Systems vaccinology: Probing humanity's diverse immune systems with vaccines

• Authors: Bali Pulendran, Emory University
• Journal Title: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
• Volume: Volume 111, Number 34
• Publisher: National Academy of Sciences | 2014-08-26, Pages 12300-12306
• Type of Work: Article | Final Publisher PDF
• Publisher DOI: http://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1400476111
• Subjects: Biology, Virology; Health Sciences, Immunology
• Keywords: Science & Technology; Multidisciplinary Sciences; Science & Technology - Other Topics; YELLOW-FEVER VACCINE; DEVELOPING-COUNTRIES; GUT MICROBIOTA; INFLUENZA; RESPONSES; BIOLOGY; IMMUNOGENICITY; EXPRESSION; INFLAMMATION; ACTIVATION

Abstract

Homo sapiens are genetically diverse, but dramatic demographic and socioeconomic changes during the past century have created further diversification with respect to age, nutritional status, and the incidence of associated chronic inflammatory disorders and chronic infections. These shifting demographics pose new challenges for vaccination, as emerging evidence suggests that age, the metabolic state, and chronic infections can exert major influences on the immune system. Thus, a key public health challenge is learning how to reprogram suboptimal immune systems to induce effective vaccine immunity. Recent advances have applied systems biological analysis to define molecular signatures induced early after vaccination that correlate with and predict the later adaptive immune responses in humans. Such "systems vaccinology" approaches offer an integrated picture of the molecular networks driving vaccine immunity, and are beginning to yield novel insights about the immune system. Here we discuss the promise of systems vaccinology in probing humanity's diverse immune systems, and in delineating the impact of genes, the environment, and the microbiome on protective immunity induced by vaccination. Such insights will be critical in reengineering suboptimal immune systems in immunocompromised populations.