Prophylactic Vaccine Targeting TLR3 on Dendritic Cells Ameliorates Eosinophilic Pneumonia in a Mouse SARS-CoV Infection Model

Putative subcomponent vaccines of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus spike protein and ARNAX (TLR3-specific adjuvant for priming dendritic cells) were examined and compared with spike protein + Alum in a mouse BALB/c model. Survival, body weight, virus-neutralizing Ab titer in the blood, and viral titer in the lung were evaluated for prognosis markers. The infiltration degrees of eosinophils in the lung were histopathologically monitored at 10 d postinfection. The results were: (1) adjuvant was essential in vaccines to achieve a complete recovery from infection, (2) ARNAX displayed optimal body weight recovery compared with Alum, (3) ARNAX was optimal for the amelioration of eosinophilic pneumonia, and (4) the eosinophil infiltration score was not associated with the neutralizing Ab titer in the blood or viral titer in the lung. Although the pathological link between the TLR3 vaccine and lung eosinophil infiltration remains unclear, severe acute respiratory syndrome–mediated eosinophilic pneumonia can be blocked by the prior induction of dendritic cell priming by ARNAX.