Characterization of B-cell and T-cell responses to a tetravalent dengue purified inactivated vaccine in healthy adults

Heather Friberg; Morgan Gargulak; Amanda Kong; Leyi Lin; Luis J Martinez; Alexander C Schmidt; Robert M Paris; Richard G Jarman; Clemente Diaz; Stephen J Thomas; Philippe Moris; Jeffrey R Currier

doi:10.1038/s41541-022-00537-2

Characterization of B-cell and T-cell responses to a tetravalent dengue purified inactivated vaccine in healthy adults

NPJ Vaccines. 2022 Oct 31;7(1):132. doi: 10.1038/s41541-022-00537-2.

Affiliations

¹ Viral Diseases Branch, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA. heather.l.friberg-robertson.civ@health.mil.
² Viral Diseases Branch, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA.
³ GSK, Rockville, MD, USA.
⁴ University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
⁵ GSK, Rixensart, Belgium.

Abstract

The increasing global impact of dengue underscores the need for a dengue virus (DENV) vaccine. We assessed B-cell and T-cell responses following vaccination with four formulations of a tetravalent dengue purified inactivated vaccine (DPIV) in dengue-primed and dengue-naive adults from two studies (NCT01666652, NCT01702857). Frequencies of DPIV-induced memory B cells specific to each DENV serotype remained high up to 12 months post-vaccination, and were higher in the dengue-primed than dengue-naive adults. A subsequent DPIV booster dose induced strong anamnestic B-cell responses. Multifunctional CD4+ T cells (predominantly expressing IL-2) were induced by DPIV, with higher frequencies in dengue-primed adults. DPIV-induced CD4+ T cells also demonstrated in vitro proliferative capacity and antigen-specific production of GM-CSF, IFN-γ, and IL-13. CD8+ T-cell responses were undetectable in dengue-naive adults and low in dengue-primed individuals. B- and T-cell responses persisted up to 12 months post-vaccination in both dengue-primed and dengue-naive adults.