Pasteur Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology, St. Petersburg, Russia
Aim. To study stability/variability of rubella virus vaccine strain «Orlov-B» during its adaptation to other tissue substrate. Materials and methods. Vaccine strains of rubella virus Wistar 27/3 and «Orlov-B» as well as wild type strains «Orlov-D» and «Lebedev» were used. Rhesus monkeys were used as laboratory animals. Standard virological, molecular and statistical methods were applied. Results. Obtained as a result of adaptation to other tissue substrate — diploid human cell line M-22 — strain «Orlov-D» demonstrated stability on RCT40 sign in in vitro experiments. Comparative genotyping of «Orlov-B» and «Orlov-D» strains on gene E1 showed identity of nucleotide sequences of both variants. Genetic stability of virus on the gene coding the most immunogenic protein E1 was confirmed in vivo: the stable high immunogenic and protective activity of both «Orlov-B» and «Orlov-D» strains was demonstrated in experiments on rhesus macaques. Conclusion. New data on stability of attenuated rubella virus vaccine strains have practical significance for the development of new vaccines.
Zh. Mikrobiol. (Moscow), 2008, No. 4, P. 55—59