Detectable vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV)–specific humoral and cellular immune responses following VSV–Ebola virus vaccination in humans
Poetsch JH., Dahlke C., Zinser ME., Kasonta R., Lunemann S., Rechtien A., Ly ML., Stubbe HC., Krähling V., Biedenkopf N., Eickmann M., Fehling SK., Olearo F., Strecker T., Sharma P., Lang KS., Lohse AW., Schmiedel S., Becker S., Addo MM., Bejon P.
In response to the Ebola virus (EBOV) crisis 2013-2016, a recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV)-based EBOV vaccine was clinically tested. A single-dose regimen of VSV-EBOV revealed a safe and immunogenic profile and demonstrated clinical efficacy. While EBOV-specific immune responses to this candidate vaccine have previously been investigated, limited human data on immunity to the VSV-vector are available. Within the scope of a Phase I study, we performed a comprehensive longitudinal analysis of humoral and cellular immune responses to internal VSV-proteins following VSV-EBOV immunization. While no pre-existing immunity to the vector was observed, up to 1/3 of subjects showed VSV-specific CTL-responses and antibodies.