Complete protection against lethal Nipah virus challenge by intranasal vaccination with bacteriophage T4 coupled with Nipah virus G or F protein.

Nipah virus (NiV) is a highly lethal zoonotic pathogen, causing disease that can spread between animals and people with a mortality rate about 40% to 70%. No commercially approved vaccines or therapeutics are available. In this study, novel NiV vaccines targeting the attachment glycoprotein (G) or fusion glycoprotein (F) of NiV were developed utilizing bacteriophage T4 as a carrier platform. The immune effects induced in mice by intranasal immunization (i.n.) and intramuscular injection (i.m.) show that i.n. immunization with bacteriophage T4 coupled with Nipah virus G or F protein can not only stimulate humoral immunity and cellular immunity, but also induce excellent mucosal immune responses. Complete protection against lethal NiV challenge was achieved in Syrian hamsters after intranasal immunization with either T4-G, T4-F, or the mixture of T4-G and T4-F (1:1). Due to its safety and modular versatility, the bacteriophage T4 carrier system presents a promising strategy for developing vaccines against NiV and other viruses.