title: Heterologous prime-boost strategy to immunize very young infants against measles: pre-clinical studies in rhesus macaques.
abstract: Infants in developing countries are at high risk of developing severe clinical measles if they become infected during the "window of vulnerability" (age 4-9 months), when declining maternal antibodies do not protect against wild virus, yet impede successful immunization by attenuated measles vaccine. We developed two Sindbis replicon-based DNA vaccines expressing measles virus hemagglutinin and fusion protein with the goal of priming young infants to respond safely and effectively to subsequent boosting with attenuated measles vaccine. Intradermal prime with DNA vaccines by needle-free injection followed by aerosol or parenteral boost with licensed measles vaccine was well tolerated by juvenile and young infant rhesus macaques, and protected against clinical measles and viremia on wild-type virus challenge. A proteosome-measles vaccine administered alone (three doses) or as a boost following DNA vaccine priming was also safe and protective. These promising results pave the way for clinical trials to assess this prime-boost strategy.
authors.affiliation: Center for Vaccine Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA. mpasetti@medicine.umaryland.edu
authors.forename: M F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Pasetti
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Resendiz-Albor
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ramirez
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Stout
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Papania
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Adams
authors.forename: F P
authors.initials: FP
authors.lastname: Polack
authors.forename: B J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Ward
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Burt
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chabot
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ulmer
authors.forename: E M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Barry
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Levine
mesh_terms: D000336:Aerosols; D000818:Animals; D006389:Hemagglutinins, Viral; D007114:Immunization / Q000379:methods*; D007117:Immunization, Secondary; D007271:Injections, Intradermal / Q000295:instrumentation; D008253:Macaca mulatta; D008457:Measles / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008458:Measles Vaccine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000276:immunology; D008459:Measles virus / Q000276:immunology*; D012093:Replicon; D012845:Sindbis Virus; D014613:Vaccines, Attenuated / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000138:chemical synthesis; D019444:Vaccines, DNA / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000336:Aerosols; D006389:Hemagglutinins, Viral; D008458:Measles Vaccine; D014613:Vaccines, Attenuated; D019444:Vaccines, DNA