A Recombinant Rabies Virus Expressing Fms-like Tyrosine Kinase 3 Ligand (Flt3L) Induces Enhanced Immunogenicity in Mice

Abstract

Rabies is a zoonotic disease that still causes 59,000 human deaths each year, and rabies vaccine is the most effective way to control the disease. Our previous studies suggested that the maturation of DC plays an important role in enhancing the immunogenicity of rabies vaccine. Flt3L has been reported to own the ability to accelerate the DC maturation, therefore, in this study, a recombinant rabies virus expressing mouse Flt3L, designated as LBNSE-Flt3L, was constructed, and its immunogenicity was characterized. It was found that LBNSE-Flt3L could enhance the maturation of DC both in vitro and in vivo, and significantly more TFH cells and Germinal Center B (GC B) cells were generated in mice immunized with LBNSE-Flt3L than those immunized with the parent virus LBNSE. Consequently, expressing of Flt3L could elevate the level of virus-neutralizing antibodies (VNA) in immunized mice which provides a better protection from a lethal rabies virus challenge. Taken together, our study extends the potential of Flt3L as a good adjuvant to develop novel rabies vaccine by enhancing the VNA production through activating the DC–TFH–GC B axis in immunized mice.