6s8d

Publication Abstract from PubMed

Ebola virus disease is a severe health problem in Africa. Vaccines that display the Zaire ebolavirus glycoprotein spike complex are a prime component for the effort to combat it. The VH3-15/Vlambda1-40-based class of antibodies was recently discovered to be a common response in individuals who received the Ebola virus vaccines. These antibodies display attractive properties, and thus likely contribute to the efficacy of the vaccines. Here, we use cryo-EM to elucidate how three VH3-15/Vlambda1-40 antibodies from different individuals target the virus and found a convergent mechanism against a partially conserved site on the spike complex. Our study rationalizes the selection of the VH3-15/Vlambda1-40 germline genes for specifically targeting this site and highlights Ebolavirus species-specific sequence divergences that may restrict breadth of VH3-15/Vlambda1-40-based humoral response. The results from this study could help develop improved immunization schemes and further enable the design of immunogens that would be efficacious against a broader set of Ebolavirus species.

Structural Basis for a Convergent Immune Response against Ebola Virus.,Cohen-Dvashi H, Zehner M, Ehrhardt S, Katz M, Elad N, Klein F, Diskin R Cell Host Microbe. 2020 Feb 6. pii: S1931-3128(20)30046-9. doi:, 10.1016/j.chom.2020.01.007. PMID:32059794^[1]

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.