The present invention relates to a method for rescue of Vesicular Stomatitis Virus (VSV) from DNA in a HEK293 cell line or a HEK293 cell line adapted to suspension growth comprising (a) providing cells from a HEK293 cell line or a HEK293 cell line adapted to suspension growth in cell culture, (b) transfecting the cells with at least one plasmid, wherein the at least one plasmid comprises (i) an expression cassette comprising a VSV genomic cDNA; (ii) at least one expression cassette encoding VSV nucleoprotein (N) protein, VSV phosphoprotein (P) protein, and VSV large (L) protein; and (iii) an expression cassette encoding SV40 Large T antigen; (c) culturing the transfected cells; and (d) harvesting the cell culture supernatant comprising the rescued VSV. Also provided is the use of a HEK293 cell line or a HEK293 cell line adapted to suspension growth for rescue of Vesicular Stomatitis Virus (VSV) or the use of a plasmid encoding SV40 Large T antigen for rescue of Vesicular Stomatitis Virus (VSV) in a HEK293 cell line or a HEK293 cell line adapted to suspension growth HEK293-F cells by means of transient transfection.

The present disclosure provides Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccines, recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) vectors encoding the SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) protein or an immunogenic variant thereof, recombinant replicable VSV particles having a SARS-CoV-2 S protein or an immunogenic variant thereof on the surface of the particles, and immunogenic recombinant proteins comprising a SARS-CoV-2 S protein or a variant thereof. Immunogenic compositions comprising the SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, the recombinant VSV vectors, the recombinant replicable VSV particles and/or the immunogenic recombinant proteins may be used for inducing an immune response to the SARS-CoV-2, preventing infection by the SARS-CoV-2, vaccinating against the SARS-CoV-2 and/or producing adaptive mutants of the recombinant replicable VSV particles.

The disclosure provides viral vaccine compositions for use in treating COVID-19 in a subject to whom the compositions are administered, as well as to methods of making and using the compositions.

The disclosure provides methods and materials for treating cancer. Specifically, the disclosure provides a chimeric vesiculovirus comprising: (a) a first genomic fragment of a first vesiculovirus species; and (b) a second genomic fragment of a second vesiculovirus species different from said first vesiculovirus species; wherein the vesiculovirus species comprising vesicular stomatitis viruses (VSVs) and morreton Virus (MorV). Further disclosed are methods of using chimeric vesiculoviruses as oncolytic agents for treating cancer.

Compositions and methods useful for treating and/or preventing a Zika virus infection are provided.

Disclosed herein are modular viral genomes comprising multiple individual DNA fragments, where each DNA fragment comprises a nucleic acid and at least one viral adaptor region at a terminal end of the nucleic acid. Individual DNA fragments may be assembled based on the homologous viral adaptor regions of each DNA fragment. Also disclosed herein are methods of producing a modular viral genome.

Compositions and methods useful for treating and/or preventing a Zika virus infection are provided.

The present invention provides multi-epitope vaccines comprising or capable of expressing one or more concatemers of epitopes from a viral pathogen, namely, SARS-COV-2. wherein at least a portion of the epitopes are from conserved viral proteins and wherein the vaccine comprises or expresses epitopes for all MHC I and MHC II alleles with a frequency >1% in the target population.

The invention relates to recombinant VSV viruses and viral vectors which produce a glycoprotein GP of the lymphocyte choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) instead of the G protein of the VSV, to virus producing cells which produce LCMV-GP-pseudotyped VSV virions, and to the use of said vectors and cells in the therapy of solid tumors, especially brain tumors.

The present disclosure provides Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccines, recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) vectors encoding the SARS-CoV-2 spike(S) protein or an immunogenic variant thereof, recombinant replicable VSV particles having a SARS-CoV-2 S protein or an immunogenic variant thereof on the surface of the particles, and immunogenic recombinant proteins comprising a SARS-CoV-2 S protein or a variant thereof. Immunogenic compositions comprising the SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, the recombinant VSV vectors, the recombinant replicable VSV particles and/or the immunogenic recombinant proteins may be used for inducing an immune response to the SARS-CoV-2, preventing infection by the SARS-CoV-2, vaccinating against the SARS-CoV-2 and/or producing adaptive mutants of the recombinant replicable VSV particles.