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Updated: May 6, 2026

Intranasal Administration of Recombinant Influenza Vaccines in Chimeric Mouse Models to Study Mucosal Immunity
Published on: June 25, 2015
Phase I/II trial of a replication-deficient trivalent influenza virus vaccine lacking NS1
Christina Mössler1, Franz Groiss, Michael Wolzt
1AVIR Green Hills Biotechnology, 1200 Vienna, Austria.
Background:
The non-structural protein NS1 of the influenza virus counteracts the interferon-mediated immune response of the host. We investigated the safety and immunogenicity of a trivalent formulation containing influenza H1N1, H3N2 and B strains lacking NS1 (delNS1-trivalent).
Methods:
Healthy adult study participants who were seronegative for at least one strain present in the vaccine formulation were randomized to receive a single intranasal dose of delNS1-trivalent vaccine at 7.0log10 TCID50/subject (n=39) or placebo (n=41).
Results:
Intranasal vaccination with the live replication-deficient delNS1-trivalent vaccine was well tolerated with no treatment-related serious adverse events. The most common adverse events identified, i.e. headache, oropharyngeal pain and rhinitis-like symptoms, were mainly mild and transient and distributed similarly in the treatment and placebo groups. Significant vaccine-specific immune responses were induced. Pre-existing low antibody titers or seronegativity for the corresponding vaccine strain yielded better response rates.
Conclusions:
We show that vaccination with a replication-deficient trivalent influenza vaccine containing H1N1, H3N2 and B strains lacking NS1 is safe and induces significant levels of antibodies (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT01369862).

