Preexisting Immunity Does Not Prevent Efficacy of Vesicular Stomatitis Virus-Based Filovirus Vaccines in Nonhuman Primates.
Andrea Marzi, Friederike Feldmann, Kyle L O'Donnell, Patrick W Hanley, Ilhem Messaoudi, Heinz Feldmann
Author Information
Andrea Marzi: Laboratory of Virology, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, Montana, USA. ORCID
Friederike Feldmann: Rocky Mountain Veterinary Branch, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, Montana, USA.
Kyle L O'Donnell: Laboratory of Virology, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, Montana, USA.
Patrick W Hanley: Rocky Mountain Veterinary Branch, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, Montana, USA.
Ilhem Messaoudi: Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics, College of Medicine, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, USA.
Heinz Feldmann: Laboratory of Virology, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, Montana, USA. ORCID
Ebola virus (EBOV) and Marburg virus (MARV) made headlines in the past decade, causing outbreaks of human disease in previously nonendemic yet overlapping areas. While EBOV outbreaks can be mitigated with licensed vaccines and treatments, there is not yet a licensed countermeasure for MARV. Here, we used nonhuman primates (NHPs) previously vaccinated with vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV)-MARV and protected against lethal MARV challenge. After a resting period of 9 months, these NHPs were revaccinated with VSV-EBOV and challenged with EBOV, resulting in 75% survival. Surviving NHPs developed EBOV glycoprotein (GP)-specific antibody titers and no viremia or clinical signs of disease. The single vaccinated NHP succumbing to challenge showed the lowest EBOVGP-specific antibody response after challenge, supporting previous findings with VSV-EBOV that antigen-specific antibodies are critical in mediating protection. This study again demonstrates that VSVΔG-based filovirus vaccine can be successfully used in individuals with preexisting VSV vector immunity, highlighting the platform's applicability for consecutive outbreak response.
