title: Effective chikungunya virus-like particle vaccine produced in insect cells.
abstract: The emerging arthritogenic, mosquito-borne chikungunya virus (CHIKV) causes severe disease in humans and represents a serious public health threat in countries where Aedes spp mosquitoes are present. This study describes for the first time the successful production of CHIKV virus-like particles (VLPs) in insect cells using recombinant baculoviruses. This well-established expression system is rapidly scalable to volumes required for epidemic responses and proved well suited for processing of CHIKV glycoproteins and production of enveloped VLPs. Herein we show that a single immunization with 1 µg of non-adjuvanted CHIKV VLPs induced high titer neutralizing antibody responses and provided complete protection against viraemia and joint inflammation upon challenge with the Réunion Island CHIKV strain in an adult wild-type mouse model of CHIKV disease. CHIKV VLPs produced in insect cells using recombinant baculoviruses thus represents as a new, safe, non-replicating and effective vaccine candidate against CHIKV infections.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Virology, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Stefan W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Metz
authors.forename: Joy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gardner
authors.forename: Corinne
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Geertsema
authors.forename: Thuy T
authors.initials: TT
authors.lastname: Le
authors.forename: Lucas
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Goh
authors.forename: Just M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Vlak
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Suhrbier
authors.forename: Gorben P
authors.initials: GP
authors.lastname: Pijlman
mesh_terms: D018354:Alphavirus Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control; D000818:Animals; D057134:Antibodies, Neutralizing / Q000097:blood; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D016367:Baculoviridae / Q000235:genetics; D002460:Cell Line; D065632:Chikungunya Fever; D002646:Chikungunya virus / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005260:Female; D005822:Genetic Vectors; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D018411:Spodoptera; D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification; D058425:Vaccines, Virus-Like Particle / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014765:Viral Vaccines / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification
chemical_list: D057134:Antibodies, Neutralizing; D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic; D058425:Vaccines, Virus-Like Particle; D014765:Viral Vaccines