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Legen J, Dühnen S, Gauert A, Götz M, Schmitz-Linneweber C. A CRR2-Dependent sRNA Sequence Supports Papillomavirus Vaccine Expression in Tobacco Chloroplasts. Metabolites 2023; 13:metabo13030315. [PMID: 36984756 PMCID: PMC10054877 DOI: 10.3390/metabo13030315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2022] [Revised: 02/11/2023] [Accepted: 02/15/2023] [Indexed: 02/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction: Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is the leading cause of cervical cancer, and vaccination with HPV L1 capsid proteins has been successful in controlling it. However, vaccination coverage is not universal, particularly in developing countries, where 80% of all cervical cancer cases occur. Cost-effective vaccination could be achieved by expressing the L1 protein in plants. Various efforts have been made to produce the L1 protein in plants, including attempts to express it in chloroplasts for high-yield performance. However, manipulating chloroplast gene expression requires complex and difficult-to-control expression elements. In recent years, a family of nuclear-encoded, chloroplast-targeted RNA-binding proteins, the pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) proteins, were described as key regulators of chloroplast gene expression. For example, PPR proteins are used by plants to stabilize and translate chloroplast mRNAs. Objectives: To demonstrate that a PPR target site can be used to drive HPV L1 expression in chloroplasts. Methods: To test our hypothesis, we used biolistic chloroplast transformation to establish tobacco lines that express two variants of the HPV L1 protein under the control of the target site of the PPR protein CHLORORESPIRATORY REDUCTION2 (CRR2). The transgenes were inserted into a dicistronic operon driven by the plastid rRNA promoter. To determine the effectiveness of the PPR target site for the expression of the HPV L1 protein in the chloroplasts, we analyzed the accumulation of the transgenic mRNA and its processing, as well as the accumulation of the L1 protein in the transgenic lines. Results: We established homoplastomic lines carrying either the HPV18 L1 protein or an HPV16B Enterotoxin::L1 fusion protein. The latter line showed severe growth retardation and pigment loss, suggesting that the fusion protein is toxic to the chloroplasts. Despite the presence of dicistronic mRNAs, we observed very little accumulation of monocistronic transgenic mRNA and no significant increase in CRR2-associated small RNAs. Although both lines expressed the L1 protein, quantification using an external standard suggested that the amounts were low. Conclusions: Our results suggest that PPR binding sites can be used to drive vaccine expression in plant chloroplasts; however, the factors that modulate the effectiveness of target gene expression remain unclear. The identification of dozens of PPR binding sites through small RNA sequencing expands the set of expression elements available for high-value protein production in chloroplasts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Legen
- Molecular Genetics, Humboldt-University Berlin, Philippstr. 13, 10115 Berlin, Germany
| | - Sara Dühnen
- Molecular Genetics, Humboldt-University Berlin, Philippstr. 13, 10115 Berlin, Germany
| | - Anton Gauert
- Molecular Genetics, Humboldt-University Berlin, Philippstr. 13, 10115 Berlin, Germany
| | - Michael Götz
- BioEnergy GmbH, Dietersberg 1, 92334 Berching, Germany
| | - Christian Schmitz-Linneweber
- Molecular Genetics, Humboldt-University Berlin, Philippstr. 13, 10115 Berlin, Germany
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +49-20-2093-49700
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Thanavala Y, Huang Z, Mason HS. Plant–derived vaccines: a look back at the highlights and a view to the challenges on the road ahead. Expert Rev Vaccines 2014; 5:249-60. [PMID: 16608424 DOI: 10.1586/14760584.5.2.249] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
The sobering reality is that each year, 33 million children remain unvaccinated for vaccine-preventable diseases. Universal childhood vaccination would have profound effects on leveling the health inequities in many parts of the world. As an alternative to administration of vaccines by needle and syringe, oral vaccines offer significant logistical advantages, as the polio eradication campaign has demonstrated. Over the past decade, the expression of subunit vaccine antigens in plants has emerged as a convenient, safe and potentially economical platform technology, with the potential to provide a novel biotechnological solution to vaccine production and delivery. As this technology has come of age, many improvements have been made on several fronts, as a growing number of research groups worldwide have extensively investigated plants as factories for vaccine production. This review attempts to highlight some of the achievements over the past 15 years, identify some of the potential problems and discuss the promises that this technology could fulfill.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasmin Thanavala
- Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Elm and Carlton Streets, Buffalo, NY 14263, USA.
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Stable plastid transformation for high-level recombinant protein expression: promises and challenges. J Biomed Biotechnol 2012; 2012:158232. [PMID: 23093835 PMCID: PMC3474547 DOI: 10.1155/2012/158232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2012] [Revised: 08/10/2012] [Accepted: 08/24/2012] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Plants are a promising expression system for the production of recombinant proteins. However, low protein productivity remains a major obstacle that limits extensive commercialization of whole plant and plant cell bioproduction platform. Plastid genetic engineering offers several advantages, including high levels of transgenic expression, transgenic containment via maternal inheritance, and multigene expression in a single transformation event. In recent years, the development of optimized expression strategies has given a huge boost to the exploitation of plastids in molecular farming. The driving forces behind the high expression level of plastid bioreactors include codon optimization, promoters and UTRs, genotypic modifications, endogenous enhancer and regulatory elements, posttranslational modification, and proteolysis. Exciting progress of the high expression level has been made with the plastid-based production of two particularly important classes of pharmaceuticals: vaccine antigens, therapeutic proteins, and antibiotics and enzymes. Approaches to overcome and solve the associated challenges of this culture system that include low transformation frequencies, the formation of inclusion bodies, and purification of recombinant proteins will also be discussed.
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da Hora VP, Conceição FR, Dellagostin OA, Doolan DL. Non-toxic derivatives of LT as potent adjuvants. Vaccine 2011; 29:1538-44. [DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2010.11.091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2010] [Revised: 11/10/2010] [Accepted: 11/30/2010] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
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Abstract
Recombinant protein pharmaceuticals are now widely used in treatment of chronic diseases, and several recombinant protein subunit vaccines are approved for human and veterinary use. With growing demand for complex protein pharmaceuticals, such as monoclonal antibodies, manufacturing capacity is becoming limited. There is increasing need for safe, scalable, and economical alternatives to mammalian cell culture-based manufacturing systems, which require substantial capital investment for new manufacturing facilities. Since a seminal paper reporting immunoglobulin expression in transgenic plants was published in 1989, there have been many technological advances in plant expression systems to the present time where production of proteins in leaf tissues of nonfood crops such as Nicotiana species is considered a viable alternative. In particular, transient expression systems derived from recombinant plant viral vectors offer opportunities for rapid expression screening, construct optimization, and expression scale-up. Extraction of recombinant proteins from Nicotiana leaf tissues can be achieved by collection of secreted protein fractions, or from a total protein extract after grinding the leaves with buffer. After separation from solids, the major purification challenge is contamination with elements of the photosynthetic complex, which can be solved by application of a variety of facile and proven strategies. In conclusion, the technologies required for safe, efficient, scalable manufacture of recombinant proteins in Nicotiana leaf tissues have matured to the point where several products have already been tested in phase I clinical trials and will soon be followed by a rich pipeline of recombinant vaccines, microbicides, and therapeutic proteins.
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Youm JW, Jeon JH, Kim H, Min SR, Kim MS, Joung H, Jeong WJ, Kim HS. High-level expression of a human β-site APP cleaving enzyme in transgenic tobacco chloroplasts and its immunogenicity in mice. Transgenic Res 2010; 19:1099-108. [PMID: 20229285 PMCID: PMC7089353 DOI: 10.1007/s11248-010-9383-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2009] [Accepted: 03/04/2010] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Plastid transformation has to date been applied to the expression of heterologous genes involved in agronomic traits and to the production of useful recombinant proteins. Here, we report a feasibility study for producing the human β-site APP cleaving enzyme (BACE) via transformation of tobacco chloroplasts. Stable integration of human BACE into the plastome was confirmed by PCR. Genomic Southern blot analysis detected the presence of the tobacco aadA and human BACE genes between trnI and trnA in the plastome. Northern blot analysis revealed that the aadA and BACE genes were both properly transcribed into a dicistronic transcriptional unit. Human BACE protein expression in transplastomic tobacco was determined by western blot analysis. ELISA analysis revealed that, based on a dilution series of E. coli-derived BACE as a standard, transplastomic lines accumulated BACE to levels of 2.0% of total soluble proteins. When mice were gavaged with the transplastomic tobacco extracts, they showed an immune response against the BACE antigen. The successful production of plastid-based BACE protein has the potential for developing a plant-based vaccine against Alzheimer disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jung Won Youm
- Plant Systems Engineering Research Center, KRIBB, Daejeon, 305-806 Korea
| | - Jae Heung Jeon
- Plant Systems Engineering Research Center, KRIBB, Daejeon, 305-806 Korea
| | - Hee Kim
- Digital Biotech Inc., R&D, Ansan City, KyungGiDo, 425-839 Korea
| | - Sung Ran Min
- Plant Systems Engineering Research Center, KRIBB, Daejeon, 305-806 Korea
| | - Mi Sun Kim
- Plant Systems Engineering Research Center, KRIBB, Daejeon, 305-806 Korea
| | - Hyouk Joung
- Plant Systems Engineering Research Center, KRIBB, Daejeon, 305-806 Korea
| | - Won Joong Jeong
- Plant Systems Engineering Research Center, KRIBB, Daejeon, 305-806 Korea
| | - Hyun Soon Kim
- Plant Systems Engineering Research Center, KRIBB, Daejeon, 305-806 Korea
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Cardi T, Lenzi P, Maliga P. Chloroplasts as expression platforms for plant-produced vaccines. Expert Rev Vaccines 2010; 9:893-911. [PMID: 20673012 DOI: 10.1586/erv.10.78] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2023]
Abstract
Production of recombinant subunit vaccines from genes incorporated in the plastid genome is advantageous because of the attainable expression level due to high transgene copy number and the absence of gene silencing; biocontainment as a consequence of maternal inheritance of plastids and no transgene presence in the pollen; and expression of multiple transgenes in prokaryotic-like operons. We discuss the core technology of plastid transformation in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, a unicellular alga, and Nicotiana tabacum (tobacco), a flowering plant species, and demonstrate the utility of the technology for the production of recombinant vaccine antigens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Teodoro Cardi
- CNR-IGV, Institute of Plant Genetics, Portici, Italy.
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Bock R, Warzecha H. Solar-powered factories for new vaccines and antibiotics. Trends Biotechnol 2010; 28:246-52. [PMID: 20207435 DOI: 10.1016/j.tibtech.2010.01.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 91] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2009] [Revised: 01/16/2010] [Accepted: 01/26/2010] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Ralph Bock
- Max-Planck-Institut für Molekulare Pflanzenphysiologie, Am Mühlenberg 1, D-14476 Potsdam-Golm, Germany.
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Sharma AK, Sharma MK. Plants as bioreactors: Recent developments and emerging opportunities. Biotechnol Adv 2009; 27:811-832. [PMID: 19576278 PMCID: PMC7125752 DOI: 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2009.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 112] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2009] [Revised: 06/15/2009] [Accepted: 06/16/2009] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
In recent years, the use of plants as bioreactors has emerged as an exciting area of research and significant advances have created new opportunities. The driving forces behind the rapid growth of plant bioreactors include low production cost, product safety and easy scale up. As the yield and concentration of a product is crucial for commercial viability, several strategies have been developed to boost up protein expression in transgenic plants. Augmenting tissue-specific transcription, elevating transcript stability, tissue-specific targeting, translation optimization and sub-cellular accumulation are some of the strategies employed. Various kinds of products that are currently being produced in plants include vaccine antigens, medical diagnostics proteins, industrial and pharmaceutical proteins, nutritional supplements like minerals, vitamins, carbohydrates and biopolymers. A large number of plant-derived recombinant proteins have reached advanced clinical trials. A few of these products have already been introduced in the market.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arun K Sharma
- Department of Plant Molecular Biology, University of Delhi South Campus, New Delhi 110021, India.
| | - Manoj K Sharma
- Department of Plant Molecular Biology, University of Delhi South Campus, New Delhi 110021, India
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Rosales-Mendoza S, Alpuche-Solís AG, Soria-Guerra RE, Moreno-Fierros L, Martínez-González L, Herrera-Díaz A, Korban SS. Expression of an Escherichia coli antigenic fusion protein comprising the heat labile toxin B subunit and the heat stable toxin, and its assembly as a functional oligomer in transplastomic tobacco plants. THE PLANT JOURNAL : FOR CELL AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2009; 57:45-54. [PMID: 18764920 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-313x.2008.03666.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) strains are important pathogens in developing countries. Some vaccine formulations containing the heat labile toxin B subunit (LTB) have been used in clinical trials; however, the induction of neutralizing antibodies against the heat-stable toxin (ST), a poor immunogenic peptide, is necessary, as most ETEC strains can produce both toxins. In this study, a plant optimized synthetic gene encoding for the LTB-ST fusion protein has been introduced into plastids of tobacco leaf tissues, using biolistic microprojectile bombardment, in an effort to develop a single plant-based candidate vaccine against both toxins. Transplastomic tobacco plants carrying the LTB-ST transgene have been recovered. Transgene insertion into the plastid was confirmed by both PCR and Southern blot analysis. GM1-ELISA revealed that the LTB-ST fusion protein retained its oligomeric structure, and displayed antigenic determinants for both LTB and ST. Western blot analysis, using LTB antisera, confirmed the presence of a 17-KDa protein in transplastomic lines, with the correct antigenicity of the fusion protein. Expression levels of this fusion protein in different lines reached up to 2.3% total soluble protein. Oral immunization of mice with freeze-dried transplastomic tobacco leaves led to the induction of both serum and mucosal LTB-ST specific antibodies. Following cholera toxin challenge, a decrease of intestinal fluid accumulation was observed in mice immunized with LTB-ST-containing tobacco. These findings suggest that tobacco plants expressing LTB-ST could serve as a plant-based candidate vaccine model providing broad-spectrum protection against ETEC-induced diarrhoeal disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergio Rosales-Mendoza
- Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
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Joensuu JJ, Niklander-Teeri V, Brandle JE. Transgenic plants for animal health: plant-made vaccine antigens for animal infectious disease control. PHYTOCHEMISTRY REVIEWS : PROCEEDINGS OF THE PHYTOCHEMICAL SOCIETY OF EUROPE 2008; 7:553-577. [PMID: 32214922 PMCID: PMC7089046 DOI: 10.1007/s11101-008-9088-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2007] [Accepted: 02/05/2008] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
A variety of plant species have been genetically modified to accumulate vaccine antigens for human and animal health and the first vaccine candidates are approaching the market. The regulatory burden for animal vaccines is less than that for human use and this has attracted the attention of researchers and companies, and investment in plant-made vaccines for animal infectious disease control is increasing. The dosage cost of vaccines for animal infectious diseases must be kept to a minimum, especially for non-lethal diseases that diminish animal welfare and growth, so efficient and economic production, storage and delivery are critical for commercialization. It has become clear that transgenic plants are an economic and efficient alternative to fermentation for large-scale production of vaccine antigens. The oral delivery of plant-made vaccines is particularly attractive since the expensive purification step can be avoided further reducing the cost per dose. This review covers the current status of plant-produced vaccines for the prevention of disease in animals and focuses on barriers to the development of such products and methods to overcome them.
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Affiliation(s)
- J. J. Joensuu
- Department of Applied Biology, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 27, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
- Southern Crop Protection and Food Research Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 1391 Sandford Street, London, ON Canada N5V 4T3
| | - V. Niklander-Teeri
- Department of Applied Biology, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 27, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
| | - J. E. Brandle
- Southern Crop Protection and Food Research Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 1391 Sandford Street, London, ON Canada N5V 4T3
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12
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Warzecha H. Biopharmaceuticals from Plants: A Multitude of Options for Posttranslational Modifications. Biotechnol Genet Eng Rev 2008; 25:315-30. [DOI: 10.5661/bger-25-315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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Synthesis and assembly ofEscherichia coli heat-labile enterotoxin B subunit in transgenic rice (Oryza sativa L.). BIOTECHNOL BIOPROC E 2007. [DOI: 10.1007/bf02931085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Boehm R. Bioproduction of therapeutic proteins in the 21st century and the role of plants and plant cells as production platforms. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2007; 1102:121-34. [PMID: 17470916 PMCID: PMC7168112 DOI: 10.1196/annals.1408.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
abstract: In the last decade, the technique to genetically modify crop plants has gained more and more interest in terms of bioproduction of heterologous proteins. Plants have been discovered as a possible source for large amounts of cost effective recombinant protein. Main application fields are therapeutics for use in animal and human health, diagnostics, and technical enzymes. This review is focused on the recent progress in this field of molecular farming. After a comparison with hitherto established protein production systems, the advantages of plants as an alternative production system are discussed. An overview about the different host plants and possible expression strategies is given and the progress in commercialization of the techniques is highlighted. Finally, the role of plant cell cultures for the production of recombinant proteins is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert Boehm
- Institute of Plant Molecular Physiology and Biotechnology, Karlrobert Kreiten-Str 13, Bonn, University of Bonn, Germany.
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Abstract
Biolistic delivery of DNA initiated plastid transformation research and still is the most widelyused approach to generate transplastomic lines in both algae and higher plants. The principal designof transformation vectors is similar in both phylogenetic groups. Although important additions tothe list of species transformed in their plastomes have been made in algae and in higher plants, thekey organisms in the area are still the two species, in which stable plastid transformation was initiallysuccessful, i.e., Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and tobacco. Basicresearch into organelle biology has substantially benefited from the homologous recombination-basedcapability to precisely insert at predetermined loci, delete, disrupt, or exchange plastid genomesequences. Successful expression of recombinant proteins, including pharmaceutical proteins, hasbeen demonstrated in Chlamydomonas as well as in higher plants,where some interesting agronomic traits were also engineered through plastid transformation.
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Floss DM, Falkenburg D, Conrad U. Production of vaccines and therapeutic antibodies for veterinary applications in transgenic plants: an overview. Transgenic Res 2007; 16:315-32. [PMID: 17436059 PMCID: PMC7089296 DOI: 10.1007/s11248-007-9095-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2007] [Accepted: 03/19/2007] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
During the past two decades, antibodies, antibody derivatives and vaccines have been developed for therapeutic and diagnostic applications in human and veterinary medicine. Numerous species of dicot and monocot plants have been genetically modified to produce antibodies or vaccines, and a number of diverse transformation methods and strategies to enhance the accumulation of the pharmaceutical proteins are now available. Veterinary applications are the specific focus of this article, in particular for pathogenic viruses, bacteria and eukaryotic parasites. We focus on the advantages and remaining challenges of plant-based therapeutic proteins for veterinary applications with emphasis on expression platforms, technologies and economic considerations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Doreen Manuela Floss
- Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK), Corrensstrasse 3, Gatersleben, 06466 Germany
| | | | - Udo Conrad
- Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK), Corrensstrasse 3, Gatersleben, 06466 Germany
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