Powerful Defense Against Measles Discovered

American molecular biologists have discovered several antibodies in blood samples from a volunteer that are capable of neutralizing measles virus particles with extraordinary efficacy.

Their monoclonal versions protected rodents from death after being infected with measles, as reported by the press service of the La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI).

"These antibodies can be used both for prevention, protecting against subsequent infection, and to prevent the development of the disease once the virus has already entered the body," stated LJI Professor Erica Saphire, quoted by the institute's press service.

An Urgent and Necessary Brake for a Virus

"In other words, they can be administered to the patient and provide a level of protection against measles that they could not have even dreamed of," Saphire added.

As the biologists note, the increase in measles outbreaks in the United States and other developed countries—linked to declining vaccination levels—has prompted scientists to develop therapies capable of preventing or stopping the development of infection in individuals carrying the virus. One potential solution involves creating analogs of the antibodies the body produces after receiving the combined measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine.

An Active Struggle Against Three Ailments

Guided by this idea, the American scientists enlisted the support of two dozen volunteers residing in California who had completed the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccination schedule in their childhood.

The researchers extracted antibody-producing B cells from the blood samples and analyzed how the generated molecules interacted with the H and F peptides, two key proteins of the measles virus.

These molecules—specifically antibodies 3C12, 4D08, 1C02, and 1C08—bound to the H and F proteins dozens of times more actively than other known antibodies. Furthermore, they neutralized viral particles at extremely low concentrations.