Evidence is accumulating that lactobacilli influence the immune
response in a strain-dependent manner. This immunomodulatory
capacity is important for the development of the immune
response, and also identifies Lactobacillus as a potent
oral vaccine carrier. Most of our current knowledge of the use
of lactobacilli for vaccination purposes has been obtained
with tetanus toxin fragment C (TTFC) as the model antigen.
This knowledge, together with our ever-increasing
understanding of the immune system and recent developments in
cloning and expression techniques, should enable the
utilisation of antigens other than TTFC and has made the
development of lactobacilli as live vaccines a realistic
prospect.
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