The immunogenicity and protective efficacy of a recombinant subunit West Nile virus (WNV) vaccine was evaluated in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). The vaccine consisted of a recombinant envelope (E) protein truncated at the C-terminal end, resulting in a polypeptide containing 80% of the N-terminal amino acids of the native WNV protein (WN-80E), mixed with an adjuvant (GPI-0100). Groups of monkeys were immunized with the WN-80E/GPI-0100 vaccine or an adjuvant-only control formulation. Animals were then challenged by inoculation of wild-type WNV, and the level of viremia in each animal was monitored daily for 10 days. The results showed that whereas all animals in the control group had detectable viremia for at least 3 days after challenge, all of the vaccinated animals were negative on all days after challenge. Thus, the WN-80E vaccine was 100% efficacious in protecting monkeys against infection with WNV (Lieberman et al., 2009).
Lieberman et al., 2009: Lieberman MM, Nerurkar VR, Luo H, Cropp B, Carrion R Jr, de la Garza M, Coller BA, Clements D, Ogata S, Wong T, Martyak T, Weeks-Levy C. Immunogenicity and protective efficacy of a recombinant subunit West Nile virus vaccine in rhesus monkeys. Clinical and vaccine immunology : CVI. 2009; 16(9); 1332-1337. [PubMed: 19641099].
