Live-attenuated, tetravalent dengue vaccine in children, adolescents and adults in a dengue endemic country: randomized controlled phase I trial in the Philippines

A recombinant live attenuated tetravalent dengue vaccine (TDV) is safe and immunogenic in adults and children in dengue-naive populations. Data are needed in dengue endemic populations. In a phase I, randomized, controlled, blind-observer study in the Philippines, groups of participants aged 2-5, 6-11, 12-17, and 18-45 years received either three TDV vaccinations at months 0, 3.5, and 12 (TDV-TDV-TDV group) or licensed typhoid vaccination at month 0 and TDV at months 3.5 and 12 (TyVi-TDV-TDV group) and were followed for safety (including biological safety and vaccine virus viremia) and immunogenicity. No serious adverse vaccine related events and no significant trends in biological safety parameters were reported. Injection site pain, headache, malaise, myalgia, fever, and asthenia were reported most frequently, as mild to moderate in most cases and transient. Reactogenicity did not increase with successive vaccinations and was no higher in children than in adults and adolescents. Low levels of vaccinal viremia were detected in both groups after each TDV vaccination. After three TDV vaccinations, the seropositivity rates against serotypes 1-4 were: 91%, 100%, 96%, 100%, respectively, in 2-5 year-olds; 88%, 96% 96%, 92% in 6-11 year-olds; 88%, 83%, 92%, 96% in adolescents; and 100% for all serotypes in adults. A similar response was observed after two doses for the TyVi-TDV-TDV group. The safety profile of TDV in a flavivirus endemic population was consistent with previous reports from flavivirus naive populations. A vaccine regimen of either three TDV vaccinations administered over a year or two TDV vaccinations given more than 8 months apart resulted in a balanced antibody response to all four dengue serotypes in this flavivirus-exposed population, including children.