Developing an Intranasal Colonization Model for NTHi in Mice

Abstract

Nontypeable Haeomphilius influenzae (NTHi) is a Gram‐negative pathogenic bacterium that can live as a commensal in the nasopharynx or can be the cause of Acute Otitis Media (AOM). Although there are currently no approved vaccines in the US to protect against NTHi, several NTHi recombinant protein vaccines are currently being studied for their safety and efficacy of protection. To assess the effectiveness of these prototype vaccines, we had to first establish NTHi colonization and AOM infection models in mice. To establish colonization, C57BL/6J mice were intranasally (IN) infected with PR8 (a mouse‐adapted H1N1 virus) prior to IN infecting with NTHi. Several coinfection protocols were tested to optimize NTHi colonization. Bacterial densities were determined at days 3 and 7 post‐NTHi infection by harvesting blood, nasal washes, and ear washes from the infected mice. Using this coinfection strategy, we were successful in developing a robust NTHi nasal colonization model in mice.Support or Funding InformationRochester Institute of Technology Honors Program Summer Fellowship and Rochester General Hospital Research Institute Summer Scholars FundThis abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2018 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.