Ebola virus-like particles as potential vaccine candidates

Abstract

Ebola virus causes outbreaks with high case-fatality rates, and current vaccines face limitations such as dependence on viral vectors, weak cellular immunity, and cold-chain requirements. Virus-like particles and extracellular vesicles are promising vaccine platforms, but downstream processing challenges limit their clinical translation. This thesis focuses on the production, purification, and immunological evaluation of Ebola VP40-derived virus-like particles (eVLPs) and extracellular vesicles (eEVs), demonstrating their distinct ability to induce dendritic cell maturation. Additionally, two strategies are explored to enhance the immunogenicity of eVLPs. Overall, this work underscores the importance of optimizing purification processes and highlights the potential of eVLPs as vaccine candidates against Ebola virus.