Comparison of the immunogenicity and efficacy of a replication-defective vaccinia virus expressing antigens of human parainfluenza virus type 3 (HPIV3) with those of a live attenuated HPIV3 vaccine candidate in rhesus monkeys passively immunized with PIV3 antibodies.

Two parainfluenza virus type 3 (PIV3) vaccine candidates-cp45, a live attenuated derivative of the JS wild type (wt), and a replication-defective vaccinia virus recombinant expressing the hemagglutinin-neuraminidase or fusion glycoprotein of human PIV3 (modified vaccinia virus Ankara [MVA]/PIV3 recombinants)-were evaluated in rhesus monkeys to determine whether successful immunization could be achieved in the presence of passively transferred PIV3 antibodies. The cp45 virus, administered intranasally (in) and intratracheally (it) in the presence of high levels of PIV3 antibodies, replicated efficiently in the nasopharynx and protected against challenge with wt human PIV3. The MVA recombinants, administered in, it, and intramuscularly in the absence of passive antibody, conferred protection against replication of PIV3 wt challenge virus, but this was largely abrogated when immunization occurred in the presence of passive antibodies. Because immunization for the prevention of HPIV3 disease must occur in early infancy when maternal antibodies are present, the live attenuated cp45 virus continues to be a promising vaccine candidate for this age group.