Longitudinal Evaluation of Humoral Immunity Following Vaccination With Six ZIKV Vaccines

Abstract

The immunogenicity and efficacy of Zika virus (ZIKV) vaccines from our lab were successfully exhibited in both murine and non-human primate models. Long-term protection, a hallmark for vaccines, and the humoral immunity kinetics, though, have not yet been elucidated. Furthermore, a side-to-side comparison of ZIKV vaccines such as human adenovirus (Ad) serotypes 5, 26, rhesus adenovirus (RhAd) serotype 52, DNA vectors and purified inactivated virus (PIV) has not been done. The Ad-based vaccines, expressing viral membrane/envelope proteins, and PIV conferred durable protection against ZIKV challenge in mice. In contrast, the two DNA vaccines tested here were not as potent as the other four vaccines at inducing long-term protective humoral immunity. Determining the vaccine-induced antibody kinetics could provide details regarding the long-term protective efficacy of each vaccine. As several vaccines are moving forward into Phase I clinical trial, including some tested here, it is crucial to understand their capacity to generate long-term protection.