Role of Differences in Respiratory Syncytial Virus F and G Glycoproteins on Susceptibility to Inactivation by Antimicrobial Peptides LL-37 and Human Beta-Defensins.

Antimicrobial peptides are proteins that have been found to be an important factor in the natural immune response to a variety of pathogens. Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a respiratory pathogen with the capability to cause serious upper and lower respiratory infections in infants and children and is a major viral cause of infant mortality. There is currently no functional vaccine for the virus, as recent efforts have been hindered by the virus's low immunogenicity, its ability to effectively mutate, and underlying instabilities of potential vaccines.

Evaluation of the role of respiratory syncytial virus surface glycoproteins F and G on viral stability and replication: implications for future vaccine design.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) remains a leading cause of infant mortality worldwide and exhaustive international efforts are underway to develop a vaccine. However, vaccine development has been hindered by a legacy of vaccine-enhanced disease, poor viral immunogenicity in infants, and genetic and physical instabilities. Natural infection with RSV does not prime for enhanced disease encouraging development of live-attenuated RSV vaccines for infants; however, physical instabilities of RSV may limit vaccine development.