Current Strategies for Vaccine Prophylaxis of Lyme Disease

Abstract

Relevance. Lyme disease (LD) remains an important public health problem, especially in Russia, where the incidence is consistently high. To date, there is still no available vaccine against LD, and prevention involves non-specific measures. Aim: to review the literature and summarise data on progress, approaches and strategies for LD vaccine development. Conclusions. The first LD vaccines were developed in the 1990s. An OspA-based vaccine (LYMErix) was commercially available in the early 2000s but not widely distributed. An important milestone in the development of LD vaccines was the shift from the development of monovalent vaccines based on a single type of outer surface protein to the development of multivalent combinations that provide protection against different Borrelia genospecies. A multivalent OspA-based vaccine (VLA15) is in phase III clinical trials and is likely to be the next LD vaccine available on the market. New genetic strategies for vaccine development, identification of new immunogens, and development of vaccines targeting different parts of the LD transmission cycle are of broad interest for further development of LD vaccines.