Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype distribution in low- and middle-income countries of South Asia: Do we need to revisit the pneumococcal vaccine strategy?

S. pneumoniae serotypes responsible for pneumococcal disease differ with respect to disease severity, invasiveness, antimicrobial susceptibility, geographies, immunization history, age groups, and with time. Although PCVs have blunted the pneumococcal disease burden, they are plagued with numerous c...

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Main Authors: Priya Dhawale, Sanket Shah, Kaushal Sharma, Deepa Sikriwal, Varnik Kumar, Arnabjyoti Bhagawati, Sakshi Dhar, Pratiksha Shetty, Syed Ahmed
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2025-12-01
Series:Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics
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Online Access:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/21645515.2025.2461844
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author Priya Dhawale
Sanket Shah
Kaushal Sharma
Deepa Sikriwal
Varnik Kumar
Arnabjyoti Bhagawati
Sakshi Dhar
Pratiksha Shetty
Syed Ahmed
author_facet Priya Dhawale
Sanket Shah
Kaushal Sharma
Deepa Sikriwal
Varnik Kumar
Arnabjyoti Bhagawati
Sakshi Dhar
Pratiksha Shetty
Syed Ahmed
author_sort Priya Dhawale
collection DOAJ
description S. pneumoniae serotypes responsible for pneumococcal disease differ with respect to disease severity, invasiveness, antimicrobial susceptibility, geographies, immunization history, age groups, and with time. Although PCVs have blunted the pneumococcal disease burden, they are plagued with numerous challenges, especially the emergence of NVTs. In this review, we show that there are diverse serotypes, especially NVTs, responsible for causing pneumococcal diseases in LMICs of South Asia across different studies conducted between 2012 and 2024. We propose that pharmaceutical/biotech companies should tailor/customize the PCVs as per the region-specific serotype prevalence based on surveillance data. Furthermore, protein-based vaccines, or WCVs, have been explored and can serve as viable alternatives to address the limitations associated with PCVs. However, robust studies are warranted in different geographies to demonstrate its efficacy and safety in clinical trials as well as the real-world effectiveness of these promising candidates.
format Article
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institution DOAJ
issn 2164-5515
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language English
publishDate 2025-12-01
publisher Taylor & Francis Group
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series Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics
spelling doaj-art-b205b3bc72274e6cb4af1ead08d208fd2025-08-20T03:05:22ZengTaylor & Francis GroupHuman Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics2164-55152164-554X2025-12-0121110.1080/21645515.2025.2461844Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype distribution in low- and middle-income countries of South Asia: Do we need to revisit the pneumococcal vaccine strategy?Priya Dhawale0Sanket Shah1Kaushal Sharma2Deepa Sikriwal3Varnik Kumar4Arnabjyoti Bhagawati5Sakshi Dhar6Pratiksha Shetty7Syed Ahmed8Global Business Development, Techinvention Lifecare Private Limited, Mumbai, IndiaStrategic Medical Affairs, Techinvention Lifecare Private Limited, Mumbai, IndiaStrategic Projects, Techinvention Lifecare Private Limited, Mumbai, IndiaResearch and Development, Techinvention Lifecare Private Limited, Mumbai, IndiaResearch and Development, Techinvention Lifecare Private Limited, Mumbai, IndiaResearch and Development, Techinvention Lifecare Private Limited, Mumbai, IndiaResearch and Development, Techinvention Lifecare Private Limited, Mumbai, IndiaRegulatory Affairs, Techinvention Lifecare Private Limited, Mumbai, IndiaBusiness Development and Strategy, Techinvention Lifecare Private Limited, Mumbai, IndiaS. pneumoniae serotypes responsible for pneumococcal disease differ with respect to disease severity, invasiveness, antimicrobial susceptibility, geographies, immunization history, age groups, and with time. Although PCVs have blunted the pneumococcal disease burden, they are plagued with numerous challenges, especially the emergence of NVTs. In this review, we show that there are diverse serotypes, especially NVTs, responsible for causing pneumococcal diseases in LMICs of South Asia across different studies conducted between 2012 and 2024. We propose that pharmaceutical/biotech companies should tailor/customize the PCVs as per the region-specific serotype prevalence based on surveillance data. Furthermore, protein-based vaccines, or WCVs, have been explored and can serve as viable alternatives to address the limitations associated with PCVs. However, robust studies are warranted in different geographies to demonstrate its efficacy and safety in clinical trials as well as the real-world effectiveness of these promising candidates.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/21645515.2025.2461844Streptococcus pneumoniaeinvasive pneumococcal diseasepneumococcal vaccinesantimicrobial resistanceSouth Asia
spellingShingle Priya Dhawale
Sanket Shah
Kaushal Sharma
Deepa Sikriwal
Varnik Kumar
Arnabjyoti Bhagawati
Sakshi Dhar
Pratiksha Shetty
Syed Ahmed
Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype distribution in low- and middle-income countries of South Asia: Do we need to revisit the pneumococcal vaccine strategy?
Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics
Streptococcus pneumoniae
invasive pneumococcal disease
pneumococcal vaccines
antimicrobial resistance
South Asia
title Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype distribution in low- and middle-income countries of South Asia: Do we need to revisit the pneumococcal vaccine strategy?
title_full Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype distribution in low- and middle-income countries of South Asia: Do we need to revisit the pneumococcal vaccine strategy?
title_fullStr Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype distribution in low- and middle-income countries of South Asia: Do we need to revisit the pneumococcal vaccine strategy?
title_full_unstemmed Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype distribution in low- and middle-income countries of South Asia: Do we need to revisit the pneumococcal vaccine strategy?
title_short Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype distribution in low- and middle-income countries of South Asia: Do we need to revisit the pneumococcal vaccine strategy?
title_sort streptococcus pneumoniae serotype distribution in low and middle income countries of south asia do we need to revisit the pneumococcal vaccine strategy
topic Streptococcus pneumoniae
invasive pneumococcal disease
pneumococcal vaccines
antimicrobial resistance
South Asia
url https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/21645515.2025.2461844
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