doses for delivery of immune modulators to enhance protective immunity.
Supervisors
Professor Bernd Rehm
Dr Neil Wedlock
Professor Jasna Rakonjac