Immunization against Hepatitis E

Soon after the 1991 molecular cloning of hepatitis E virus (HEV), recombinant viral capsid antigens were expressed and tested in nonhuman primates for protection against liver disease and infection. Two genotype 1 subunit vaccine candidates entered clinical development: a 56 kDA vaccine expressed in insect cells and HEV 239 vaccine expressed in Escherichia coli Both were highly protective against hepatitis E and acceptably safe. The HEV 239 vaccine was approved in China in 2011, but it is not yet prequalified by the World Health Organization, a necessary step for introduction into those low- and middle-income countries where the disease burden is highest. Nevertheless, the stage is set for the final act in the hepatitis E vaccine story-policymaking, advocacy, and pilot introduction of vaccine in at-risk populations, in which it is expected to be cost-effective.