ABSTRACT
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has affected more than 185 million people worldwide resulting in over 4 million deaths. To contain the pandemic, there is a continued need for safe vaccines that provide durable protection at low and scalable doses and can be deployed easily. Here, AAVCOVID-1, an adeno-associated viral (AAV), spike-gene-based vaccine candidate demonstrates potent immunogenicity in mouse and non-human primates following a single injection and confers complete protection from SARS-CoV-2 challenge in macaques. Peak neutralizing antibody titers are sustained at 1 year and complemented by functional memory T cell responses. The AAVCOVID vector has no relevant pre-existing immunity in humans and does not elicit cross-reactivity to common AAVs used in gene therapy. Vector genome persistence and expression wanes following injection. The single low-dose requirement, high-yield manufacturability, and 1-month stability for storage at room temperature may make this technology well suited to support effective immunization campaigns for emerging pathogens on a global scale.
Subject(s)
Antibodies, Neutralizing/blood , Antibodies, Viral/blood , COVID-19 Vaccines/immunology , COVID-19/prevention & control , SARS-CoV-2/immunology , Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus/immunology , Animals , Antibodies, Neutralizing/immunology , Antibodies, Viral/immunology , COVID-19 Vaccines/administration & dosage , COVID-19 Vaccines/genetics , Dependovirus/genetics , Dependovirus/metabolism , Female , Humans , Immunogenicity, Vaccine/immunology , Immunologic Memory/immunology , Macaca fascicularis , Macaca mulatta , Male , Mice , Mice, Inbred BALB C , Mice, Inbred C57BL , T-Lymphocytes/immunology , Transgenes/genetics , Vaccination/methods , Viral Load/immunologyABSTRACT
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has affected more than 70 million people worldwide and resulted in over 1.5 million deaths. A broad deployment of effective immunization campaigns to achieve population immunity at global scale will depend on the biological and logistical attributes of the vaccine. Here, two adeno-associated viral (AAV)-based vaccine candidates demonstrate potent immunogenicity in mouse and nonhuman primates following a single injection. Peak neutralizing antibody titers remain sustained at 5 months and are complemented by functional memory T-cells responses. The AAVrh32.33 capsid of the AAVCOVID vaccine is an engineered AAV to which no relevant pre-existing immunity exists in humans. Moreover, the vaccine is stable at room temperature for at least one month and is produced at high yields using established commercial manufacturing processes in the gene therapy industry. Thus, this methodology holds as a very promising single dose, thermostable vaccine platform well-suited to address emerging pathogens on a global scale.
