A combination vaccine confers full protection against co-infections with influenza, herpes simplex and respiratory syncytial viruses

Combined/composite vaccines should be useful in reducing the number of vacc inations and provide more flexibility in confronting biological warfare sce narios. We tested the effectiveness of a composite genetic vaccine designed from previously known protective antigens directed against influenza A vir us (INF-A), herpes simplex virus type-1 (HSV-1) and respiratory syncytial v irus (RSV) in a mouse-based challenge. Immunizing mice with a pool of four plasmids; INF-A haemagglutinin (HA), INF-A nucleoprotein (NP), HSV-1 glycop rotein D (gD) and RSV glycoprotein F, against the three pathogens provided full protection when mice were challenged with each pathogen. Remarkably, m ice challenged with all three pathogens at once were also fully protected, even when a bacterial pathogen, Mycoplasma pulmonis, was included in the ch allenge. If these results are extendable to other combinations of vaccines in other hosts. it would support the development of gene vaccines as multi- component, combination vaccines. D 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights re served.