Scientists identify potential vaccine target for increasingly concerning bacterial strain

Acinetobacter baumannii is a bacterial pathogen responsible for serious hospital-related infections that is becoming increasingly resistant against antibiotics. In research published in Angewandte Chemie, investigators conducted screening tests and identified a promising bacterial target for the development of a vaccine.

"Capsular polysaccharides [or carbohydrates] that cover A. baumannii are a major virulence factor that play an important role in pathogenesis, are used to assign serotypes and provide the basis for vaccine development," the authors wrote. The team created and screened synthetic carbohydrates resembling the capsular polysaccharides of A. baumannii and identified a likely candidate.

The work will now advance to A. baumannii challenge studies in a mouse model.