Examination of the envelope glycoprotein of yellow fever vaccine viruses with monoclonal antibodies.

Two panels of envelope glycoprotein reactive monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) were prepared against yellow fever (YF) 17D vaccine viruses. Five mAbs were prepared against the World Health Organization 17D-204 avian leukosis virus-free secondary seed virus and eight mAbs against 17DD vaccine manufactured in Brazil. The majority of these mAbs were type-specific and displayed differing reactions in neutralization tests. One, B14, would only neutralize YF vaccine virus grown in invertebrate cells. Others would differentiate 17D-204 and 17DD vaccines, from different manufacturers, in neutralization tests when the viruses were grown in vertebrate cells. The data indicate that heterogeneity exists between the epitopes that elicit neutralizing antibody on YF vaccine from different manufacturers.