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Successful postexposure vaccination against hepatitis B in chimpanzees
Author(s) -
Iwarson Sten,
Wahl Martin,
Ruttimann Eva,
Snoy Philip,
Seto Belinda,
Gerety Robert J.
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
journal of medical virology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.782
H-Index - 121
eISSN - 1096-9071
pISSN - 0146-6615
DOI - 10.1002/jmv.1890250407
Subject(s) - vaccination , medicine , virology , hepatitis b virus , hepatitis b , hepatitis , hepatitis b vaccine , immunology , hepatitis b immune globulin , orthohepadnavirus , hepadnaviridae , antibody , virus , hbsag
To study the effect of postexposure vaccination, four chimpanzees were vaccinated with hepatitis B (HB) vaccine 4, 8, 48, and 72 hr, respectively, after intravenous injection of an infectious hepatitis B virus (HBV) inoculum. The second and third vaccine inoculations were given 2 and 6 weeks later, i.e., at considerably shorter intervals than recommended either for ordinary prophylactic vaccination or for postexposure vaccination in combination with hepatitis B immune globulin (HBIG). The chimpanzees were followed for 1 year. None showed HBs‐antigenemia, liver enzyme elevation (ALT), or histopathological alterations in liver biopsies. Late appearance of anti‐HBc was observed only in the serum of the animal whose series of vaccination started 72 hr after HBV inoculation. An unvaccinated control chimpanzee, which received the HBV inoculum only, developed clinical hepatitis B with ALT‐elevations and HBs‐antigenemia within 2 months of the experimental HBV inoculation. These results indicate that postexposure vaccination against hepatitis B begun within 48 hr after HBV exposure, with short intervals between the vaccine injections, can protect against hepatitis B infection also when concomitant HBIG‐prophylaxis is not given.