Journal of Vaccine Research 2024, Vol.14, No.5, 217-230 http://medscipublisher.com/index.php/jvr 218 designed to target a single pathogen by utilizing weakened or killed forms of the disease-causing organism (Pastural et al., 2019). As understanding of immunology expanded, vaccine science progressed from basic inoculations to more sophisticated approaches, such as subunit vaccines, vector-based vaccines, and mRNA vaccines, which utilize genetic material to stimulate immune responses (Fierro et al., 2023). These advancements paved the way for the development of multi-pathogen vaccines, which aim to protect against multiple infectious agents in a single formulation (Folegatti et al., 2020). Figure 1 Timeline of Vaccine Development History (Adapted from Saleh et al., 2021) Image caption: The timeline begins with Edward Jenner's smallpox vaccine in 1796 and extends to the COVID-19 vaccines. It highlights various landmark vaccines and their respective development dates, including polio, influenza, and HPV vaccines. Each vaccine invention represents significant scientific breakthroughs, such as the use of cell culture technology and genetic recombination, which have greatly advanced the progress of vaccine development (Adapted from Saleh et al., 2021) The concept of multi-pathogen vaccines emerged in response to the need for broader protection, particularly in areas where multiple infectious diseases are endemic. The introduction of combination vaccines, such as the DTP (diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis) vaccine, marked a significant milestone in simplifying immunization schedules and improving public health outcomes. The shift towards targeting multiple pathogens in a single shot was driven by the desire to increase vaccine coverage, reduce healthcare costs, and improve compliance, especially in low-resource settings (Voysey et al., 2020). 2.2 Key milestones in the creation and deployment of multi-pathogen vaccines Several key milestones have defined the trajectory of multi-pathogen vaccine development. The combination vaccine DTP, introduced in the mid-20th century, was among the first vaccines to successfully combine protection against multiple diseases (Jr Frenck et al., 2019). The development of the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine further solidified the viability of multi-pathogen vaccines and their role in pediatric immunization programs. These early vaccines not only proved effective but also demonstrated that multi-pathogen approaches could be safely implemented in large populations (Sekuloski et al., 2018). More recently, the advent of DNA and RNA-based vaccines has opened new possibilities for multi-pathogen vaccines. For example, the rapid development of mRNA vaccines for COVID-19 has shown that it is feasible to create vaccines that target several strains or even different viruses with the same platform (Zhu et al., 2020). These advancements indicate that the next generation of multi-pathogen vaccines may be able to address a broader range of infectious diseases, potentially combining vaccines for respiratory infections, influenza, and even coronaviruses into one formulation.
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