title: A treatment for and vaccine against the deadly Hendra and Nipah viruses.
abstract: Hendra virus and Nipah virus are bat-borne paramyxoviruses that are the prototypic members of the genus Henipavirus. The henipaviruses emerged in the 1990s, spilling over from their natural bat hosts and causing serious disease outbreaks in humans and livestock. Hendra virus emerged in Australia and since 1994 there have been 7 human infections with 4 case fatalities. Nipah virus first appeared in Malaysia and subsequent outbreaks have occurred in Bangladesh and India. In total, there have been an estimated 582 human cases of Nipah virus and of these, 54% were fatal. Their broad species tropism and ability to cause fatal respiratory and/or neurologic disease in humans and animals make them important transboundary biological threats. Recent experimental findings in animals have demonstrated that a human monoclonal antibody targeting the viral G glycoprotein is an effective post-exposure treatment against Hendra and Nipah virus infection. In addition, a subunit vaccine based on the G glycoprotein of Hendra virus affords protection against Hendra and Nipah virus challenge. The vaccine has been developed for use in horses in Australia and is the first vaccine against a Biosafety Level-4 (BSL-4) agent to be licensed and commercially deployed. Together, these advances offer viable approaches to address Hendra and Nipah virus infection of livestock and people.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Uniformed Services University, Bethesda, MD 20814, United States. Electronic address: christopher.broder@usuhs.edu.
authors.forename: Christopher C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Broder
authors.forename: Kai
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Dimitar B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Nikolov
authors.forename: Zhongyu
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Dimiter S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Dimitrov
authors.forename: Deborah
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Middleton
authors.forename: Jackie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pallister
authors.forename: Thomas W
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Geisbert
authors.forename: Katharine N
authors.initials: KN
authors.lastname: Bossart
authors.forename: Lin-Fa
authors.initials: LF
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002417:Cattle; D002418:Cattle Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control; D045404:Hendra Virus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D045464:Henipavirus Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000662:veterinary*; D006801:Humans; D045405:Nipah Virus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D014765:Viral Vaccines / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D014765:Viral Vaccines
keywords: G glycoprotein; Hendra virus; Horse; Monoclonal antibody; Nipah virus; Vaccine