Abstract

Group- and genotype-specific neutralizing antibody responses against respiratory syncytial virus in infants and young children with severe pneumonia

Sande CJ, Mutunga MN, Medley GF, Cane PA, Nokes DJ
J Infect Dis. 2013;207

Permenent descriptor

The effect of genetic variation on the neutralizing antibody response to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is poorly understood. In this study, acute- and convalescent-phase sera were evaluated against different RSV strains. The proportion of individuals with homologous seroconversion was greater than that among individuals with heterologous seroconversion among those infected with RSV group A (50% vs 12.5%; P = .0005) or RSV group B (40% vs 8%; P = .008). Seroconversion to BA genotype or non-BA genotype test viruses was similar among individuals infected with non-BA virus (35% vs 50%; P = .4) or BA virus (50% vs 65%; P = .4). The RSV neutralizing response is group specific. The BA-associated genetic change did not confer an ability to escape neutralizing responses to previous non-BA viruses.