Identification of T-Cell Epitopes Using a Combined In-Silico and Experimental Approach in a Mouse Model for SARS-CoV-2.

Following viral infection, T-cells are crucial for an effective immune response to intracellular pathogens, including respiratory viruses. During the COVID-19 pandemic, diverse assays were required in pre-clinical trials to evaluate the immune response following vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 and assess the response following exposure to the virus. To assess the nature and potency of the cellular response to infection or vaccination, a reliable and specific activity assay was needed. A cellular activity assay based on the presentation of short peptides (epitopes) allows the identification of T cell epitopes displayed on different alleles of the MHC, shedding light on the strength of the immune response towards antigens and aiding in antigen design for vaccination. In this report, we describe two approaches for scanning T cell epitopes on the surface glycoprotein of the SARS-CoV-2 (spike), which is utilized for attachment and entry and serves as an antigen in many vaccine candidates. We demonstrate that epitope scanning is feasible using peptide libraries or computational scanning combined with a cellular activity assay. Our scans identified four CD8 T cell epitopes, including one novel undescribed epitope. These epitopes enabled us to establish a reliable T-cell response assay, which was examined and used in various experimental mouse models for SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccination. These approaches could potentially aid in future antigen design for vaccination and establish cellular activity assays against uncharacterized antigens of emerging pathogens.

SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding domain fusion protein efficiently neutralizes virus infection.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently, as dangerous mutations emerge, there is an increased demand for specific treatments for SARS-CoV-2 infected patients. The spike glycoprotein on the virus envelope binds to the angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) on host cells through its receptor binding domain (RBD) to mediate virus entry. Thus, blocking this interaction may inhibit viral entry and consequently stop infection. Here, we generated fusion proteins composed of the extracellular portions of ACE2 and RBD fused to the Fc portion of human IgG1 (ACE2-Ig and RBD-Ig, respectively). We demonstrate that ACE2-Ig is enzymatically active and that it can be recognized by the SARS-CoV-2 RBD, independently of its enzymatic activity. We further show that RBD-Ig efficiently inhibits in-vivo SARS-CoV-2 infection better than ACE2-Ig. Mechanistically, we show that anti-spike antibody generation, ACE2 enzymatic activity, and ACE2 surface expression were not affected by RBD-Ig. Finally, we show that RBD-Ig is more efficient than ACE2-Ig at neutralizing high virus titers. We thus propose that RBD-Ig physically blocks virus infection by binding to ACE2 and that RBD-Ig should be used for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2-infected patients.

Glucosylceramide synthase inhibitors prevent replication of SARS-CoV-2 and influenza virus.

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is a major threat to global health. Vaccines are ideal solutions to prevent infection, but treatments are also needed for those who have contracted the virus to limit negative outcomes, when vaccines are not applicable. Viruses must cross host cell membranes during their life cycle, creating a dependency on processes involving membrane dynamics. Thus, in this study, we examined whether the synthetic machinery for glycosphingolipids, biologically active components of cell membranes, can serve as a therapeutic target to combat SARS-CoV-2. We examined the antiviral effect of two specific inhibitors of glucosylceramide synthase (GCS): (i) Genz-123346, an analogue of the United States Food and Drug Administration-approved drug Cerdelga and (ii) GENZ-667161, an analogue of venglustat, which is currently under phase III clinical trials. We found that both GCS inhibitors inhibit replication of SARS-CoV-2. Moreover, these inhibitors also disrupt replication of influenza virus A/PR/8/34 (H1N1). Our data imply that synthesis of glycosphingolipids is necessary to support viral life cycles and suggest that GCS inhibitors should be further explored as antiviral therapies.

rVSV-ΔG-SARS-CoV-2-S vaccine: repeated intramuscular (IM) toxicity, local tolerance, immunogenicity and biodistribution study in NZW rabbits.

BriLife®, a vector-based vaccine that utilizes the recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) platform to express and present the spike antigen of SARS-CoV-2, is undergoing testing in a phase 2 clinical trial in Israel. A nonclinical repeated-dose (GLP) toxicity study in New Zealand white rabbits was performed to evaluate the potential toxicity, local tolerance, immunogenicity and biodistribution of the vaccine. rVSV-ΔG-SARS-CoV-2-S (or vehicle) was administered intramuscularly to two groups of animals (106, 107 PFU/animal, n = 10/sex/group) on three occasions, at 2-week intervals, followed by a 3-week recovery period. Systemic clinical signs, local reactions, body weight, body temperature, food consumption, ophthalmology, urinalysis, clinical pathology, C-reactive protein, viremia and antibody levels were monitored. Gross pathology was performed, followed by organs/tissues collection for biodistribution and histopathological evaluation. Treatment-related changes were restricted to multifocal minimal myofiber necrosis at the injection sites, and increased lymphocytic cellularity in the iliac and mesenteric lymph nodes and in the spleen. These changes were considered related to the inflammatory reaction elicited, and correlated with a trend for recovery. Detection of rVSV-ΔG-SARS-CoV-2-S vaccine RNA was noted in the regional iliac lymph node in animals assigned to the high-dose group, at both termination time points. A significant increase in binding and neutralizing antibody titers was observed following vaccination at both vaccine doses. In view of the findings, it was concluded that the rVSV-ΔG-SARS-CoV-2-S vaccine is safe. These results supported the initiation of clinical trials.

Preliminary nonclinical safety and immunogenicity of an rVSV-ΔG-SARS-CoV-2-S vaccine in mice, hamsters, rabbits and pigs.

rVSV-ΔG-SARS-CoV-2-S is a clinical stage (Phase 2) replication competent recombinant vaccine against SARS-CoV-2. To evaluate the safety profile of the vaccine, a series of non-clinical safety, immunogenicity and efficacy studies were conducted in four animal species, using multiple doses (up to 108 Plaque Forming Units/animal) and dosing regimens. There were no treatment-related mortalities or any noticeable clinical signs in any of the studies. Compared to unvaccinated controls, hematology and biochemistry parameters were unremarkable and no adverse histopathological findings. There was no detectable viral shedding in urine, nor viral RNA detected in whole blood or serum samples seven days post vaccination. The rVSV-ΔG-SARS-CoV-2-S vaccination gave rise to neutralizing antibodies, cellular immune responses, and increased lymphocytic cellularity in the spleen germinal centers and regional lymph nodes. No evidence for neurovirulence was found in C57BL/6 immune competent mice or in highly sensitive type I interferon knock-out mice. Vaccine virus replication and distribution in K18-human Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2-transgenic mice showed a gradual clearance from the vaccination site with no vaccine virus recovered from the lungs. The nonclinical data suggest that the rVSV-ΔG-SARS-CoV-2-S vaccine is safe and immunogenic. These results supported the initiation of clinical trials, currently in Phase 2.

Monkeypox DNA levels correlate with virus infectivity in clinical samples, Israel, 2022.

The current monkeypox virus global spread and lack of data regarding clinical specimens' infectivity call for examining virus infectivity, and whether this correlates with results from PCR, the available diagnostic tool. We show strong correlation between viral DNA amount in clinical specimens and virus infectivity toward BSC-1 cell line. Moreover, we define a PCR threshold value (Cq ≥ 35, ≤ 4,300 DNA copies/mL), corresponding to negative viral cultures, which may assist risk-assessment and decision-making regarding protective-measures and guidelines for patients with monkeypox.

Diagnosis of Imported Monkeypox, Israel, 2018.

We report a case of monkeypox in a man who returned from Nigeria to Israel in 2018. Virus was detected in pustule swabs by transmission electron microscopy and PCR and confirmed by immunofluorescence assay, tissue culture, and ELISA. The West Africa monkeypox outbreak calls for increased awareness by public health authorities worldwide.

Synergistic effect of two human-like monoclonal antibodies confers protection against orthopoxvirus infection.

The eradication of smallpox was officially declared by the WHO in 1980, leading to discontinuation of the vaccination campaign against the virus. Consequently, immunity against smallpox and related orthopoxviruses like Monkeypox virus gradually declines, highlighting the need for efficient countermeasures not only for the prevention, but also for the treatment of already exposed individuals. We have recently developed human-like monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) from vaccinia virus-immunized non-human primates. Two mAbs, MV33 and EV42, targeting the two infectious forms of the virus, were selected for in vivo evaluation, based on their in vitro neutralization potency. A single dose of either MV33 or EV42 administered three days post-infection (dpi) to BALB/c female mice provides full protection against lethal ectromelia virus challenge. Importantly, a combination of both mAbs confers full protection even when provided five dpi. Whole-body bioimaging and viral load analysis reveal that combination of the two mAbs allows for faster and more efficient clearance of the virus from target organs compared to either MV33 or EV42 separately. The combined mAbs treatment further confers post-exposure protection against the currently circulating Monkeypox virus in Cast/EiJ female mice, highlighting their therapeutic potential against other orthopoxviruses.

Induction of Superior Systemic and Mucosal Protective Immunity to SARS-CoV-2 by Nasal Administration of a VSV-ΔG-Spike Vaccine.

The emergence of rapidly spreading variants of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) poses a major challenge to vaccines' protective efficacy. Intramuscular (IM) vaccine administration induces short-lived immunity but does not prevent infection and transmission. New vaccination strategies are needed to extend the longevity of vaccine protection, induce mucosal and systemic immunity and prevent viral transmission. The intranasal (IN) administration of the VSV-ΔG-spike vaccine candidate directly to mucosal surfaces yielded superior mucosal and systemic immunity at lower vaccine doses. Compared to IM vaccination in the K18-hACE2 model, IN vaccination preferentially induced mucosal IgA and T-cells, reduced the viral load at the site of infection, and ameliorated disease-associated brain gene expression. IN vaccination was protective even one year after administration. As most of the world population has been vaccinated by IM injection, we demonstrate the potential of a heterologous IM + IN vaccination regimen to induce mucosal immunity while maintaining systemic immunity. Furthermore, the IM + IN regimen prevented virus transmission in a golden Syrian hamster co-caging model. Taken together, we show that IN vaccination with VSV-ΔG-spike, either as a homologous IN + IN regimen or as a boost following IM vaccination, has a favorable potential over IM vaccination in inducing efficient mucosal immunity, long-term protection and preventing virus transmission.

Active vaccination with vaccinia virus A33 protects mice against lethal vaccinia and ectromelia viruses but not against cowpoxvirus; elucidation of the specific adaptive immune response.

Vaccinia virus protein A33 (A33VACV) plays an important role in protection against orthopoxviruses, and hence is included in experimental multi-subunit smallpox vaccines. In this study we show that single-dose vaccination with recombinant Sindbis virus expressing A33VACV, is sufficient to protect mice against lethal challenge with vaccinia virus WR (VACV-WR) and ectromelia virus (ECTV) but not against cowpox virus (CPXV), a closely related orthopoxvirus. Moreover, a subunit vaccine based on the cowpox virus A33 ortholog (A33CPXV) failed to protect against cowpox and only partially protected mice against VACV-WR challenge. We mapped regions of sequence variation between A33VACV and A33CPXVand analyzed the role of such variations in protection. We identified a single protective region located between residues 104-120 that harbors a putative H-2Kd T cell epitope as well as a B cell epitope - a target for the neutralizing antibody MAb-1G10 that blocks spreading of extracellular virions. Both epitopes in A33CPXV are mutated and predicted to be non-functional. Whereas vaccination with A33VACV did not induce in-vivo CTL activity to the predicted epitope, inhibition of virus spread in-vitro, and protection from lethal VACV challenge pointed to the B cell epitope highlighting the critical role of residue L118 and of adjacent compensatory residues in protection. This epitope's critical role in protection, as well as its modifications within the orthopoxvirus genus should be taken in context with the failure of A33 to protect against CPXV as demonstrated here. These findings should be considered when developing new subunit vaccines and monoclonal antibody based therapeutics against orthopoxviruses, especially variola virus, the etiologic agent of smallpox.

Generation of recombinant mAbs to vaccinia virus displaying high affinity and potent neutralization.

Members of the Orthopoxvirus genus can cause severe infections in humans. Global vaccination against smallpox, caused by the variola virus, resulted in the eradication of the disease in 1980. Shortly thereafter, vaccination was discontinued, and as a result, a large proportion of the current population is not protected against orthopoxviruses. The concerns that the variola virus or other engineered forms of poxviruses may re-emerge as bioweapons and the sporadic outbreaks of zoonotic members of the family, such as Mpox, which are becoming more frequent and prevalent, also emphasize the need for an effective treatment against orthopoxviruses. To date, the most effective way to prevent or control an orthopoxvirus outbreak is through vaccination. However, the traditional vaccinia-based vaccine may cause severe side effects. Vaccinia immune globulin was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of vaccine adverse reactions and was also used occasionally for the treatment of severe orthopoxvirus infections. However, this treatment carries many disadvantages and is also in short supply. Thus, a recombinant alternative is highly needed. In this study, two non-human primates were immunized with live vaccinia virus, producing a robust and diverse antibody response. A phage-display library was constructed based on the animal's lymphatic organs, and a panel of neutralizing monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), recognizing diverse proteins of the vaccinia virus, was selected and characterized. These antibodies recognized both mature virion and enveloped virion forms of the virus and exhibited high affinity and potent in vitro neutralization capabilities. Furthermore, these monoclonal antibodies were able to neutralize Mpox 2018 and 2022 strains, suggesting a potential for cross-species protection. We suggest that a combination of these mAbs has the potential to serve as recombinant therapy both for vaccinia vaccine adverse reactions and for orthopoxvirus infections. IMPORTANCE In this manuscript, we report the isolation and characterization of several recombinant neutralizing monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) identified by screening a phage-display library constructed from lymphatic cells collected from immunized non-human primates. The antibodies target several different antigens of the vaccinia virus, covering both mature virion and extracellular enveloped virion forms of the virus. We document strong evidence indicating that they exhibit excellent affinity to their respective antigens and, most importantly, optimal in vitro neutralization of the virus, which exceeded that of vaccinia immune globulin. Furthermore, we present the ability of these novel isolated mAbs (as well as the sera collected from vaccinia-immunized animals) to neutralize two Mpox strains from the 2018 to 2022 outbreaks. We believe that these antibodies have the potential to be used for the treatment of vaccinia vaccine adverse reactions, for other orthopoxvirus infections, and in cases of unexpected bioterror scenarios.

VSV-ΔG-Spike Candidate Vaccine Induces Protective Immunity and Protects K18-hACE2 Mice against SARS-CoV-2 Variants.

Since the emergence of the original SARS-CoV-2, several variants were described, raising questions as to the ability of recently developed vaccine platforms to induce immunity and provide protection against these variants. Here, we utilized the K18-hACE2 mouse model to show that VSV-ΔG-spike vaccination provides protection against several SARS-CoV-2 variants: alpha, beta, gamma, and delta. We show an overall robust immune response, regardless of variant identity, leading to reduction in viral load in target organs, prevention of morbidity and mortality, as well as prevention of severe brain immune response, which follows infection with various variants. Additionally, we provide a comprehensive comparison of the brain transcriptomic profile in response to infection with different variants of SARS-CoV-2 and show how vaccination prevents these disease manifestations. Taken together, these results highlight the robust VSV-ΔG-spike protective response against diverse SARS-CoV-2 variants, as well as its promising potential against newly arising variants.

A single cidofovir treatment rescues animals at progressive stages of lethal orthopoxvirus disease.

BACKGROUND: In an event of a smallpox outbreak in humans, the window for efficacious treatment by vaccination with vaccinia viruses (VACV) is believed to be limited to the first few days post-exposure (p.e.). We recently demonstrated in a mouse model for human smallpox, that active immunization 2-3 days p.e. with either VACV-Lister or modified VACV Ankara (MVA) vaccines, can rescue animals from lethal challenge of ectromelia virus (ECTV), the causative agent of mousepox. The present study was carried out in order to determine whether a single dose of the anti-viral cidofovir (CDV), administered at different times and doses p.e. either alone or in conjunction with active vaccination, can rescue ECTV infected mice. METHODS: Animals were infected intranasally with ECTV, treated on different days with various single CDV doses and monitored for morbidity, mortality and humoral response. In addition, in order to determine the influence of CDV on the immune response following vaccination, both the "clinical take", IFN-gamma and IgG Ab levels in the serum were evaluated as well as the ability of the mice to withstand a lethal challenge of ECTV. Finally the efficacy of a combined treatment regime of CDV and vaccination p.e. was determined. RESULTS: A single p.e. CDV treatment is sufficient for protection depending on the initiation time and dose (2.5 - 100 mg/kg) of treatment. Solid protection was achieved by a low dose (5 mg/kg) CDV treatment even if given at day 6 p.e., approximately 4 days before death of the control infected untreated mice (mean time to death (MTTD) 10.2). At the same time point complete protection was achieved by single treatment with higher doses of CDV (25 or 100 mg/kg). Irrespective of treatment dose, all surviving animals developed a protective immune response even when the CDV treatment was initiated one day p.e.. After seven days post treatment with the highest dose (100 mg/kg), virus was still detected in some organs (e.g. lung and liver) yet all animals survived, suggesting that efficacious single CDV treatment requires a potent immune system. The combination of CDV and vaccination provided no additional protection over CDV alone. Yet, combining CDV and vaccination maintained vaccination efficacy. CONCLUSIONS: Altogether, our data substantiate the feasibility of single post-exposure antiviral treatment to face orthopoxvirus infection.

Elevation in sphingolipid upon SARS-CoV-2 infection: possible implications for COVID-19 pathology.

Understanding pathways that might impact coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) manifestations and disease outcomes is necessary for better disease management and for therapeutic development. Here, we analyzed alterations in sphingolipid (SL) levels upon infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). SARS-CoV-2 infection induced elevation of SL levels in both cells and sera of infected mice. A significant increase in glycosphingolipid levels was induced early post SARS-CoV-2 infection, which was essential for viral replication. This elevation could be reversed by treatment with glucosylceramide synthase inhibitors. Levels of sphinganine, sphingosine, GA1, and GM3 were significantly increased in both cells and the murine model upon SARS-CoV-2 infection. The potential involvement of SLs in COVID-19 pathology is discussed.

Imatinib inhibits SARS-CoV-2 infection by an off-target-mechanism.

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the causal agent of the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 274 million individuals have suffered from COVID-19 and over five million people have died from this disease so far. Therefore, there is an urgent need for therapeutic drugs. Repurposing FDA approved drugs should be favored since evaluation of safety and efficacy of de-novo drug design are both costly and time consuming. We report that imatinib, an Abl tyrosine kinase inhibitor, robustly decreases SARS-CoV-2 infection and uncover a mechanism of action. We show that imatinib inhibits the infection of SARS-CoV-2 and its surrogate lentivector pseudotype. In latter, imatinib inhibited both routes of viral entry, endocytosis and membrane-fusion. We utilized a system to quantify in real-time cell-cell membrane fusion mediated by the SARS-CoV-2 surface protein, Spike, and its receptor, hACE2, to demonstrate that imatinib inhibits this process in an Abl1 and Abl2 independent manner. Furthermore, cellular thermal shift assay revealed a direct imatinib-Spike interaction that affects Spike susceptibility to trypsin digest. Collectively, our data suggest that imatinib inhibits Spike mediated viral entry by an off-target mechanism. These findings mark imatinib as a promising therapeutic drug in inhibiting the early steps of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Matrix Metalloproteinases Expression Is Associated with SARS-CoV-2-Induced Lung Pathology and Extracellular-Matrix Remodeling in K18-hACE2 Mice.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 infection induced lung inflammation characterized by cytokine storm and fulminant immune response of both resident and migrated immune cells, accelerating alveolar damage. In this work we identified members of the matrix metalloprotease (MMPs) family associated with lung extra-cellular matrix (ECM) destruction using K18-hACE2-transgenic mice (K18-hACE2) infected intranasally with SARS-CoV-2. Five days post infection, the lungs exhibited overall alveolar damage of epithelial cells and massive leukocytes infiltration. A substantial pulmonary increase in MMP8, MMP9, and MMP14 in the lungs post SARS-CoV-2 infection was associated with degradation of ECM components including collagen, laminin, and proteoglycans. The process of tissue damage and ECM degradation during SARS-CoV-2 lung infection is suggested to be associated with activity of members of the MMPs family, which in turn may be used as a therapeutic intervention.

Induction of Innate Immune Response by TLR3 Agonist Protects Mice against SARS-CoV-2 Infection.

SARS-CoV-2, a member of the coronavirus family, is the causative agent of the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently, there is still an urgent need in developing an efficient therapeutic intervention. In this study, we aimed at evaluating the therapeutic effect of a single intranasal treatment of the TLR3/MDA5 synthetic agonist Poly(I:C) against a lethal dose of SARS-CoV-2 in K18-hACE2 transgenic mice. We demonstrate here that early Poly(I:C) treatment acts synergistically with SARS-CoV-2 to induce an intense, immediate and transient upregulation of innate immunity-related genes in lungs. This effect is accompanied by viral load reduction, lung and brain cytokine storms prevention and increased levels of macrophages and NK cells, resulting in 83% mice survival, concomitantly with long-term immunization. Thus, priming the lung innate immunity by Poly(I:C) or alike may provide an immediate, efficient and safe protective measure against SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Neutralization of SARS-CoV-2 Variants by rVSV-ΔG-Spike-Elicited Human Sera.

The emergence of rapidly spreading variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) poses a major challenge to the ability of vaccines and therapeutic antibodies to provide immunity. These variants contain mutations of specific amino acids that might impede vaccine efficacy. BriLife® (rVSV-ΔG-spike) is a newly developed SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate currently in phase II clinical trials. It is based on a replication-competent vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) platform. The rVSV-ΔG-spike contains several spontaneously acquired spike mutations that correspond to SARS-CoV-2 variants' mutations. We show that human sera from BriLife® vaccinees preserve comparable neutralization titers towards alpha, gamma, and delta variants and show less than a three-fold reduction in the neutralization capacity of beta and omicron compared to the original virus. Taken together, we show that human sera from BriLife® vaccinees overall maintain a neutralizing antibody response against all tested variants. We suggest that BriLife®-acquired mutations may prove advantageous against future SARS-CoV-2 VOCs.

Modeling SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Mice Using Lentiviral hACE2 Vectors Infers Two Modes of Immune Responses to SARS-CoV-2 Infection.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) caused a severe global pandemic. Mice models are essential to investigate infection pathology, antiviral drugs, and vaccine development. However, wild-type mice lack the human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hACE2) that mediates SARS-CoV-2 entry into human cells and consequently are not susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection. hACE2 transgenic mice could provide an efficient COVID-19 model, but are not always readily available, and practically restricted to specific strains. Therefore, there is a dearth of additional mouse models for SARS-CoV-2 infection. We applied lentiviral vectors to generate hACE2 expression in interferon receptor knock-out (IFNAR1-/-) mice. Lenti-hACE2 transduction supported SARS-CoV-2 replication in vivo, simulating mild acute lung disease. Gene expression analysis revealed two modes of immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 infection: one in response to the exposure of mouse lungs to SARS-CoV-2 particles in the absence of productive viral replication, and the second in response to productive SARS-CoV-2 infection. Our results infer that immune response to immunogenic elements on incoming virus or in productively infected cells stimulate diverse immune effectors, even in absence of type I IFN signaling. Our findings should contribute to a better understanding of the immune response triggered by SARS-CoV-2 and to further elucidate COVID-19.

Monitoring Group Activity of Hamsters and Mice as a Novel Tool to Evaluate COVID-19 Progression, Convalescence, and rVSV-ΔG-Spike Vaccination Efficacy.

The COVID-19 pandemic initiated a worldwide race toward the development of treatments and vaccines. Small animal models included the Syrian golden hamster and the K18-hACE2 mice infected with SARS-CoV-2 to display a disease state with some aspects of human COVID-19. A group activity of animals in their home cage continuously monitored by the HCMS100 (Home cage Monitoring System 100) was used as a sensitive marker of disease, successfully detecting morbidity symptoms of SARS-CoV-2 infection in hamsters and in K18-hACE2 mice. COVID-19 convalescent hamsters rechallenged with SARS-CoV-2 exhibited minor reduction in group activity compared to naive hamsters. To evaluate the rVSV-ΔG-spike vaccination efficacy against SARS-CoV-2, we used the HCMS100 to monitor the group activity of hamsters in their home cage. A single-dose rVSV-ΔG-spike vaccination of the immunized group showed a faster recovery than the nonimmunized infected hamsters, substantiating the efficacy of rVSV-ΔG-spike vaccine. HCMS100 offers nonintrusive, hands-free monitoring of a number of home cages of hamsters or mice modeling COVID-19.