Recombinant Vaccinia Virus Expressing the Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 Glycoprotein C Protects Mice against Herpes Simplex Virus Challenge

Summary The gene encoding the herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) glycoprotein C (gC) was isolated and cloned into a vaccinia virus insertion vector, and the resulting vaccinia-gC vector was used to construct a recombinant vaccinia virus that expressed gC (VVgC5). Infection of cells with VVgC5 resulted in cell surface expression of authentic HSV-1 gC. HSV-1 gC-specific neutralizing antibodies were produced in VVgC5-immunized mice, and lymphocytes exhibited an HSV-1-specific proliferation response in vitro following infection. More importantly, VVgC5-immunized mice were resistant to subsequent lethal HSV-1 challenge.