Potent Neutralization of Vaccinia Virus by Divergent Murine Antibodies Targeting a Common Site of Vulnerability in L1 Protein

Abstract

Vaccinia virus, the live vaccine for smallpox, is one of the most successful vaccines in human history, but it presents a level of risk that has become unacceptable for the current population. Studying the immune protection mechanism of smallpox vaccine is important for understanding the basic principle of successful vaccines and the development of next-generation, safer vaccines for highly pathogenic orthopoxviruses. We studied antibody targets in smallpox vaccine by developing potent neutralizing antibodies against vaccinia virus and comprehensively characterizing their epitopes. We found a site in vaccinia virus L1 protein as the target of a group of highly potent murine neutralizing antibodies. The analysis of antibody-antigen complex structure and the sequences of the antibody genes shed light on how these potent neutralizing antibodies are elicited from immunized mice.