Genetic and antigenic relationship of foot–and–mouth disease virus serotype O isolates with the vaccine strain O1/BFS

Pathological and genetic characterization of foot and mouth disease viruses collected from cattle and water buffalo in Egypt

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), a highly contagious viral disease caused by FMD virus (FMDV) that threatens Egypt's livestock industry. FMDV causes severe economic losses in the livestock, with restriction of international trade from endemic regions. Surveillance for FMDV serotypes circulating in Egypt is urgently needed to assess the epidemiological situation in the country. FMD outbreaks reported in Egypt in between December 2016 and January-March 2017. A cross-sectional study was conducted to identify the FMDV serotypes responsible for the outbreaks and to collect information on the virus's morphopathological effects. Postmortem tissue and clinical samples (oral swabs, vesicular fluids from ruptured vesicles, and blood) were collected from recently deceased and infected animals. Pathological examination revealed classical FMD lesions as vesicular and erosive lesions on epithelial tissues with non-suppurative lymphoplasmacytic myocarditis. Phylogenetic and sequencing analyses demonstrated that FMDV serotype O, EA-3 topotype, VP1 is the prevalent serotype responsible for the pathological alterations and the high mortality in young calves, adult cattle, and water buffalo. The outcomes indicate continuous mutations in the circulating FMDV, which result in the occasional failure of vaccination. Based on these findings, extensive continuous monitoring and serotyping of the existing circulating FMDV isolates and regular vaccination with reevaluation of the currently used vaccine in Egypt are recommended to prevent the recurrence of such outbreaks.

Hepatitis E Virus Capsid as a Carrier of Exogenous Antigens for the Development of Chimeric Virus-Like Particles

INTRODUCTION

Virus-like particles (VLPs), self-assembled multiprotein structures, can stimulate robust immune responses due to their structural similarity to native virions that allow the presentation of multiple copies of the target epitopes. Utilizing VLPs as vaccine platforms to present exogenous antigens is a promising and challenging approach in the vaccine development field. This study investigates the potential of the truncated hepatitis E virus (HEV) capsid as a VLP platform to present foreign antigens.

METHODS

The S and M domains of the HEV capsid protein were selected as the optimal carrier (CaSM). The exogenous antigen Seq8 containing 3 neutralizing epitopes from 3 different foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) strains was linked to the C-terminal of CaSM to construct a chimeric VLP (CaSM-Seq8). The chimeric particles were produced in Escherichia coli, and their morphology, physicochemical properties, antigenicity, and immunogenicity were analyzed.

RESULTS

Morphological analysis showed that CaSM-Seq8 self-assembled into VLPs similar to CaSM VLPs (∼26 nm in diameter) but smaller than native HEV virions. Further, the thermal stability and the resistance to enzymatic proteolysis of Seq8 were enhanced when it was attached to the CaSM carrier. The antigenicity analysis revealed a more robust reactivity against anti-FMDV antibodies when Seq8 was presented on CaSM particles. Upon injection into mice, FMDV-specific IgGs induced by CaSM-Seq8 appeared earlier, increased faster, and maintained higher levels for a longer time than those induced by Seq8 alone or the inactivated FMDV vaccine.

CONCLUSION

This study demonstrated the potential of utilizing the truncated HEV capsid as an antigen-presenting platform for the development of chimeric VLP immunogens.

Genetic variation and evolution of foot-and-mouth disease virus serotype A in relation to vaccine matching

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a severe, highly contagious viral disease that affects a wide variety of domestic and wild cloven-hoofed animals. FMD vaccines can play a vital role in disease control and are very widely used globally each year. However, due to the diversity of FMDV, the choice of FMD vaccine is still a huge challenge. In this study, 45 FMDV/A isolates were phylogenetically categorized into three topotypes: ASIA (n = 31), AFRICA (n = 10), and EURO-SA (n = 4). Three sera collected from vaccinated cattle with FMDV A22/IRQ/24/64, A/IRN/05, and A/ARG/01 were used to evaluate their antigenic relationship (r₁) with the field isolates. The IRQ/24/64 serum demonstrated a 39% (17/44) match (r₁ ≥ 0.3) to the field isolates, whereas IRN/05 serum and ARG/01serum showed an 18% (8/44) and a 2% (1/44) match (r₁ ≥ 0.3) to the field isolates, respectively. The A22/IRQ/24/64 matched with isolates mainly from topotype ASIA, with limited cross-topotype match with isolates from topotypes AFRICA and EURO-SA. However, the A/IRN/05 did not show a cross-topotype match with topotype AFRICA isolates and A/ARG/01 failed to match any isolates from topotypes ASIA and AFRICA. After analyzing the amino acid variation of the known antigenic sites of 45 strains of FMDV/A, it was found that together antigenic sites 1 and 3 contributed about 71% of the amino acid changes to the vaccine evaluated. Based on the capsid sequences, the FMDV/A evolved unequally among topotypes. The topotypes of ASIA and AFRICA evolves faster than that of EURO-SA. The FMDV/A continues to show a high level of genetic diversity driven by a high substitution rate, purifying selection, and positive selection concentrated on antigenic sites or near antigenic sites. The current research shows the challenges of the FMDV/A vaccine selection and emphasizes the importance of continuous monitoring of antigenic evolution for the selection of effective vaccines.

Comparative nucleotide sequencing of the VP1 capsid gene of recent isolates of foot-and-mouth disease virus serotype O from Egypt

Since 2006, Egypt has been affected by eleven various foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) lineages. Accordingly, the nucleotide sequences of the 1D gene and the genes encoding the external capsid protein of some isolates of serotype O (the most predominant epidemic serotype in the country) collected from 2004 to 2017 were determined. All of these viruses (including the vaccine strain) belonged to serotype O, topotype ME-SA, and lineage Sharquia-72, and their sequences were of 98.6-98.9% identical to that of strain O1/Sharquia/EGY/72 (DQ164871), and differed from cultured and clinical (D197E) virus strains. The characteristic sites on the surface of the structural proteins of the Egyptian serotype O, topotype ME-SA viruses were located at residues 138 and 198 of VP1, residue 132 of VP2, and residues 56 and 104 of VP3. Furthermore, a phylogenetic tree revealed that Sharquia-72 was the only lineage present in Egypt for many decades prior to 2007. Unfortunately, however, during the last decade, five lineages of two separate topotypes of FMDV serotype O were detected in Egypt. Lineages Sharquia-72 and PanAsia-2 belong to topotype ME-SA and show ~ 14.5 to 17.5% intra-lineage divergence. In addition, lineages Qal-13, Ism-16, and Alx-17 cluster within topotype EA-3 and show ~ 4.5 to 15% intra-lineage diversity. The predecessors of the Egyptian EA-3 viruses are likely to have been from Sudan. Finally, at least a penta- or hexavalent vaccine comprising strains representing the endemic FMDV topotypes should be implemented on a wide scale in Egypt, which could combat the incursion of new lineages.

Molecular evolution and selection pressure analysis of infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) revealed the origin and phylogenetic relationship of Iranian isolates in recent epidemics in Iran

Infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) is the causative agent for a lethal salmonid disease. In this study, we surveyed the IHNV's epidemiology, diversity and the origin of infection in Iran. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that Iranian isolates belonged to one of the two lineages of E genogroup. Subsequently, a combination of phylogenetic, antigenic and structural analysis was performed to investigate the evolution of E genogroup lineages. Site-specific analysis of the viral glycoprotein showed different co-evolving and positively selected sites in each lineage. Most of these sites were mapped to the predicted antigenic patches of the glycoprotein. Further characterization revealed E lineages can be differentiated, in part, by specific mutations at positions 91 and 130, which are located in the structurally flexible regions of the glycoprotein, suggesting a key adaptative role for these sites. These data may assist in better monitoring the emerging isolates in regions infected to IHNV from E genogroup.