Journal Article

Protective monotherapy against lethal Ebola virus infection by a potently neutralizing antibody

Lanzavecchia, Antonio, Shi, Wei, Cagigi, Alberto, Misasi, John, Vanzetta, Fabrizia, Stanley, Daphne A., Sallusto, Federica, Gordon, Ingelise, Perez, Laurent, Graham, Barney S., Fernandez-Rodriguez, Blanca, Sullivan, Nancy J., Choe, Misook, Agatic, Gloria, Kanekiyo, Masaru, Staupe, Ryan P., Ploquin, Aurélie, Ledgerwood, Julie E., Bailey, Michael, Cameroni, Elisabetta, Silacci, Chiara, Mascola, John R., Mulangu, Sabue, Wollen, Suzanne, Thompson, Emily A., Doria-Rose, Nicole A., Marcus, Hadar, Trefry, John C., Corti, Davide, Muyembe-Tamfun, Jean-Jacques, Kisalu, Neville

2016

Overview

Ebola virus disease in humans is highly lethal, with case fatality rates ranging from 25 to 90%. There is no licensed treatment or vaccine against the virus, underscoring the need for efficacious countermeasures. We ascertained that a human survivor of the 1995 Kikwit Ebola virus disease outbreak maintained circulating antibodies against the Ebola virus surface glycoprotein for more than a decade after infection. From this survivor we isolated monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) that neutralize recent and previous outbreak variants of Ebola virus and mediate antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity in vitro. Strikingly, monotherapy with mAb114 protected macaques when given as late as 5 days after challenge. Treatment with a single human mAb suggests that a simplified therapeutic strategy for human Ebola infection may be possible.

• Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science,The American Association for the Advancement of Science
• Subject: Adult / Animals / Antibodies, Monoclonal - administration & dosage / Antibodies, Monoclonal - immunology / Antibodies, Monoclonal - isolation & purification / Antibodies, Neutralizing - administration & dosage / Antibodies, Neutralizing - immunology / Antibodies, Neutralizing - isolation & purification / Antibodies, Viral - administration & dosage / Antibodies, Viral - immunology / Antibodies, Viral - isolation & purification / Clinical Trials as Topic / Cytotoxicity / Disease Outbreaks / Drug therapy / Ebola virus / Ebolavirus - immunology / Female / Hemorrhagic Fever, Ebola - epidemiology / Hemorrhagic Fever, Ebola - prevention & control / Humans / Macaca / Male / Molecular Sequence Data / Monoclonal antibodies / Outbreaks / Survivors / Vaccines