RSV Vaccines for The World (RSVVW) 2015

Human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV) is a major cause of upper and lower respiratory tract illness in infants and young children worldwide. Despite its importance as a respiratory pathogen, there is currently no licensed vaccine for prophylaxis of HRSV infection.

There are several hurdles complicating the development of a RSV vaccine:

1) Incomplete immunity to natural RSV infection leading to frequent re-infection
2) Immature immune system and maternal antibodies of newborn infants who are the primary subject population
3) Imbalanced Th2-biased immune responses to a past vaccine candidate led to exacerbated pulmonary disease.

After the failure of an initial trial featuring formalin-inactivated virus as a RSV vaccine, more careful and deliberate efforts have been made towards the development of safe and effective RSV vaccines without vaccine-enhanced disease. Currently a wide array of RSV vaccine strategies is being developed, including live-attenuated viruses, protein subunit-based, and vector-based candidates. Though licensed vaccines remain to be developed, concerted efforts will lead researchers to reach the goal of attaining safe and effective RSV vaccines in the near future.