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Journal of Virology, March 1999, p. 2094-2098, Vol. 73, No. 3
Department of Virology and Molecular Biology,
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee
38105,1 and
Department of
Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University
of Wisconsin
Received 23 September 1998/Accepted 11 November 1998
In Hong Kong in 1997, a highly lethal H5N1 avian influenza virus
was apparently transmitted directly from chickens to humans with no
intermediate mammalian host and caused 18 confirmed infections and six
deaths. Strategies must be developed to deal with this virus if it
should reappear, and prospective vaccines must be developed to
anticipate a future pandemic. We have determined that unadapted H5N1
viruses are pathogenic in mice, which provides a well-defined mammalian
system for immunological studies of lethal avian influenza virus
infection. We report that a DNA vaccine encoding hemagglutinin from the
index human influenza isolate A/HK/156/97 provides immunity against
H5N1 infection of mice. This immunity was induced against both the
homologous A/HK/156/97 (H5N1) virus, which has no glycosylation site at
residue 154, and chicken isolate A/Ck/HK/258/97 (H5N1), which does have
a glycosylation site at residue 154. The mouse model system should
allow rapid evaluation of the vaccine's protective efficacy in a
mammalian host. In our previous study using an avian model, DNA
encoding hemagglutinin conferred protection against challenge with
antigenic variants that differed from the primary antigen by 11 to 13%
in the HA1 region. However, in our current study we found that a DNA
vaccine encoding the hemagglutinin from A/Ty/Ir/1/83 (H5N8), which
differs from A/HK/156/97 (H5N1) by 12% in HA1, prevented death but not
H5N1 infection in mice. Therefore, a DNA vaccine made with a
heterologous H5 strain did not prevent infection by H5N1 avian
influenza viruses in mice but was useful in preventing death.
0022-538X/99/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1999, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
DNA Vaccine Encoding Hemagglutinin Provides
Protective Immunity against H5N1 Influenza Virus Infection in
Mice
Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 537062
*
Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of
Virology and Molecular Biology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 332 N. Lauderdale, Memphis, TN 38105. Phone: (901) 495-3400. Fax: (901)
523-2622. E-mail: Robert.Webster{at}stjude.org.
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