Development of a Recombinant Pichinde Virus-Vectored Vaccine against Turkey Arthritis Reovirus and Its Immunological Response Characterization in Vaccinated Animals

• Main Authors: Pawan Kumar, Tamer A. Sharafeldin, Rahul Kumar, Qinfeng Huang, Yuying Liang, Sagar M. Goyal, Robert E. Porter, Hinh Ly, Sunil K. Mor
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-02-01
• Series: Pathogens
• Subjects: Pichinde virus; recombinant vaccine; subunit vaccine; viral vectored vaccine; turkey arthritis reovirus; sigma C
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/10/2/197

<b>: </b>Vaccination may be an effective way to reduce turkey arthritis reovirus (TARV)-induced lameness in turkey flocks. However, there are currently no commercial vaccines available against TARV infection. Here, we describe the use of reverse genetics technology to generate a recombinant Pichinde virus (PICV) that expresses the Sigma C and/or Sigma B proteins of TARV as antigens. Nine recombinant PICV-based TARV vaccines were developed carrying the wild-type S1 (Sigma C) and/or S3 (Sigma B) genes from three different TARV strains. In addition, three recombinant PICV-based TARV vaccines were produced carrying codon-optimized S1 and/or S3 genes of a TARV strain. The S1 and S3 genes and antigens were found to be expressed in virus-infected cells via reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and the direct fluorescent antibody (DFA) technique, respectively. Turkey poults inoculated with the recombinant PICV-based TARV vaccine expressing the bivalent TARV S1 and S3 antigens developed high anti-TARV antibody titers, indicating the immunogenicity (and safety) of this vaccine. Future in vivo challenge studies using a turkey reovirus infection model will determine the optimum dose and protective efficacy of this recombinant virus-vectored candidate vaccine.