RATIONAL DESIGN OF A LIVE-ATTENUATED EASTERN EQUINE ENCEPHALITIS VIRUS VACCINE THROUGH INFORMED MUTATION OF VIRULENCE DETERMINANTS.

Live attenuated vaccines (LAVs), if sufficiently safe, provide the most potent and durable anti-pathogen responses in vaccinees with single immunizations commonly yielding lifelong immunity.Historically, viral LAVs were derived by blind passage of virulent strains in cultured cells resulting in adaptation to culture and a loss of fitness and diseas