Strain of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) for vaccine and therapeutic research and development.
RSV is a highly contagious and ubiquitous virus that causes respiratory tract infections in individuals of all ages, particularly young children and the elderly. Worldwide the virus is also responsible for 160,000 deaths per year. Currently, no effective vaccine against RSV exists and treatment is limited to a non-vaccine prophylactic medication and supportive care.
Researchers generated a recombinant F-chimeric RSV by replacing the F gene of A2 with the F gene of line 2-20, generating A2-2-20F. Infection of mice with this line resulted in a higher early viral load and higher levels of subsequent pulmonary mucin expression than infection with the A2 strain. A2-2-20F infection induced greater necrotic airway damage and neurophil infiltration than A2 infection. This leads to death in most mice infected. Combined these effects make this viral line a strong candidate for use during in vivo testing of vaccine or small molecules for RSV.
This strain has been developed and used for vaccine candidate screening in the lab.