Immunogenicity of a Recombinant Influenza Virus Bearing Both the CD4+ and CD8+ T Cell Epitopes of Ovalbumin

Abstract

Recombinant influenza viruses that bear the single immunodominant CD8+ T cell epitopeOVA257−264or the CD4+ T cell epitopeOVA323−339of the model antigen ovalbumin (OVA) have been useful tools in immunology. Here, we generated a recombinant influenza virus,WSN-OVAI/II, that bears both OVA-specific CD8+ and CD4+ epitopes on its hemagglutinin molecule. Live and heat-inactivatedWSN-OVAI/IIviruses were efficiently presented by dendritic cellsin vitroto OT-I TCR transgenic CD8+ T cells and OT-II TCR transgenic CD4+ T cells.In vivo,WSN-OVAI/IIvirus was attenuated in virulence, highly immunogenic, and protected mice from B16-OVA tumor challenge in a prophylactic model of vaccination. Thus,WSN-OVAI/IIvirus represents an additional tool, along with OVA TCR transgenic mice, for further studies on T cell responses and may be of value in vaccine design.