About VIP study
The introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) has the greatest impact in populations that are most affected by pneumococcal carriage and disease, such as indigenous children. Although ∼10% of the South American population consists of indigenous people living in remote settings, PCVs had not been evaluated in native South American children.
This study was the first to evaluate the impact of 13-valent (PCV13) vaccination on nasopharyngeal colonisation rates and antibody response in PCV-naïve indigenous South American children.
In addition, we determined to what extent PCV vaccine response was influenced by nutritional status, the respiratory microbiome and metabolic hormones in children living in these unique remote settings. Finally, in a qualitative sub-study we gained insight into reasons for vaccine acceptance or rejection among Amerindians.
The VIP study team
Principal investigators and primary affiliations
Dr. Lilly Verhagen (Radboudumc, Nijmegen, The Netherlands)
Dr. Ismar Rivera-Olivero (Instituto de Biomedicina, Universidad Central de Venezuela, Caracas, Venezuela)
Prof. Jacobus de Waard (Instituto de Biomedicina, Universidad Central de Venezuela, Caracas, Venezuela)
Prof. Peter Hermans (Radboudumc Nijmegen, UMC Utrecht, The Netherlands)
Hospital de Niños J.M. de los Ríos, Caracas, Venezuela
Dr. Berenice Del Nogal
Drs. Angimar Uriepero
National Institute of Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, The Netherlands
Prof. Guy Berbers
Dr. Elena Pinelli
Instituto de Biomedicina, Universidad Central de Venezuela, Caracas, Venezuela
Drs. Jochem Burghouts
Drs. María Carolina Sisco
Drs. Mailis Maes
Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
Prof. Marien de Jonge
Dr. Meyke Hermsen
Dr. Antonius van Herwaarden
Doorlène van Tienoven
University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Dr. Melanie Clerc
Publications
- KE Siegers, AE van Herwaarden, JH de Waard, B del Nogal, PWM Hermans, D van Tienoven, GAM Berbers, MI de Jonge, LM Verhagen. The metabolic hormone adiponectin affects the correlation between nutritional status and pneumococcal vaccine response in vulnerable indigenous children. PLoS ONE 2022;e0270736.
- LM Verhagen, IA Rivera-Olivero, M Clerc, MLJN Chu, J Engelsdorp Gastelaars, MI Kristensen, GAM Berbers, PWM Hermans, MI de Jonge, JH de Waard, D Bogaert. Nasopharyngeal microbiota profiles in rural Venezuelan children are associated with respiratory and gastrointestinal infections. Clin Infect Dis 2021;72:212-21.
- J Burghouts, B del Nogal, A Uriepero, PWM Hermans, JH de Waard, LM Verhagen. Childhood vaccine acceptance and refusal among Warao Amerindian caregivers in Venezuela: a qualitative approach. PLoS ONE 2017;12:e0180227.
- LM Verhagen, M Hermsen, IA Rivera-Olivero, MC Sisco, MI de Jonge, PWM Hermans, JH de Waard. Nasopharyngeal carriage of respiratory pathogens in Warao Amerindians: significant relationship with stunting. Trop Med Int Health 2017;22:407-14.
- LM Verhagen, IA Rivera-Olivero, M Hermsen, MC Sisco, M Maes, B del Nogal, D Bogaert, GAM Berbers, PWM Hermans, MI de Jonge, JH de Waard. Introduction of the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in an isolated pneumococcal vaccine-naïve indigenous population. Eur Respir J 2016;48:1492-96.
- LM Verhagen, M Hermsen, IA Rivera-Olivero, MC Sisco, E Pinelli, PWM Hermans, GAM Berbers, JH de Waard, MI de Jonge. Stunting correlates with high salivary and serum antibodies after 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccination of Venezuelan Amerindian children. Vaccine 2016;34:2312-20.
Project funding
