Development of a pentavalent vaccine against New World arenaviruses

Publication of the CIRI in the journal Nature Microbiology on January 5, 2023. Communication of the Institut Pasteur on January 6, 2023. A team from the Institut Pasteur, hosted at CIRI, has developed and successfully tested on a primate model a pentavalent vaccine against the five pathogenic arenaviruses circulating in South America. Each of these viruses has a low incidence but a very high mortality rate, so combining them in a single vaccine would facilitate its development and protect the population as quickly as possible. Pathogenic New World arenaviruses (NWAs) cause haemorrhagic fevers and can have high mortality rates, as shown in outbreaks in South America. Neutralizing antibodies (Abs) are critical for protection from NWAs. Having shown that the MOPEVAC vaccine, based on a hyperattenuated arenavirus, induces neutralizing Abs against Lassa fever, we hypothesized that expression of NWA glycoproteins in this platform might protect against NWAs.