Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine is a pneumococcal vaccine and a conjugate vaccine used to protect infants, young children, and adults against disease caused by the bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus). It contains purified capsular polysaccharide of pneumococcal serotypes conjugated to a carrier protein to improve antibody response compared to the pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends the use of the conjugate vaccine in routine immunizations given to children.Vaccine-mediated immunity is "conferred mainly by opsonophagocytic killing of S. pneumoniae. "The most common side effects in children are decreased appetite, fever (only very common in children aged six weeks to five years), irritability, reactions at the site of injection (reddening or hardening of the skin, swelling, pain or tenderness), somnolence (sleepiness) and poor quality sleep. In adults and the elderly, the most common side effects are decreased appetite, headaches, diarrhea, fever (only very common in adults aged 18 to 29 years), vomiting (only very common in adults aged 18 to 49 years), rash, reactions at the site of injection, limitation of arm movement, arthralgia and myalgia (joint and muscle pain), chills and fatigue. Brands
Pneumosil
Pneumosil is a decavalent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine produced by the Serum Institute of India. It contains the serotypes 1, 5, 6A, 6B, 7F, 9V, 14, 19A, 19F, and 23F, and was prequalified by WHO in January 2020. Prevnar
Prevnar 13 (PCV13) is produced by Pfizer (formerly Wyeth) and it replaced Prevnar, the pneumococcal 7-valent conjugate vaccine (PCV7).
GAVI continues this work and as of March 2013, 25 GAVI-eligible and supported countries have introduced the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine. Further, 15 additional GAVI countries have plans to introduce the vaccine into their national immunization program and 23 additional countries have approved GAVI support to introduce the vaccine. Society and culture
Legal status
On 16 December 2021, the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) adopted a positive opinion, recommending the granting of a marketing authorization for the medicinal product Apexxnar, intended for prophylaxis against pneumococcal pneumonia and associated invasive disease. The applicant for this medicinal product is Pfizer Europe MA EEIG. Apexxnar was approved for medical use in the European Union in February 2022. Economics
Prevnar 13 is Pfizers best-selling product. It had annual sales of US$5.85 billion in 2020. Brand names
The vaccines are marketed under several brand names including Prevnar 20, Prevnar 13, Synflorix, Pneumosil, and Vaxneuvance. Research
Merck is investigating a 21-valent vaccine (code named V116) against pneumococcus serotypes. The vaccine is geared towards persons living with HIV. References
Further reading
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2015). "Chapter 17: Pneumococcal Disease". In Hamborsky J, Kroger A, Wolfe S (eds.). Epidemiology and Prevention of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases (13th ed.). Washington, D.C.: Public Health Foundation. External links
"13-Valent Pneumococcal Vaccine". Drug Information Portal. U.S. National Library of Medicine. "Heptavalent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine". Drug Information Portal. U.S. National Library of Medicine. "Pneumococcal Conjugate (PCV13) Vaccine Information Statement". Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 10 August 2021.