Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English English
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

Antibody-based therapy against Streptococcus pneumoniae

Objective

The pneumococcus (Streptococcus pneumoniae) is the predominant cause of community-acquired pneumonia and causes otitis media, sinusitis, meningitis and sepsis. The increased serotype replacement and antibiotic resistance, reinforces the necessity of developing alternative treatment strategies for this pathogen. Monoclonal antibodies that boost the host immune system are attractive candidates to fight the high rates of morbidity and mortality due to this important human pathogen. Antibodies recognizing bacterial surface structures could be used to trigger activation of the complement cascade and subsequent bacterial killing. However, no significant progress has been made in the direction of immune system boosting therapies against pneumococci, mainly caused by our limited insights into antibody-driven immune activation on bacteria. With this proposal, I aim to study whether complement-enhancing monoclonal antibodies can be used as treatment against pneumococci. Through a combination of advanced sequencing approaches and functional complement activation assays, I will first identify antibodies against S. pneumoniae driving potent complement activation. Then I will use my expertise in S. pneumoniae infection models to unravel whether monoclonal antibodies eliciting complement are effective in pneumococcal killing in vitro and in vivo. The work proposed represents a first systematic approach to design effective therapeutic antibodies against S. pneumoniae that function via enhanced complement activation. Altogether, a better understanding of antibody-dependent complement activation on bacteria will create new avenues for the design of new therapeutic strategies to improve both antibody therapies and vaccination strategies in diseases caused by pathogenic bacteria.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

You need to log in or register to use this function

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

MSCA-IF-EF-ST - Standard EF

See all projects funded under this funding scheme

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2017

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

UNIVERSITAIR MEDISCH CENTRUM UTRECHT
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 165 598,80
Address
HEIDELBERGLAAN 100
3584 CX Utrecht
Netherlands

See on map

Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 165 598,80
My booklet 0 0