Systemic and mucosal immunity in mice elicited by a single immunization with human adenovirus type 5 or 41 vector-based vaccines carrying the spike protein of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus

An ideal vaccine against mucosal pathogens such as Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) should confer sustained, protective immunity at both systemic and mucosal levels. Here, we evaluated the in vivo systemic and mucosal antigen-specific immune responses induced by a single intramuscular or intragastric administration of recombinant adenoviral type 5 (Ad5) or type 41 (Ad41) -based vaccines expressing the MERS-CoV spike (S) protein. Intragastric administration of either Ad5-S or Ad41-S induced antigen-specific IgG and neutralizing antibody in serum; however, antigen-specific T-cell responses were not detected. In contrast, after a single intramuscular dose of Ad5-S or Ad41-S, functional antigen-specific T-cell responses were elicited in the spleen and pulmonary lymphocytes of the mice, which persisted for several months. Both rAd-based vaccines administered intramuscularly induced systemic humoral immune responses (neutralizing IgG antibodies). Our results show that a single dose of Ad5-S- or Ad41-S-based vaccines represents an appealing strategy for the control of MERS-CoV infection and transmission.