Immunologic memory against meningococci was studied in 177 children (100 children were 10-11 years old and 77 were 5-6 years old) 2.5 years after vaccination with hexavalent meningococcal outer membrane vesicle (OMV) vaccine or hepatitis B (HepB) vaccine. Children were revaccinated with monovalent P1.7h,4 meningococcal OMV vaccine. Serum bactericidal antibodies (SBAs) were measured before revaccination and after 4-6 weeks. A minimum 4-fold increase in SBAs against serosubtype P1.7h,4 was detected in 48.5% of the children after hexavalent meningococcal vaccine and in 8.9% after HepB vaccine. Of the initial responders given hexavalent meningococcal vaccine, 78% had 4-fold increase in SBAs against strain P1.4. Thus, immunologic memory is present in toddlers and school-aged children previously given 3 hexavalent meningococcal vaccinations. Booster vaccination with monovalent P1.7h,4 meningococcal OMV vaccine induces a significant increase in SBAs against serosubtype P1.7h,4 and cross-reactivity against other serosubtypes in the hexavalent vaccine.

doi.org/10.1086/320993, hdl.handle.net/1765/57011
The Journal of Infectious Diseases
Department of Pediatrics

de Kleijn, E., de Groot, R., van Gageldonk-Lafeber, R., Labadie, J., van Limpt, C. J. P., Visser, J., … Rümke, H. (2001). Prevention of meningococcal serogroup B infections in children: A protein-based vaccine induces immunologic memory. The Journal of Infectious Diseases, 184(1), 98–102. doi:10.1086/320993