Vanderbilt and Parse Biosciences team up to develop antibody treatments for measles

Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Parse Biosciences, an innovator in single-cell sequencing, are collaborating on a new treatment to help unvaccinated measles victims, as the U.S. measles outbreak has now reached its highest case count in 30 years. 

While the current MMR vaccine is highly effective in preventing illness from exposure to the mumps, measles, and rubella viruses, the development of injectable monoclonal antibodies that can neutralize these viruses could provide protection or treatment to individuals who did not receive the vaccine. 

The researchers are hoping to create a single cell "atlas" that will lead to new antibody therapies against measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR), according to James Crowe, Jr., MD, director of the Vanderbilt Center for Antibody Therapeutics (VCAT), 

Using technology that can sequence more than 10 million cells in a single run, researchers will scan the landscape of plasmablasts - the first antibody-producing, B-type immune cells that respond to MMR infection - with a goal to rapidly identify cells generating the most potent, neutralizing antibodies. 

"This collaboration enables us to create the largest single-cell atlas of plasmablast sequences ever assembled," said Crowe, who will lead the research effort. 

"By sequencing and mapping tens of millions of B-cell receptor sequences, we can uncover the most potent antibody lineages, accelerating antibody discovery and informing vaccine design," he said. "These insights give us a critical edge in responding to both emerging infectious threats and optimizing existing immunization strategies." 

During an outbreak of measles, for example, antibodies could be used quickly to limit the spread of infection through close contacts who are not immunized or lack the ability to mount a sufficient immune response to the vaccine, explained Robert Carnahan, PhD, associate VCAT director. 

Through this work, we will not only better understand how antibodies work to prevent and limit infection post-infection and post-vaccination, but we also hope to discover protective antibodies that could be developed for use in situations where a vaccine is of limited value, for example, in immunocompromised individuals."

Robert Carnahan, PhD, associate VCAT director