Anthrax vaccines

Abstract

The only impetus for the development of new anthrax vaccines is to protect humans against the intentional use of Bacillus anthracis as a bioterrorist or warfare agent. Live attenuated vaccines against anthrax in domesticated animals were among the very first vaccines developed. This was followed by the development of nonliving component vaccines leading to the eventual licensure of protein-based vaccines for human use in the 1970s. This chapter will review the recent advances in developing protein, live attenuated, and genetic vaccines against anthrax.