{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]],"date-time":"2026-08-18T04:56:40Z","timestamp":1787029000325,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":116,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,3,3]],"date-time":"2021-03-03T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1614729600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000060","name":"National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["R01AI127863"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["R01AI127863"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000060","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000060","name":"National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["R21AI128313"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["R21AI128313"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000060","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Microorganisms"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Neisseria meningitidis, carried in the human nasopharynx asymptomatically by ~10% of the population, remains a leading cause of meningitis and rapidly fatal sepsis, usually in otherwise healthy individuals. The epidemiology of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) varies substantially by geography and over time and is now influenced by meningococcal vaccines and in 2020\u20132021 by COVID-19 pandemic containment measures. While 12 capsular groups, defined by capsular polysaccharide structures, can be expressed by N. meningitidis, groups A, B, and C historically caused most IMD. However, the use of mono-, bi-, and quadrivalent-polysaccharide-conjugate vaccines, the introduction of protein-based vaccines for group B, natural disease fluctuations, new drugs (e.g., eculizumab) that increase meningococcal susceptibility, changing transmission dynamics and meningococcal evolution are impacting the incidence of the capsular groups causing IMD. While the ability to spread and cause illness vary considerably, capsular groups W, X, and Y now cause significant IMD. In addition, group E and nongroupable meningococci have appeared as a cause of invasive disease, and a nongroupable N. meningitidis pathotype of the hypervirulent clonal complex 11 is causing sexually transmitted urethritis cases and outbreaks. Carriage and IMD of the previously \u201cminor\u201d N. meningitidis are reviewed and the need for polyvalent meningococcal vaccines emphasized.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/microorganisms9030519","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,3,3]],"date-time":"2021-03-03T20:33:57Z","timestamp":1614803637000},"page":"519","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":37,"title":["A Narrative Review of the W, X, Y, E, and NG of Meningococcal Disease: Emerging Capsular Groups, Pathotypes, and Global Control"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"9","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7950-8197","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Yih-Ling","family":"Tzeng","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"David S.","family":"Stephens","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA"},{"name":"Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,3,3]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"112","DOI":"10.1093\/infdis\/137.2.112","article-title":"Carriage of Neisseria meningitidis and Neisseria lactamica in infants and children","volume":"137","author":"Gold","year":"1978","journal-title":"J. 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