Background/Objectives: The antibody-dependent enhancement (ADE) of viral entry has been documented for SARS-CoV-2 infection both in vitro and in vivo. However, the potential for the SARS-CoV-2 vaccination to elicit similar ADE effects remains unclear. Methods: In this study, we assessed the in vitro ADE potential of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) derived from individuals vaccinated with the inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine and compared them to those from one convalescent donor. Results: Our analysis revealed no significant difference in binding affinity or neutralizing capacity between the vaccinated and convalescent mAbs. However, the inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccination induced fewer ADE-inducing mAbs, particularly those targeting the Class III epitope on the receptor-binding domain (RBD) compared to those from the convalescent individual. Moreover, no significant in vitro ADE was detected in either vaccinated or convalescent sera, indicating low levels of ADE-inducing antibodies in the sera. Conclusions: An inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccination induces fewer ADE-inducing antibodies compared to natural infection, further emphasizing the safety of inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccines.
Porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) re-emerged in China in 2010 and is now widespread. Evidence indicates that highly virulent porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) strains belonging to genotype G2 caused a large-scale outbreak of diarrhea. Currently, vaccines derived from PEDV classical strains do not effectively prevent infection by virulent PEDV strains, and no specific drug is available to treat the disease. RNA interference (RNAi) is a novel and effective way to cure a wide range of viruses. We constructed three short hairpin RNA (shRNA)-expressing plasmids (shR-N307, shR-N463, and shR-N1071) directed against nucleocapsid (N) and determined their antiviral activities in intestine epithelial cells infected with a classical CV777 strain and LNCT2. We verified that shR-N307, shR-N463, and shR-N1071 effectively inhibited the expression of the transfected N gene in vitro, comparable to the control shRNA. We further demonstrated the shRNAs markedly reduced PEDV CV777 and LNCT2 replication upon downregulation of N production. Therefore, this study provides a new strategy for the design of antiviral methods against coronaviruses by targeting their processivity factors.