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Abstract

The purpose of the current study was to examine potential routes of vaccine administration for the induction of antigen-specific responses in the genital tract of women. Sixteen women were enrolled in this study, and the level of influenza-specific antibodies induced in the genital tract was measured after rectal or intramuscular immunizations. Both methods of administration induced significant increases in the concentration of flu-specific IgA found in cervical secretions within 28 days after vaccination. Initially flu-specific IgG antibodies were not induced in the genital tract by either route. As expected both IgA and IgG flu-specific antibodies were dramatically increased in serum after intramuscular vaccination. In contrast, rectal administration did not induce significant IgA responses, and only small flu-specific IgG increases in serum. Six months after administration, IgA flu-specific antibody concentrations were significantly higher than baseline levels in vaginal secretions and saliva isolated from both subject groups and flu-specific IgG concentrations in cervical secretions were high in the rectal immunization group. The long-term presence of both IgG and IgA antibody in genital secretions suggests that rectal immunization may be an effective method for induction of immune protection in the genital tract of women.

Migrant memory B cells secrete luminal antibody in the vagina

“…1b). This is consistent with the levels of antigen-specific IgG in the cervicovaginal secretion of women immunized with HPV vaccine 8 , influenza vaccine 9 and tetanus toxoid 10 being less than 1–0.1% of those found in circulation.…”

Mucosal Vaccine Approaches for Prevention of HIV and SIV Transmission

“…Considering this, and that unique combination of receptors are utilized for homing of lymphocytes to different mucosal compartments [355, 356], it should not be surprising that there is even less cross-talk between the intestine and the genital tract. Indeed, in women and female macaques, oral or rectal immunization with live-attenuated Salmonella Typhi [357–359], non-adjuvanted inactivated influenza vaccine [360], CTB [289–291] or SIV p55 gag protein with CT adjuvant [361] has not consistently elicited specific antibodies in cervical and vaginal secretions. Local vaginal immunization has been found optimal to oral and rectal routes for induction of genital tract antibody responses, but vaginal immunization has not generated antibodies in the rectum [289–291].…”

The Role of Mucosal Immunity in Prevention of HIV Transmission

“…Thus, it was once thought that the rectal route alone might be used for induction of immune responses to sexually-transmitted organisms in both the rectum and the female genital tract. However, recent vaccination studies have indicated that rectal or oral immunization of humans and nonhuman primates induces little or no specific IgA in the female genital tract [55][56][57]149,[151][152][153][154][155]. A dramatic demonstration of the fact that mucosal immune responses can be highly site-restricted in humans was provided by a study in which volunteers were vaccinated by local injection of antigen into either the right or left tonsil, and tonsils were subsequently removed by surgical extraction.…”

“…MADCAM-1 has not been detected in the genital tract mucosa. The lack of a receptor for α4β7+ lymphocytes on genital mucosal venules may explain why oral and rectal immunization routes have proven ineffective for induction of IgA and IgG antibody-secreting cells in the human and nonhuman primate female genital tract [55][56][57]149,[151][152][153][154]. Conversely, vaginal immunization generates poor IgA antibody responses in the distal rectum [55][56][57].…”