Scientific article
OA Policy
English

A novel orf virus vector-based COVID-19 booster vaccine shows cross-neutralizing activity in the absence of anti-vector neutralizing immunity

Published inHuman vaccines & immunotherapeutics, vol. 20, no. 1, 2410574
Publication date2024-12-31
First online date2024-10-14
Abstract

Next-generation COVID-19 vaccines are being developed to expand the breadth of coverage against existing and future variants and to extend the duration of protection. Prime-2-CoV_Beta is an orf virus (ORFV) based multi-antigen COVID-19 vaccine that co-expresses Spike (S) and Nucleocapsid (N) antigens. The safety and immunogenicity of Prime-2-CoV_Beta is investigated in a phase 1 first-in-human (FIH) dose-finding trial (ORFEUS study, ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT05367843). Participants of two age groups (18-55 and 65-85 years) who previously completed at least two doses of mRNA vaccines were enrolled and sequentially assigned to different dose groups to receive one intramuscular dose of 3 × 105 , 3 × 106 , 1.5 × 107 , or 3 × 107 plaque-forming units (PFU) of Prime-2-CoV_Beta on day 1 and a second dose on day 29. Here, we report safety and immunogenicity data collected up to 6 months after the first study vaccination. Prime-2-CoV_Beta is safe and well tolerated and elicits immune responses at higher dose levels in participants aged 18-55. A single dose of 3 × 107 PFU boosted binding and cross-neutralizing antibody responses that are maintained through 6 months after the first booster vaccination. Polyfunctional S-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses are observed after vaccination. No pre-existing or vaccine-induced neutralizing anti-vector antibodies are detected. Our findings highlight the potential of the ORFV vector as a safe platform for future vaccine design, which provides the ability to deliver multiple antigens and allows for repeat immunization.

Keywords
  • COVID-19
  • ORF virus-vector
  • SARS-CoV-2 variants
  • Booster vaccine
  • First-in-human trial
  • Immunogenicity
  • Safety
  • Humans
  • Middle Aged
  • COVID-19 Vaccines / immunology
  • COVID-19 Vaccines / administration & dosage
  • Adult
  • Antibodies, Neutralizing / blood
  • Antibodies, Neutralizing / immunology
  • Aged
  • Male
  • Female
  • Immunization, Secondary / methods
  • Young Adult
  • Antibodies, Viral / blood
  • Antibodies, Viral / immunology
  • Adolescent
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • COVID-19 / prevention & control
  • COVID-19 / immunology
  • SARS-CoV-2 / immunology
  • Orf virus / immunology
  • Immunogenicity, Vaccine
  • Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus / immunology
  • CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / immunology
  • Genetic Vectors
Funding
  • EXIST Forschungstransfer [03EFKBW171]
Citation (ISO format)
KLINKARDT, Ute et al. A novel orf virus vector-based COVID-19 booster vaccine shows cross-neutralizing activity in the absence of anti-vector neutralizing immunity. In: Human vaccines & immunotherapeutics, 2024, vol. 20, n° 1, p. 2410574. doi: 10.1080/21645515.2024.2410574
Main files (1)
Article (Published version)
Identifiers
Journal ISSN2164-5515
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55downloads

Technical informations

Creation13/10/2025 07:33:44
First validation25/11/2025 16:55:57
Update25/11/2025 16:55:57
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