Protection against morbillivirus-induced encephalitis by immunization with a rationally designed synthetic peptide vaccine containing B- and T-cell epitopes from the fusion protein of measles virus.

Synthetic peptides representing T- and B-cell epitopes from the fusion (F) protein of measles virus (MV) were tested for their ability to induce a protective immune response against intracerebral challenge with neuroadapted strains of MV and canine distemper virus (CDV) in mice. Of the panel of peptides tested, only a chimeric peptide consisting of two copies of a promiscuous T-cell epitope (representing residues 288 to 302 of MV F protein) synthesized at the amino terminus of a B-cell epitope (representing residues 404 to 414 of MV F protein) was able to induce a protective response against challenge with MV and CDV in inbred mice. The protective response induced by this peptide (TTB) was associated with a significant reduction in mortality, histological absence of acute encephalitis, and greatly reduced titers of virus in the brains of TTB-immune mice following challenge compared with the results for nonimmunized controls. A chimeric peptide comprising one copy of the T-cell epitope and one copy of the B-cell epitope (TB) did not induce a protective response. A comparison of the antibody responses induced by the two chimeras suggested that differences in protective efficacy following immunization may be a result of the higher affinity of the antibody induced by the TTB peptide than that of the antibody induced by the TB peptide. In addition, differences in the immunoglobulin G subclass of the antipeptide antibody responses were observed, and these may play a role in the differences in protection observed. These results indicate that appropriately designed synthetic peptides have potential as vaccines for the induction of cross-reactive protection against morbilliviruses.