Current Advances in Vaccine Development for Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome Virus (SFTSV)

Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS), caused by the tick-borne severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV), is a disease that is endemic to East Asia and has mortality rates reaching 30%. Despite its substantial public health impact, no vaccines or antiviral treatments are currently available. The SFTSV genome encodes key structural proteins, including glycoproteins (Gn and Gc) and nucleocapsid protein (NP), which serve as critical vaccine targets. This Commentary reviews the current status of SFTSV-related vaccine platforms—such as viral vectors, inactivated viruses, DNA, mRNA, and protein-based approaches—and highlights the immune responses elicited by these platforms against key antigens, particularly glycoproteins and NP. Future research directions are additionally proposed to accelerate the development of effective SFTSV vaccines by leveraging insights from existing studies.