A CpG oligodeoxynucleotide enhances the immune response to rabies vaccination in mice

BACKGROUND: Rabies is a fatal disease that is preventable when post exposure prophylaxis (PEP) is administered in a timely fashion. CpG oligodeoxynucleotides (ODNs) can trigger cells that express Toll-like receptor 9, and their immunopotentiation activity in an inactivated aluminum-adjuvanted rabies vaccine for dogs has been identified using mouse and dog models. METHODS: A human diploid cell rabies vaccine (HDCV) of humans and a CpG ODNs with cross-immunostimulatory activity in humans and mice were used to evaluate the immunogenicity and protective efficacy of CpG ODN in a mouse model that simulates human PEP. RESULTS: HDCV combined with CpG ODN (HDCV–CpG) stimulated mice to produce rabies virus-specific neutralizing antibody (RVNA) earlier and increased the seroconversion rate. Compared with HDCV alone, either HDCV–1.25 μg CpG or HDCV–5 μg CpG increased the levels of RVNA. In particular, 5 μg CpG ODN per mouse significantly boosted the levels of RVNA compared with HDCV alone. IFN-γ producing splenocytes generated in the HDCV-5 μg CpG group were significantly increased compared to the group treated with HDCV alone. When the immunization regimen was reduced to three injections or the dose was reduced to half of the recommended HDCV combined with CpG ODN, the RVNA titers were still higher than those induced by HDCV alone. After viral challenge, 50% of mice immunized with a half-dose HDCV–CpG survived, while the survival rate of mice immunized with HDCV alone was 30%. CONCLUSIONS: The immunopotentiation activity of CpG ODNs for a commercially available human rabies vaccine was first evaluated in a mouse model on the basis of the Essen regimen. Our results suggest that the CpG ODN used in this study is a potential adjuvant to rabies vaccines for human use. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s12985-018-1089-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.