A chimeric vaccine protects farmed saltwater crocodiles from West Nile virus-induced skin lesions

Autor: Habarugira, G., Harrison, J.J., Moran, J., Suen, W.W., Colmant, Agathe, Hobson-Peters, J., Isberg, S.R., Bielefeldt-Ohmann, H., Hall, R.A.
Přispěvatelé: University of Queensland [Brisbane], University of Queensland [St Lucia], Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation [Canberra] (CSIRO), Unité des Virus Emergents (UVE), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Aix Marseille Université (AMU)-Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM)
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2023
Předmět:
Zdroj: NPJ Vaccines
NPJ Vaccines, 2023, 8, 93 [9 p.]. ⟨10.1038/s41541-023-00688-w⟩
ISSN: 2059-0105
DOI: 10.1038/s41541-023-00688-w⟩
Popis: West Nile virus (WNV) causes skin lesions in farmed crocodiles leading to the depreciation of the value of their hides and significant economic losses. However, there is no commercially available vaccine designed for use in crocodilians against WNV. We tested chimeric virus vaccines composed of the non-structural genes of the insect-specific flavivirus Binjari virus (BinJV) and genes encoding the structural proteins of WNV. The BinJV/WNV chimera, is antigenically similar to wild-type WNV but replication-defective in vertebrates. Intramuscular injection of two doses of BinJV/WNV in hatchling saltwater crocodiles (Crocodylus porosus) elicited a robust neutralising antibody response and conferred protection against viremia and skin lesions after challenge with WNV. In contrast, mock-vaccinated crocodiles became viraemic and 22.2% exhibited WNV-induced lesions. This suggests that the BinJV/WNV chimera is a safe and efficacious vaccine for preventing WNV-induced skin lesions in farmed crocodilians.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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