Enhanced replication and immunogenicity of a genome-modified non-replicating vaccinia virus Tiantan strain for robust low-dose protection in mice

ABSTRACT A non-replicating Tiantan strain-based vaccinia virus (NTV) holds significant application prospects for vaccination and gene therapy and has recently entered clinical trials as a novel and safer vaccine candidate against monkeypox. However, optimization is still required, particularly regarding its production capacity and immunogenicity. In this study, a recombinant virus was constructed by modifying the F1L and C7L genes in a non-replicating viral backbone using CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene editing and homologous recombination. The resulting construct, designated NTV-ΔF1L-C7L, exhibited significantly enhanced replication in vaccine production cell lines, with viral yields increasing by more than 680-fold in MRC-5 cells compared to those of the parental NTV. Its pathogenicity in mice was significantly reduced, showing more than a 10-fold decrease compared to the pathogenicity of the vaccinia virus Tiantan strain (VTT). Following two intramuscular doses, NTV-ΔF1L-C7L elicited high titers of orthopoxvirus-specific IgG and neutralizing antibodies against vaccinia and monkeypox viruses, along with a robust cellular immune response exhibiting a Th1 bias, which was significantly stronger than that induced by either parental NTV or VTT vaccination. Complete protection (100%) against a lethal challenge with the vaccinia virus Western Reserve strain was achieved in mice immunized with either a low dose (10 3 PFU) or a single dose (10⁵ PFU) of NTV-ΔF1L-C7L, comparable to that conferred by VTT. These findings demonstrate that NTV-ΔF1L-C7L combines high safety with enhanced replication and immunogenicity, supporting its value as a novel vaccine vector and its potential application in controlling the current global monkeypox outbreak. IMPORTANCE A highly attenuated NTV exhibits an improved safety profile; however, its production capacity and immunogenicity require optimization for clinical application. In this study, a novel recombinant virus, NTV-ΔF1L-C7L, was developed by targeting the deletion of F1L and the insertion of C7L into the NTV backbone. This attenuated live vaccine, NTV-ΔF1L-C7L, demonstrates several significant advantages. Its robust in vitro replication supports scalability for large-scale vaccine production. It has demonstrated strong immunoprotective efficacy in mice while maintaining a high safety margin, exhibiting reduced pathogenicity in vivo, and inducing robust humoral and cellular immune responses against vaccinia and monkeypox virus. These immune responses confer complete protection against lethal VACV challenge at low-dose or single-dose immunization. These findings establish a solid experimental foundation for the further development of NTV-ΔF1L-C7L as a next-generation VACV-based vector or a candidate vaccine against mpox.