Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Characterization of the Protective Cellular Immune Response in Pigs Immunized Intradermally with the Live Attenuated African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV) Lv17/WB/Rie1

Miriam Pedrera
* ORCID logo ,
Alejandro Soler
,
Alicia Simón
,
Nadia Casado
,
Covadonga Perez
,
María A García-Casado
,
Paloma Fernández-Pacheco
,
Pedro J. Sánchez-Cordón
,
Marisa Arias
,
Carmina Gallardo
*
Version 1 : Received: 6 March 2024 / Approved: 7 March 2024 / Online: 7 March 2024 (14:48:49 CET)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Pedrera, M.; Soler, A.; Simón, A.; Casado, N.; Pérez, C.; García-Casado, M.A.; Fernández-Pacheco, P.; Sánchez-Cordón, P.J.; Arias, M.; Gallardo, C. Characterization of the Protective Cellular Immune Response in Pigs Immunized Intradermally with the Live Attenuated African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV) Lv17/WB/Rie1. Vaccines 2024, 12, 443. Pedrera, M.; Soler, A.; Simón, A.; Casado, N.; Pérez, C.; García-Casado, M.A.; Fernández-Pacheco, P.; Sánchez-Cordón, P.J.; Arias, M.; Gallardo, C. Characterization of the Protective Cellular Immune Response in Pigs Immunized Intradermally with the Live Attenuated African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV) Lv17/WB/Rie1. Vaccines 2024, 12, 443.

Abstract

Candidate vaccines against African swine fever virus (ASFV) based on naturally attenuated or genetically modified viruses have the potential to generate protective immune responses, although there is no consensus on what defines a protective immune response against ASFV. Studies, espe-cially in sensible host species, focused on unravelling protective mechanisms will contribute to the development of safer and more effective vaccines. The present study provides a detailed analysis of phenotypic and functional data on cellular responses induced by intradermal immunization and subsequent boosting of domestic pigs with the naturally attenuated field strain Lv17/WB/Rie1, as well as the mechanisms underlying protection against intramuscular challenge with the virulent genotype II Armenia/07 strain. The transient mild to moderate increase of IL-8 and IL-10 in serum observed after immunization might be directly correlated with survival. Protection was also associated with a robust ASFV-specific polyfunctional memory T cell response, where CD4CD8 and CD8 T cells were identified as the main cellular sources of virus-specific IFNγ and TNFα. In parallel to cytokine response, these T-cell subsets also showed specific cytotoxic activity as evidenced by the increased expression of the CD107a degranulation marker. Along with virus-specific multifunctional CD4CD8 and CD8 T responses, the increased levels of antigen experienced cytotoxic CD4 T cells observed after challenge in immunized pigs might also contribute to control virulent infection by killing mechanisms targeting infected antigen-presenting cells. Future studies should elucidate whether the memory T-cell responses evidenced in the present study persist and provide long-term protection against further ASFV infections.

Keywords

African swine fever; live-attenuated virus; vaccine; protective cellular response; T-cell; cytokines; domestic pigs

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Animal Science, Veterinary Science and Zoology

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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