Neutralizing Antibodies after Infection with Dengue 1 Virus
María G. Guzmána✉, Mayling Álvareza, R. Rodrígueza, Lídice Bernardoa, Tibaire Montesb, Susana Vázqueza, Luís Moriera, Angel Alvareza, Ernest Andrew Gouldc, Gustavo Kouría, Scott B. Halsteadd
- a“Pedro Kourí” Tropical Medicine Institute, Havana, Cuba
- bInstituto Medicina Tropical, Caracas, Venezuela
- cCentre for Ecology and Hydrology, Oxford, United Kingdom
- dPediatric Dengue Vaccine Initiative, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
- ✉Corresponding author
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Abstract
Severity of disease is markedly increased when infection with dengue virus type 2 (DENV-2) follows infection with DENV-1 at an interval of 20 years. Studies have shown that heterologous neutralizing antibody titers are inversely correlated with severity of a second infection. If this mechanism controlled disease severity in Cuba, heterotypic antibody titers should have declined over time. To determine whether phenotypic changes in dengue antibodies occur over time, we analyzed serum samples collected 4-8 and 20-22 years after DENV-1 infection. We found a significant increase in mean titer of homologous DENV-1 neutralizing antibodies and a significant decrease in heterologous antibodies to 1 of 2 genotypes of DENV-2 virus (the American genotype). Asian DENV-2 viruses were not neutralized during either interval; however, the American genotype underwent phenotypic changes in heterotypic viral neutralizing antibodies in the predicted direction. This finding may be related to the time-dependent changes in severity of disease found with secondary dengue infection.