title: Immunogenicity of a chimeric hepatitis A virus (HAV) carrying the HIV gp41 epitope 2F5.
abstract: Its stable particle structure combined with its high immunogenicity makes the hepatitis A virus (HAV) a perfect carrier to expose foreign epitopes to the host immune system. In an earlier report [Beneduce, F., Kusov, Y., Klinger, M., Gauss-Müller, V., Morace, G., 2002. Chimeric hepatitis A virus particles presenting a foreign epitope (HIV gp41) at their surface. Antiviral Res. 55, 369-377] chimeric virus-like particles (HAV-gp41) were described that carried at their surface the dominant gp41 epitope 2F5 (2F5e) of the human immunodeficiency virus HIV-1. Extending this work, we now report that chimeric virus HAV-gp41 replicates in HAV-susceptible cells as well as in non-human primates. Infected marmosets developed both an anti-HAV and anti-2F5 epitope immune response. Furthermore, an HIV-neutralizing antibody response was elicited in guinea pigs immunized with HAV-gp41 chimeric particles. The results demonstrate that the replication-competent chimeric HAV-gp41 can serve as either a live or a subunit vaccine for eliciting of antibodies directed against a foreign antigenic epitope.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medical Molecular Biology, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, D-23538 Lübeck, Germany. koussov@molbio.uni-luebeck.de
authors.forename: Yuri Y
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Kusov
authors.forename: Natalja A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Zamjatina
authors.forename: Valentina F
authors.initials: VF
authors.lastname: Poleschuk
authors.forename: Michail I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Michailov
authors.forename: Graziella
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Morace
authors.forename: Josef
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Eberle
authors.forename: Verena
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Gauss-Müller
mesh_terms: D016915:AIDS Vaccines / Q000276:immunology / Q000494:pharmacology; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002144:Callithrix; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D000939:Epitopes / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D015700:HIV Envelope Protein gp41 / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D022362:Hepatitis A Vaccines / Q000276:immunology / Q000494:pharmacology; D030041:Hepatitis A virus / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D014779:Virus Replication
chemical_list: D016915:AIDS Vaccines; D000939:Epitopes; D015700:HIV Envelope Protein gp41; D022362:Hepatitis A Vaccines