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Mosa A, Campo D, Khudyakov Y, AbouHaidar M, Gehring A, Zahoor A, Ball J, Urbanowicz R, Feld J. Polyvalent immunization elicits a synergistic broadly neutralizing immune response to hypervariable region 1 variants of hepatitis C virus. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2220294120. [PMID: 37276424 PMCID: PMC10268328 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2220294120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2022] [Accepted: 04/29/2023] [Indexed: 06/07/2023] Open
Abstract
A hepatitis C virus (HCV) vaccine is urgently needed. Vaccine development has been hindered by HCV's genetic diversity, particularly within the immunodominant hypervariable region 1 (HVR1). Here, we developed a strategy to elicit broadly neutralizing antibodies to HVR1, which had previously been considered infeasible. We first applied a unique information theory-based measure of genetic distance to evaluate phenotypic relatedness between HVR1 variants. These distances were used to model the structure of HVR1's sequence space, which was found to have five major clusters. Variants from each cluster were used to immunize mice individually, and as a pentavalent mixture. Sera obtained following immunization neutralized every variant in a diverse HCVpp panel (n = 10), including those resistant to monovalent immunization, and at higher mean titers (1/ID50 = 435) than a glycoprotein E2 (1/ID50 = 205) vaccine. This synergistic immune response offers a unique approach to overcoming antigenic variability and may be applicable to other highly mutable viruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander I. Mosa
- Toronto Centre for Liver Disease, Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, M5G 2C4ON, Canada
| | - David S. Campo
- Molecular Epidemiology and Bioinformatics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta30333, Georgia
| | - Yury Khudyakov
- Molecular Epidemiology and Bioinformatics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta30333, Georgia
| | - Mounir G. AbouHaidar
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, M5S 3G5ON, Canada
| | - Adam J. Gehring
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, M5S 1A8ON, Canada
| | - Atif Zahoor
- Toronto Centre for Liver Disease, Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, M5G 2C4ON, Canada
| | - Jonathan K. Ball
- Wolfson Centre for Global Virus Infections, University of Nottingham, NottinghamNG8 1BB, United Kingdom
| | - Richard A. Urbanowicz
- Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, LiverpoolCH64 7TE, United Kingdom
| | - Jordan J. Feld
- Toronto Centre for Liver Disease, Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, M5G 2C4ON, Canada
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Mosa AI. Implications of viral transmitted/founder (T/F) dynamics on vaccine development. Hum Vaccin Immunother 2020; 17:2293-2297. [PMID: 33377822 DOI: 10.1080/21645515.2020.1861878] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Viral infection typically originates from a limited number of virions known as transmitted/founder (T/F) viruses. Studies of cross-species transmission, and intra-species transmission of antigenically variable viruses, indicates T/F variants may express distinct, transmissibility enhancing phenotypes. However, with evidence that transmissibility is associated with not only intrinsic virological features, such as virion composition, but also extrinsic factors, such as viral population structure, the challenge of resolving T/F signatures that can be targeted by rational vaccine or antiviral design is substantial. Nonetheless, failure to develop vaccines for antigenically variable viruses, such as HIV/HCV, and the ongoing risk of cross-species transmission with pandemic potential, recommends development of T/F targeting vaccines. In this commentary, the T/F phenomena is introduced, explored in both the classical (HIV) and non-canonical (coronaviruses) instances, and discussed in relation to rational and preemptive vaccine design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander I Mosa
- Institute of Medical Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.,Toronto Centre for Liver Disease, Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, Canada
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Li H, Marks KM, Talal AH, van Seggelen WO, Akil B, Radix A, Huprikar S, Branch AD, Wang S, Shaw GM, Fierer DS. Assessing routes of hepatitis C transmission in HIV-infected men who have sex with men using single genome sequencing. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0235237. [PMID: 32667919 PMCID: PMC7363067 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0235237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2020] [Accepted: 06/10/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The epidemic of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among HIV-infected men who have sex with men (MSM) is in its second decade, but the routes of transmission remain poorly understood. We hypothesized that by pairing single genome sequencing (SGS), to enumerate infecting HCV genomes (viruses), with detailed sexual and drug histories, we could gain insight into the routes of transmission among MSM. We used SGS to analyze blood specimens from eight HIV-infected MSM who had 10 episodes of acute (seronegative) or early HCV infections. Seven of eight men reported condomless receptive anal intercourse (CRAI), six with rectal exposure to semen, and all eight denied rectal trauma or bleeding. Of the 10 HCV infections, eight resulted from transmission of a single virus; one infection resulted from transmission of either one or a few (three or four) closely-related viruses; and one infection resulted from transmission of >10 distinct viruses. The participant infected by >10 viruses reported sharing injection equipment for methamphetamine during sex. Two other participants also injected methamphetamine during sex but they did not share injection equipment and were infected by a single virus. Conclusions: Most HCV infections of HIV-infected MSM without a history of either rectal trauma or bleeding or shared injection equipment were caused by a single virus. Intra-rectal exposure to semen during CRAI is therefore likely sufficient for HCV transmission among MSM. Conversely, rectal trauma or bleeding or shared injection equipment are not necessary for HCV transmission among MSM. These results help clarify routes of HCV transmission among MSM and can therefore help guide the design of much-needed behavioral and other interventions to prevent HCV transmission among MSM.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Li
- Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Kristen M. Marks
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Andrew H. Talal
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Wouter O. van Seggelen
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Bisher Akil
- Chelsea Village Medical, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Asa Radix
- Callen-Lorde Community Health Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Shirish Huprikar
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Andrea D. Branch
- Division of Liver Diseases, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Shuyi Wang
- Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - George M. Shaw
- Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Daniel S. Fierer
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, United States of America
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Zahid MN, Wang S, Learn GH, Abt PL, Blumberg EA, Reese PP, Goldberg DS, Shaw GM, Bar KJ. High multiplicity infection following transplantation of hepatitis C virus-positive organs. J Clin Invest 2019; 129:3134-3139. [PMID: 31112523 DOI: 10.1172/jci127203] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Highly effective direct-acting antivirals against Hepatitis C virus (HCV) have created an opportunity to transplant organs from HCV-positive individuals into HCV-negative recipients, since de novo infection can be routinely cured. As this procedure is performed more widely, it becomes increasingly important to understand the biological underpinnings of virus transmission, especially the multiplicity of infection. Here, we used single genome sequencing of plasma virus in four genotype 1a HCV-positive organ donors and their seven organ recipients to assess the genetic bottleneck associated with HCV transmission following renal and cardiac transplantation. In all recipients, de novo infection was established by multiple genetically distinct viruses that reflect the full phylogenetic spectrum of replication-competent virus circulating in donor plasma. This was true in renal and cardiac transplantation and in recipients with peak viral loads ranging between 2.9 and 6.6 log10 IU/mL. The permissive transmission process characterized here contrasts sharply with sexual or injection-related transmission, which occurs less frequently per exposure and is generally associated with a stringent genetic bottleneck. These findings highlight the effectiveness of current anti-HCV regimens, while raising caution regarding the substantially higher multiplicity of infection seen in organ transplantation-associated HCV acquisition.
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