Success in the fight against dengue fever

British researchers are discovering new antibodies against all types of dengue virus

17/12/2014

To date, the fight against dengue fever was considered extremely problematic, because there was neither a prophylaxis nor a vaccine that targeted all four known virus types. As the „Deutsche Welle "reported online, but now British researchers have succeeded in isolating a new antibody that works against all types, which could be the breakthrough in the fight against the treacherous virus - which could take years to develop a vaccine.

British researchers isolate 145 antibodies from human cells
Dengue fever, especially in the tropics and subtropics, could possibly be eradicated completely in the next few years. As the „Deutsche Welle "online news reports that a British research team has apparently succeeded in isolating antibodies that would attack all known species of the virus, according to which the British publicly announced their findings earlier this week, stating that they initially detected 145 antibodies against isolated and characterized the different types from human cells.

Virus species differ to 30 to 35 percent in their protein structures
In this work they would finally have a previously unknown „epitope“ which is a small portion of an antigen that interacts with the antigen binding site of an antibody (Paratop). This would work against the researchers against all four known virus types DENV-1 to DENV-4, which could mean the breakthrough in the global fight against fever. Since the four virus species differ in their protein structures from 30 to 35 percent, effective eradication has been particularly difficult so far. After all, whoever became infected with one of the four types will then be immune to this particular type - but not against the remaining three, so that a new disease has always been possible.

Every year about 400 million people are affected
However, the discovery of British researchers could give new hope in the fight against the dangerous disease, which affects some 400 million people each year. The virus spreads mainly in the tropical areas of Asia, Africa and America, but also in more temperate zones such as California or the Mediterranean region occur again and again in new cases. Accordingly, a comprehensive vaccine could cause the virus to be eradicated in the next few years - but the development of a vaccine might take months or even years to complete. „Our findings pave the way to becoming a dengue viral subunit vaccine and have implications for the design and monitoring of future vaccine trials in which antibody induction should prioritize the previously unknown epitope“, so the scientists in an article in „Nature immunology“.

Alternative vaccine expected to be ready for the market in mid-2015
However, by that time another vaccine could potentially be used effectively that will be launched by the middle of next year and target all four types of virus as well. This is according to the „Deutsche Welle "online for the vaccine „ChimeriVax“ Sanofi Pasteur, which is currently undergoing Phase 3 testing of more than 10,000 children and adults in several countries in Southeast Asia and Latin America. (No)