New Treatment for Smallpox

Researchers have identified an antibody in humans that quickly fights the smallpox virus, representing a new treatment for the disease.

By studying blood samples from people who had received the smallpox vaccine, Shane Crotty, Ph.D., a viral disease expert, and his team at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology (LIAI, San Diego, CA, USA) discovered the H3 protein, which elicits a particularly strong human antibody response. Their findings were reported in the September 2005 issue of the Journal of Virology.

"Out of the 200 or so proteins contained in the smallpox virus, we found that the H3 protein is a major target for antibodies that kill the virus,” said Dr. Crotty. No actual smallpox virus was used in the studies in order to avoid any potential danger of transmission.

The research team used new techniques that made it easier to identify and isolate antibodies from the blood of immunized humans. Then they carefully screened for the antibodies that fight the smallpox virus. Next they tested their findings by creating a batch of the anti-H3 protein antibodies, which they injected into mice. "We were able to protect them from a strain of vaccinia pox virus that is very similar to smallpox and which is lethal to mice,” noted Dr. Crotty.

The U.S. National Institutes of Health (Bethesda, MD, USA) is now funding further research by Dr. Crotty to better understand the molecular processes surrounding the finding. One focus of the research will be to fully develop anti-H3 antibodies in the lab that can be given to humans.

"We will be working to further characterize and develop the use of this antibody as a treatment for smallpox,” added Dr. Crotty. "Unlike the vaccine, the antibody would work to provide immediate, although short-term, protection, similar to how an antibiotic treats and for a short time protects against a bacterial infection.”




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