• Vaccine Name: Varicella Subunit Vaccine encoding gI and gE glycoproteins
• Target Pathogen: Varicella-zoster virus
• Target Disease: chickenpox / shingles
• Vaccine Ontology ID: VO_0004153
• Type: Subunit vaccine
• Status: Research
• Antigen: Recombinant varicella-zoster virus (VZV) glycoproteins E (gE) and I (gI) (Kimura et al., 1998).
• ORF67 gene engineering:
  • Type: Recombinant protein preparation
  • Description:
  • Detailed Gene Information: Click Here.
• ORF68 gene engineering:
  • Type: Recombinant protein preparation
  • Description:
  • Detailed Gene Information: Click Here.
• Adjuvant:
  • Adjuvant name:
  • VO adjuvant ID: VO_0000133
• Immunization Route: Intramuscular injection (i.m.)

Guinea pig Response

• Host Strain: Hartley
• Vaccination Protocol: Female Hartley guinea pigs (5 weeks old) were immunized with either a mixture of purified re- combinant gE and gI (25 μg each) or the recombinant gE-gI complex (50 μg). Purified protein solutions (0.25 mL) were injected intramuscularly with 0.25 mL of complete Freund's adjuvant at the first injection followed with incomplete Freund's adjuvant at the second and third injections at 2-week intervals. Control animals received 0.25 mL of PBS and an equal amount of adjuvant (Kimura et al., 1998).
• Challenge Protocol: To determine whether immunization with gE and gI can enhance the clearance of VZV in vivo, both immunized and control (adjuvant- alone) guinea pigs were challenged with VZV. Animals were inoculated intravitreally with 200 pfu of cell-associated VZV 4 weeks after the final immunization. At 4 h after inoculation, 4 animals from each group were sacrificed, and their eyes were harvested to test for infectious VZV (Kimura et al., 1998).
• Efficacy: In the gE-gI-immunized group, VZV was isolated from only 1 of 4 animals, and this animal had the lowest CMI and the lowest titer of anti-gE and anti-gI antibodies in the vitreous body. In contrast, VZV was isolated from 3 of 4 animals in the adjuvant-alone group (Kimura et al., 1998).