The VSVΔG/ZEBOV GP vaccine protects against an Ebola infection and induces humoral and cellular immunity (128.16)

Abstract

Abstract Ebola virus (EBOV) is a highly infectious filovirus causing a severe hemorrhagic fever in humans with fatality rates approaching 90%. We used the live attenuated recombinant vaccine vector vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) to create a vaccine for EBOV. Ten cynomolgus macaques were immunized either intramuscularly (IM), orally (OR), or intranasally (IN) with VSVΔG/ZEBOVGP 28 days before receiving a lethal challenge of Zaire ebolavirus (ZEBOV). There were no signs of illness in the vaccinated animals, and no loss of lymphocytes typically seen during infection. ZEBOVGP-specific humoral and cell mediated immune responses (CMIR) were generated by all immunization routes. Surprisingly, in general, the IN route generated more potent humoral responses, while the IM route generated early IL-2 and IFN-γ CMIR. We demonstrate that a single dose of the VSVΔG/ZEBOVGP vaccine delivered by any of the three routes induces cellular and humoral immune responses and protects non-human primates against a lethal challenge of ZEBOV.