Live-attenuated Yersinia pestis vaccines

Abstract:

Plague caused by Yersinia pestis is a fulminating infectious disease, resulting in nearly 200 million deaths in human history. It is listed as a category A infectious disease in China. As a highly infectious pathogen, Y. pestis is considered one of the most potential biological weapons and biothreat agents. Prophylactic vaccination is a powerful measure for counteracting this disease. In the development of plague vaccines, live-attenuated vaccine is an important research direction. This review introduces the recent progress, current challenges, as well as the future prospects on the development of live-attenuated plague vaccines.