RECOMBINANT BACILLE CALMETTE-GUERIN EXPRESSING THE MEASLES-VIRUS NUCLEOPROTEIN PROTECTS INFANT RHESUS MACAQUES FROM MEASLES-VIRUS PNEUMONIA

Measles virus infection continues to be a major cause of infant mortal ity. There is a need for a measles vaccine that can be administered at birth in the presence of maternal neutralizing antibody. Infant rhesu s monkeys were immunized with recombinant bacille Calmette-Guerin expr essing the full-length measles virus nucleoprotein (BCG-N) and subsequ ently challenged with measles virus, Nucleoprotein-specific lymphocyte proliferative responses were detected in the absence of anti-N antibo dy after vaccination, Vaccination with BCG-N did not prevent systemic measles virus infection; however, there was a significant reduction of lung inflammation after challenge. Virus titers in lymph nodes were s ignificantly lower, and the duration of nasopharyngeal viral shedding was shorter in some vaccinated monkeys after challenge. These results suggest that measles virus-specific T cells were primed by BCG-N vacci nation and that they prevented virus-induced lung pathology.