Potent neutralization of Marburg virus by a vaccine-elicited antibody

Abstract

Abstract Marburg virus (MARV) is a filovirus that causes severe and often lethal haemorrhagic fever 1,2 . Despite the increasing frequency of MARV outbreaks, no vaccines or therapeutics are licensed for use in humans. Here we designed mutations that improve the expression, thermostability and immunogenicity of the prefusion MARV glycoprotein (GP) ectodomain trimer, which is the sole target of neutralizing antibodies and vaccines in development 3–8 . We discovered a fully human, pan-marburgvirus monoclonal antibody, MARV16, that broadly neutralizes all MARV isolates, Ravn virus and Dehong virus with 40–100-fold increased potency relative to previously described antibodies 9 . Moreover, MARV16 provided therapeutic protection in guinea pigs challenged with MARV. We determined a cryogenic electron microscopy structure of MARV16-bound MARV GP. The structure shows that MARV16 recognizes a prefusion-specific epitope spanning GP1 and GP2, which blocks receptor binding and prevents conformational changes required for viral entry. We further determined the architecture of the MARV GP glycan cap, which shields the receptor-binding site, and identified architectural similarities with distantly related filovirus GPs. MARV16 and previously identified antibodies directed against the receptor-binding site 9–11 simultaneously bound MARV GP. These antibody cocktails required multiple mutations to escape neutralization by both antibodies, a result that paves the way for the development of MARV therapeutics resistant to viral evolution. MARV GP stabilization along with the discovery of MARV16 advance prevention and treatment options for MARV disease.