Human immune memory to yellow fever and smallpox vaccination.

BACKGROUND

Establishment of immunological memory is a hallmark of adaptive immune responses and the biological mechanism for the success of vaccines. However, in humans, much of our knowledge about adaptive immune responses derives from studies of chronic viral infections.

OBJECTIVE

Here, we summarize the work of our laboratory and others on B and T cell responses and the establishment and maintenance of immune memory after acute viral infections induced by vaccination with two of the most successful vaccines to date, the yellow fever and the smallpox vaccines.