# Discovery and characterization of human neutralizing antibodies against Powassan virus in patients with Lyme disease for therapy, vaccine, clinical comorbidity profiling, and diagnostic purposes.

> **NIH NIH R21** · ROCKEFELLER UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $211,428

## Abstract

Project Summary
Powassan virus (POWV) is an emerging tick-borne flavivirus that when transmitted to humans
through the bite of an infected tick causes symptoms ranging from asymptomatic infection to
encephalitis and death. There is no specific treatment available to combat the disease. Little is known
about the factors contributing to disease severity and the role of antibody responses in protection.
The geographical distribution of POWV encephalitis cases overlaps with that of Lyme disease and
both pathogens can be transmitted by infected Ixodes scapularis ticks. The primary goal of this
proposal is to examine the characteristics of effective antibody responses to POWV through the
identification and characterization of human monoclonal antibodies with potent neutralization capacity.
In addition, the study aims to determine the prevalence of POWV exposure in Lyme disease patients
to inform future studies on the possible consequences of dual infection. To achieve the goals, both an
existing and a newly recruited cohort of patients with Lyme disease will be screened for serological
evidence of POWV exposure. Serum from positive individuals will be tested in quantitative assays for
neutralization potency. For this pilot project, antibodies recognizing the domain III of the POWV
Envelope protein will be cloned from the memory B cells of those individuals with the most potent
neutralization responses. The cloned antibodies will be characterized for their binding and
neutralization properties by ELISA and reporter virus particle neutralization assays, using both POWV
lineages and a panel of other flaviviruses. Future studies will discover antibodies against other
epitopes of the virus. It is expected that highly neutralizing anti-POWV human monoclonal antibodies
will be discovered that can be developed for possible therapeutic or diagnostic purposes. Overall, the
information gained will also inform future vaccine design.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9828525
- **Project number:** 5R21AI142010-02
- **Recipient organization:** ROCKEFELLER UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** MARGARET R MACDONALD
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $211,428
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-12-01 → 2021-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9828525

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9828525, Discovery and characterization of human neutralizing antibodies against Powassan virus in patients with Lyme disease for therapy, vaccine, clinical comorbidity profiling, and diagnostic purposes. (5R21AI142010-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9828525. Licensed CC0.

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