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Vilela Rodrigues TC, Jaiswal AK, Lemes MR, da Silva MV, Sales-Campos H, Alcântara LCJ, Tosta SFDO, Kato RB, Alzahrani KJ, Barh D, Azevedo VADC, Tiwari S, Soares SDC. An immunoinformatics-based designed multi-epitope candidate vaccine (mpme-VAC/STV-1) against Mycoplasma pneumoniae. Comput Biol Med 2021; 142:105194. [PMID: 35007945 DOI: 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2021.105194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2021] [Revised: 12/28/2021] [Accepted: 12/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Pneumonia is a serious global health problem that accounts for over one million deaths annually. Among the main microorganisms causing pneumonia, Mycoplasma pneumoniae is one of the most common ones for which a vaccine is immediately required. In this context, a multi-epitope vaccine against this pathogen could be the best option that can induce effective immune response avoiding any serious adverse reactions. In this study, using an immunoinformatics approach we have designed a multi-epitope vaccine (mpme-VAC/STV-1) against M. pneumoniae. Our designed mpme-VAC/STV-1 is constructed using CTL (cytotoxic T lymphocyte), HTL (Helper T lymphocyte), and B-cell epitopes. These epitopes are selected from the core proteins of 88 M. pneumoniae genomes that were previously identified through reverse vaccinology approaches. The epitopes were filtered according to their immunogenicity, population coverage, and several other criteria. Sixteen CTL/B- and thirteen HTL/B- epitopes that belong to 5 core proteins were combined together through peptide linkers to develop the mpme-VAC/STV-1. The heat-labile enterotoxin from E. coli was used as an adjuvant. The designed mpme-VAC/STV-1 is predicted to be stable, non-toxic, non-allergenic, non-host homologous, and with required antigenic and immunogenic properties. Docking and molecular dynamic simulation of mpme-VAC/STV-1 shows that it can stimulate TLR2 pathway mediated immunogenic reactions. In silico cloning of mpme-VAC/STV-1 in an expression vector also shows positive results. Finally, the mpme-VAC/STV-1 also shows promising efficacy in immune simulation tests. Therefore, our constructed mpme-VAC/STV-1 could be a safe and effective multi-epitope vaccine for immunization against pneumonia. However, it requires further experimental and clinical validations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thaís Cristina Vilela Rodrigues
- Programa PG Em Bioinformática, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Arun Kumar Jaiswal
- Programa PG Em Bioinformática, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Marcela Rezende Lemes
- Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Institute of Biological Science and Natural Sciences, Federal University of Triângulo Mineiro (UFTM), Uberaba, 38025-180, MG, Brazil
| | - Marcos Vinícius da Silva
- Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Institute of Biological Science and Natural Sciences, Federal University of Triângulo Mineiro (UFTM), Uberaba, 38025-180, MG, Brazil
| | - Helioswilton Sales-Campos
- Institute of Tropical Pathology and Public Health, Federal University of Goias (UFG), Goiânia, 74605-050, GO, Goiás, Brazil
| | | | - Sthephane Fraga de Oliveira Tosta
- Programa PG Em Bioinformática, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Rodrigo Bentes Kato
- Programa PG Em Bioinformática, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Khalid J Alzahrani
- Department of Clinical Laboratories Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif, 21944, Saudi Arabia
| | - Debmalya Barh
- Programa PG Em Bioinformática, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Centre for Genomics and Applied Gene Technology, Institute of Integrative Omics and Applied Biotechnology (IIOAB), Nonakuri, Purba Medinipur, West Bengal, 721172, India
| | - Vasco Ariston de Carvalho Azevedo
- Programa PG Em Bioinformática, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Sandeep Tiwari
- Programa PG Em Bioinformática, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
| | - Siomar de Castro Soares
- Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Institute of Biological Science and Natural Sciences, Federal University of Triângulo Mineiro (UFTM), Uberaba, 38025-180, MG, Brazil.
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Pervin T, Oany AR. Vaccinomics approach for scheming potential epitope-based peptide vaccine by targeting l-protein of Marburg virus. In Silico Pharmacol 2021; 9:21. [PMID: 33717824 PMCID: PMC7936589 DOI: 10.1007/s40203-021-00080-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2020] [Accepted: 02/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Marburg virus is one of the world’s most threatening diseases, causing extreme hemorrhagic fever, with a death rate of up to 90%. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) currently not authorized any treatments or vaccinations for the hindrance and post-exposure of the Marburg virus. In the present study, the vaccinomics methodology was adopted to design a potential novel peptide vaccine against the Marburg virus, targeting RNA-directed RNA polymerase (l). A total of 48 l-proteins from diverse variants of the Marburg virus were collected from the NCBI GenBank server and used to classify the best antigenic protein leading to predict equally T and B-cell epitopes. Initially, the top 26 epitopes were evaluated for the attraction with major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I and II alleles. Finally, four prospective central epitopes NLSDLTFLI, FRYEFTRHF, YRLRNSTAL, and YRVRNVQTL were carefully chosen. Among these, FRYEFTRHF and YRVRNVQTL peptides showed 100% conservancy. Though YRLRNSTAL showed 95.74% conservancy, it demonstrated the highest combined score as T cell epitope (2.5461) and population coverage of 94.42% among the whole world population. The epitope was found non-allergenic, and docking interactions with human leukocyte antigens (HLAs) also verified. Finally, in vivo analysis of the recommended peptides might contribute to the advancement of an efficient and exclusively prevalent vaccine that would be an active route to impede the virus spreading.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tahmina Pervin
- Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering Discipline, Life Science School, Khulna University, Khulna, 9208 Bangladesh
| | - Arafat Rahman Oany
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Faculty of Life Science, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Tangail, 1902 Bangladesh.,Aristopharma Limited, Dhaka, Bangladesh
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Chakraborty C, Sharma AR, Bhattacharya M, Sharma G, Lee SS. Immunoinformatics Approach for the Identification and Characterization of T Cell and B Cell Epitopes towards the Peptide-Based Vaccine against SARS-CoV-2. Arch Med Res 2021; 52:362-370. [PMID: 33546870 PMCID: PMC7846223 DOI: 10.1016/j.arcmed.2021.01.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2020] [Accepted: 01/14/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Presently, immunoinformatics is playing a significant role in epitope identification and vaccine designing for various critical diseases. Using immunoinformatics, several scientists are trying to identify and characterize T cell and B cell epitopes as well as design peptide-based vaccine against SARS-CoV-2. In this review article, we have tried to discuss the importance in adaptive immunity and its significance for designing the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. Moreover, we have attempted to illustrate several significant key points for utilizing immunoinformatics for vaccine designing, such as the criteria for selection and identification of epitopes, T cell epitope, and B cell epitope prediction and different emerging tools/databases for immunoinformatics. In the current scenario, a few immunoinformatics studies have been performed for various infectious pathogens and related diseases. Thus, we have also summarized and included these current immunoinformatics studies in this review article. Finally, we have discussed about the probable T cell and B cell epitopes and their identification and characterization for vaccine designing against SARS-CoV-2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiranjib Chakraborty
- Department of Biotechnology, School of Life Science and Biotechnology, Adamas University, Kolkata, India; Institute for Skeletal Aging and Orthopedic Surgery, Hallym University-Chuncheon Sacred Heart Hospital, Chuncheon-si, 24252,Gangwon-do, Republic of Korea
| | - Ashish Ranjan Sharma
- Institute for Skeletal Aging and Orthopedic Surgery, Hallym University-Chuncheon Sacred Heart Hospital, Chuncheon-si, 24252,Gangwon-do, Republic of Korea
| | - Manojit Bhattacharya
- Department of Zoology, Fakir Mohan University, Vyasa Vihar, Balasore Odisha, India
| | - Garima Sharma
- Department of Biomedical Science and Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, Republic of Korea
| | - Sang-Soo Lee
- Institute for Skeletal Aging and Orthopedic Surgery, Hallym University-Chuncheon Sacred Heart Hospital, Chuncheon-si, 24252,Gangwon-do, Republic of Korea.
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Smallbone W, Ellison A, Poulton S, van Oosterhout C, Cable J. Depletion of MHC supertype during domestication can compromise immunocompetence. Mol Ecol 2020; 30:736-746. [PMID: 33274493 PMCID: PMC7898906 DOI: 10.1111/mec.15763] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2019] [Revised: 11/23/2020] [Accepted: 11/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
The major histocompatibility complex (MHC) plays an important role in infectious disease resistance. The presence of certain MHC alleles and functionally similar groups of MHC alleles (i.e., supertypes) has been associated with resistance to particular parasite species. Farmed and domesticated fish stocks are often depleted in their MHC alleles and supertype diversity, possibly as a consequence of artificial selection for desirable traits, inbreeding (loss of heterozygosity), genetic drift (loss of allelic diversity) and/or reduced parasite biodiversity. Here we quantify the effects of depletion of MHC class II genotype and supertype variation on resistance to the parasite Gyrodactylus turnbulli in guppies (Poecilia reticulata). Compared to the descendants of wild‐caught guppies, ornamental fish had a significantly reduced MHC variation (i.e., the numbers of MHC alleles and supertypes per individual, and per population). In addition, ornamental fish were significantly more susceptible to G. turnbulli infections, accumulating peak intensity 10 times higher than that of their wildtype counterparts. Four out of 13 supertypes were associated with a significantly reduced parasite load, and the presence of some supertypes had a dramatic effect on the intensity of infection. Remarkably, the ornamental and wildtype fish differed in the supertypes that were associated with parasite resistance. Analysis with a genetic algorithm showed that resistance‐conferring supertypes of the wildtype and ornamental fish shared two unique amino acids in the peptide‐binding region of the MHC that were not found in any other alleles. These data show that the supertype demarcation captures some, but not all, of the variation in the immune function of the alleles. This study highlights the importance of managing functional MHC diversity in livestock, and suggests there might be some immunological redundancy among MHC supertypes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Amy Ellison
- School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Simon Poulton
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, UK
| | - Cock van Oosterhout
- School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, UK
| | - Joanne Cable
- School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
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Kardani K, Bolhassani A, Namvar A. An overview of in silico vaccine design against different pathogens and cancer. Expert Rev Vaccines 2020; 19:699-726. [PMID: 32648830 DOI: 10.1080/14760584.2020.1794832] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Due to overcome the hardness of the vaccine design, computational vaccinology is emerging widely. Prediction of T cell and B cell epitopes, antigen processing analysis, antigenicity analysis, population coverage, conservancy analysis, allergenicity assessment, toxicity prediction, and protein-peptide docking are important steps in the process of designing and developing potent vaccines against various viruses and cancers. In order to perform all of the analyses, several bioinformatics tools and online web servers have been developed. Scientists must take the decision to apply more suitable and precise servers for each part based on their accuracy. AREAS COVERED In this review, a wide-range list of different bioinformatics tools and online web servers has been provided. Moreover, some studies were proposed to show the importance of various bioinformatics tools for predicting and developing efficient vaccines against different pathogens including viruses, bacteria, parasites, and fungi as well as cancer. EXPERT OPINION Immunoinformatics is the best way to find potential vaccine candidates against different pathogens. Thus, the selection of the most accurate tools is necessary to predict and develop potent preventive and therapeutic vaccines. To further evaluation of the computational and in silico vaccine design, in vitro/in vivo analyses are required to develop vaccine candidates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kimia Kardani
- Department of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, School of Pharmacy, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences , Tehran, Iran.,Department of Hepatitis and AIDS, Pasteur Institute of Iran , Tehran, Iran
| | - Azam Bolhassani
- Department of Hepatitis and AIDS, Pasteur Institute of Iran , Tehran, Iran
| | - Ali Namvar
- Iranian Comprehensive Hemophilia Care Center , Tehran, Iran
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HLA loci predisposing to immune TTP in Japanese: potential role of the shared ADAMTS13 peptide bound to different HLA-DR. Blood 2020; 135:2413-2419. [DOI: 10.1182/blood.2020005395] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2020] [Accepted: 03/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Immune-mediated thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (iTTP) is a rare autoimmune disorder caused by neutralizing anti-ADAMTS13 autoantibodies. In white individuals, HLA allele DRB1*11 is a predisposing factor for iTTP, whereas DRB1*04 is a protective factor. However, the role of HLA in Asians is unclear. In this study, we analyzed 10 HLA loci using next-generation sequencing in 52 Japanese patients with iTTP, and the allele frequency in the iTTP group was compared with that in a Japanese control group. We identified the following HLA alleles as predisposing factors for iTTP in the Japanese population: DRB1*08:03 (odds ratio [OR], 3.06; corrected P [Pc] = .005), DRB3/4/5*blank (OR, 2.3; Pc = .007), DQA1*01:03 (OR, 2.25; Pc = .006), and DQB1*06:01 (OR,: 2.41; Pc = .003). The estimated haplotype consisting of these 4 alleles was significantly more frequent in the iTTP group than in the control group (30.8% vs 6.0%; Pc < .001). DRB1*15:01 and DRB5*01:01 were weak protective factors for iTTP (OR, 0.23; Pc = .076; and OR, 0.23, Pc = .034, respectively). On the other hand, DRB1*11 and DRB1*04 were not associated with iTTP in the Japanese. These findings indicated that predisposing and protective factors for iTTP differ between Japanese and white individuals. HLA-DR molecules encoded by DRB1*08:03 and DRB1*11:01 have different peptide-binding motifs, but interestingly, bound to the shared ADAMTS13 peptide in an in silico prediction model.
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Hamrouni S, Bras-Gonçalves R, Kidar A, Aoun K, Chamakh-Ayari R, Petitdidier E, Messaoudi Y, Pagniez J, Lemesre JL, Meddeb-Garnaoui A. Design of multi-epitope peptides containing HLA class-I and class-II-restricted epitopes derived from immunogenic Leishmania proteins, and evaluation of CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses induced in cured cutaneous leishmaniasis subjects. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2020; 14:e0008093. [PMID: 32176691 PMCID: PMC7098648 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0008093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2019] [Revised: 03/26/2020] [Accepted: 01/27/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Human leishmaniasis is a public health problem worldwide for which the development of a vaccine remains a challenge. T cell-mediated immune responses are crucial for protection. Peptide vaccines based on the identification of immunodominant T cell epitopes able to induce T cell specific immune responses constitute a promising strategy. Here, we report the identification of human leukocyte antigen class-I (HLA-I) and -II (HLA-II)-restricted multi-epitope peptides from Leishmania proteins that we have previously described as vaccine candidates. Promastigote Surface Antigen (PSA), LmlRAB (L. major large RAB GTPase) and Histone (H2B) were screened, in silico, for T cell epitopes. 6 HLA-I and 5 HLA-II-restricted multi-epitope peptides, able to bind to the most frequent HLA molecules, were designed and used as pools to stimulate PBMCs from individuals with healed cutaneous leishmaniasis. IFN-γ, IL-10, TNF-α and granzyme B (GrB) production was evaluated by ELISA/CBA. The frequency of IFN-γ-producing T cells was quantified by ELISpot. T cells secreting cytokines and memory T cells were analyzed by flow cytometry. 16 of 25 peptide pools containing HLA-I, HLA-II or HLA-I and -II peptides were able to induce specific and significant IFN-γ levels. No IL-10 was detected. 6 peptide pools were selected among those inducing the highest IFN-γ levels for further characterization. 3/6 pools were able to induce a significant increase of the percentages of CD4+IFN-γ+, CD8+IFN-γ+ and CD4+GrB+ T cells. The same pools also induced a significant increase of the percentages of bifunctional IFN-γ+/TNF-α+CD4+ and/or central memory T cells. We identified highly promiscuous HLA-I and -II restricted epitope combinations from H2B, PSA and LmlRAB proteins that stimulate both CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses in recovered individuals. These multi-epitope peptides could be used as potential components of a polytope vaccine for human leishmaniasis. The control of leishmaniasis, a neglected tropical disease of public health importance, caused by protozoan parasites of the genus Leishmania, mainly relies on chemotherapy, which is highly toxic. Currently, there is no vaccine against human leishmaniasis. Peptide-based vaccines consisting of T cell epitopes identified within proteins of interest by epitope predictive algorithms are a promising strategy for vaccine development. Here, we identified multi-epitope peptides composed of HLA-I and -II-restricted epitopes, using immunoinformatic tools, within Leishmania proteins previously described as potential vaccine candidates. We showed that multi-epitope peptides used as pools were able to activate IFN-γ producing CD4+ as well as CD8+ T cells, both required for parasite elimination. In addition, granzyme B-producing CD4+ T cells, bifunctional CD4+ IFN-γ+/TNF-α+ and/or TNF-α+/IL-2+ T cells as well as CD4+ and CD8+ central memory T cells, all involved in Leishmania infection control, were significantly increased in response to multi-epitope peptide stimulation. As far as we know, no study has described the detection of both CD4+ and CD8+ T cell populations in response to stimulation by both HLA-I and II-restricted peptides in humans. The immunogenic HLA-I and -II-restricted multi-epitope peptides identified in this study could constitute potential vaccine candidates against human leishmaniasis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarra Hamrouni
- Laboratoire de Parasitologie Médicale, Biotechnologie et Biomolécules, Institut Pasteur de Tunis, Tunis, Tunisie
- Faculté des Sciences de Bizerte, Université de Carthage, Tunis, Tunisie
- UMR INTERTRYP, Université de Montpellier, IRD, CIRAD, Montpellier, France
| | | | | | - Karim Aoun
- Laboratoire de Parasitologie Médicale, Biotechnologie et Biomolécules, Institut Pasteur de Tunis, Tunis, Tunisie
| | - Rym Chamakh-Ayari
- Laboratoire de Parasitologie Médicale, Biotechnologie et Biomolécules, Institut Pasteur de Tunis, Tunis, Tunisie
- Faculté des Sciences de Bizerte, Université de Carthage, Tunis, Tunisie
| | - Elodie Petitdidier
- UMR INTERTRYP, Université de Montpellier, IRD, CIRAD, Montpellier, France
| | - Yasmine Messaoudi
- Laboratoire de Parasitologie Médicale, Biotechnologie et Biomolécules, Institut Pasteur de Tunis, Tunis, Tunisie
- Faculté des Sciences de Bizerte, Université de Carthage, Tunis, Tunisie
- UMR INTERTRYP, Université de Montpellier, IRD, CIRAD, Montpellier, France
| | - Julie Pagniez
- UMR INTERTRYP, Université de Montpellier, IRD, CIRAD, Montpellier, France
| | - Jean-Loup Lemesre
- UMR INTERTRYP, Université de Montpellier, IRD, CIRAD, Montpellier, France
| | - Amel Meddeb-Garnaoui
- Laboratoire de Parasitologie Médicale, Biotechnologie et Biomolécules, Institut Pasteur de Tunis, Tunis, Tunisie
- * E-mail:
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Human Asymptomatic Epitope Peptide/CXCL10-Based Prime/Pull Vaccine Induces Herpes Simplex Virus-Specific Gamma Interferon-Positive CD107 + CD8 + T Cells That Infiltrate the Corneas and Trigeminal Ganglia of Humanized HLA Transgenic Rabbits and Protect against Ocular Herpes Challenge. J Virol 2018; 92:JVI.00535-18. [PMID: 29899087 DOI: 10.1128/jvi.00535-18] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2018] [Accepted: 05/21/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) is a prevalent human pathogen that infects the cornea, causing potentially blinding herpetic disease. A clinical herpes vaccine is still lacking. In the present study, a novel prime/pull vaccine was tested in a human leukocyte antigen (HLA) transgenic rabbit model of ocular herpes (HLA Tg rabbits). Three peptide epitopes were selected, from the HSV-1 membrane glycoprotein C (UL44400-408), the DNA replication binding helicase (UL9196-204), and the tegument protein (UL25572-580), all preferentially recognized by CD8+ T cells from "naturally protected" HSV-1-seropositive healthy asymptomatic (ASYMP) individuals (who never had recurrent corneal herpetic disease). HLA Tg rabbits were immunized with a mixture of these three ASYMP CD8+ T cell peptide epitopes (UL44400-408, UL9196-204, and UL25572-580), which were delivered subcutaneously with CpG2007 adjuvant (prime). Fifteen days later, half of the rabbits received a topical ocular treatment with a recombinant neurotropic adeno-associated virus type 8 (AAV8) vector expressing the T cell-attracting CXCL10 chemokine (pull). The frequency and function of HSV-specific CD8+ T cells induced by the prime/pull vaccine were assessed in the peripheral blood, cornea, and trigeminal ganglion (TG). Compared to the cells generated in response to peptide immunization alone, the peptide/CXCL10 prime/pull vaccine generated frequent polyfunctional gamma interferon-positive (IFN-γ+) CD107+ CD8+ T cells that infiltrated both the cornea and TG. CD8+ T cell mobilization into the cornea and TG of prime/pull-vaccinated rabbits was associated with a significant reduction in corneal herpesvirus infection and disease following an ocular HSV-1 (strain McKrae) challenge. These findings draw attention to the novel prime/pull vaccine strategy for mobilizing antiviral CD8+ T cells into tissues to protect against herpesvirus infection and disease.IMPORTANCE There is an urgent need for a vaccine against widespread herpes simplex virus infections. The present study demonstrates that immunization of HLA transgenic rabbits with a peptide/CXCL10 prime/pull vaccine triggered mobilization of HSV-specific CD8+ T cells locally into the cornea and TG, the sites of acute and latent herpesvirus infections, respectively. Mobilization of antiviral CD8+ T cells into the cornea and TG of rabbits that received the prime/pull vaccine was associated with protection against ocular herpesvirus infection and disease following an ocular HSV-1 challenge. These results highlight the importance of the prime/pull vaccine strategy to bolster the number and function of protective CD8+ T cells within infected tissues.
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Vaccinomics Approach for Designing Potential Peptide Vaccine by Targeting Shigella spp. Serine Protease Autotransporter Subfamily Protein SigA. J Immunol Res 2017; 2017:6412353. [PMID: 29082265 PMCID: PMC5610819 DOI: 10.1155/2017/6412353] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2017] [Revised: 06/28/2017] [Accepted: 07/24/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Shigellosis, a bacillary dysentery, is closely associated with diarrhoea in human and causes infection of 165 million people worldwide per year. Casein-degrading serine protease autotransporter of enterobacteriaceae (SPATE) subfamily protein SigA, an outer membrane protein, exerts both cytopathic and enterotoxic effects especially cytopathic to human epithelial cell type-2 (HEp-2) and is shown to be highly immunogenic. In the present study, we have tried to impose the vaccinomics approach for designing a common peptide vaccine candidate against the immunogenic SigA of Shigella spp. At first, 44 SigA proteins from different variants of S. flexneri, S. dysenteriae, S. boydii, and S. sonnei were assessed to find the most antigenic protein. We retrieved 12 peptides based on the highest score for human leukocyte antigen (HLA) supertypes analysed by NetCTL. Initially, these peptides were assessed for the affinity with MHC class I and class II alleles, and four potential core epitopes VTARAGLGY, FHTVTVNTL, HTTWTLTGY, and IELAGTLTL were selected. From these, FHTVTVNTL and IELAGTLTL peptides were shown to have 100% conservancy. Finally, IELAGTLTL was shown to have the highest population coverage (83.86%) among the whole world population. In vivo study of the proposed epitope might contribute to the development of functional and unique widespread vaccine, which might be an operative alleyway to thwart dysentery from the world.
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Niskanen AK, Kennedy LJ, Lohi H, Aspi J, Pyhäjärvi T. No evidence of prenatal diversifying selection at locus or supertype levels in the dog MHC class II loci. Canine Genet Epidemiol 2016; 3:9. [PMID: 27891241 PMCID: PMC5116190 DOI: 10.1186/s40575-016-0038-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2016] [Accepted: 10/02/2016] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Despite decades of studying, the mechanisms maintaining high diversity in the genes of the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) are still puzzling scientists. In addition to pathogen recognition and other functions, MHC molecules may act prenatally in mate choice and in maternal-foetal interactions. These interactions are potential selective mechanisms that increase genetic diversity in the MHC. During pregnancy, immune response has a dual role: the foetus represents foreign tissue compared to mother, but histo-incompatibility is required for successful pregnancy. We have studied the prenatal selection in MHC class II loci (DLA-DQA1, DLA-DQB1 and DLA-DRB1) in domestic dogs by comparing the observed and expected offspring genotype proportions in 110 dog families. Several potential selection targets were addressed, including the peptide-binding site, the MHC locus, three-locus haplotype and supertype levels. For the supertype analysis, the first canine supertype classification was created based on in silico analysis of peptide-binding amino-acid polymorphism. RESULTS In most loci and levels, no deviation from the expected genotype frequencies was observed. However, one peptide-binding site in DLA-DRB1 had an excess of heterozygotes among the offspring. In addition, if the father shared a DLA-DRB1 allele with the mother, that allele was inherited by the offspring more frequently than expected, suggesting the selective advantage of a histo-compatible foetus, in contrast to our expectations. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that there is some evidence of post-copulatory selection at nucleotide site level in the MHC loci of pet dogs. But due to no indication of selection at locus, three-locus, or supertype levels, we estimated that the prenatal selection coefficient is less than 0.3 in domestic dogs and very likely other factors are more important in maintaining the genetic diversity in MHC loci.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alina K Niskanen
- Department of Genetics and Physiology, University of Oulu, PO Box 3000, Oulu, FIN-90014 Finland ; Present address: Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NO -7491, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Lorna J Kennedy
- Centre for Integrated Genomic Medical Research, University of Manchester, Stopford Building, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PT UK
| | - Hannes Lohi
- Department of Veterinary Biosciences, Research Programs Unit, Molecular Neurology, University of Helsinki and Folkhälsan Institute of Genetics, Biomedicum Helsinki, PO Box 63, FIN-00014 Helsinki, Finland
| | - Jouni Aspi
- Department of Genetics and Physiology, University of Oulu, PO Box 3000, Oulu, FIN-90014 Finland
| | - Tanja Pyhäjärvi
- Department of Genetics and Physiology, University of Oulu, PO Box 3000, Oulu, FIN-90014 Finland
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Ashraf NM, Bilal M, Mahmood MS, Hussain A, Mehboob MZ. In-silico analysis of putative HCV epitopes against Pakistani human leukocyte antigen background: An approach towards development of future vaccines for Pakistani population. INFECTION GENETICS AND EVOLUTION 2016; 43:58-66. [DOI: 10.1016/j.meegid.2016.05.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2016] [Revised: 03/26/2016] [Accepted: 05/04/2016] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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Genome-Wide Prediction of Vaccine Candidates for Leishmania major: An Integrated Approach. J Trop Med 2015; 2015:709216. [PMID: 26681959 PMCID: PMC4670862 DOI: 10.1155/2015/709216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2015] [Revised: 10/30/2015] [Accepted: 11/02/2015] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite the wealth of information regarding genetics of the causative parasite and experimental immunology of the cutaneous leishmaniasis, there is currently no licensed vaccine against it. In the current study, a two-level data mining strategy was employed, to screen the Leishmania major genome for promising vaccine candidates. First, we screened a set of 25 potential antigens from 8312 protein coding sequences, based on presence of signal peptides, GPI anchors, and consensus antigenicity predictions. Second, we conducted a comprehensive immunogenic analysis of the 25 antigens based on epitopes predicted by NetCTL tool. Interestingly, results revealed that candidate antigen number 1 (LmjF.03.0550) had greater number of potential T cell epitopes, as compared to five well-characterized control antigens (CSP-Plasmodium falciparum, M1 and NP-Influenza A virus, core protein-Hepatitis B virus, and PSTA1-Mycobacterium tuberculosis). In order to determine an optimal set of epitopes among the highest scoring predicted epitopes, the OptiTope tool was employed for populations susceptible to cutaneous leishmaniasis. The epitope (127SLWSLLAGV) from antigen number 1, found to bind with the most prevalent allele HLA-A⁎0201 (25% frequency in Southwest Asia), was predicted as most immunogenic for all the target populations. Thus, our study reasserts the potential of genome-wide screening of pathogen antigens and epitopes, for identification of promising vaccine candidates.
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Gholizadeh M, Khanahmad H, Memarnejadian A, Aghasadeghi MR, Roohvand F, Sadat SM, Cohan RA, Nazemi A, Motevalli F, Asgary V, Arezumand R. Design and expression of fusion protein consists of HBsAg and Polyepitope of HCV as an HCV potential vaccine. Adv Biomed Res 2015; 4:243. [PMID: 26682209 PMCID: PMC4673707 DOI: 10.4103/2277-9175.168610] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2014] [Accepted: 03/16/2015] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a serious public health threat worldwide. Cellular immune responses, especially cytotoxic T-lymphocytes (CTLs), play a critical role in immune response toward the HCV clearance. Since polytope vaccines have the ability to stimulate the cellular immunity, a recombinant fusion protein was developed in this study. MATERIALS AND METHODS The designed fusion protein is composed of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), as an immunocarrier, fused to an HCV polytope sequence. The polytope containing five immunogenic epitopes of HCV was designed to induce specific CTL responses. The construct was cloned into the pET-28a, and its expression was investigated in BL21 (DE3), BL21 pLysS, BL21 pLysE, and BL21 AI Escherichia coli strains using 12% gel sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Finally, the identity of expressed fusion protein was confirmed by Western blotting using anti-His monoclonal antibody and affinity chromatography was applied to purify the expressed protein. RESULTS The accuracy of the construct was confirmed by restriction map analysis and sequencing. The transformation of the construct into the BL21 (DE3), pLysS, and pLysE E. coli strains did not lead to any expression. The fusion protein was found to be toxic for E. coli DE3. By applying two steps inhibition, the fusion protein was successfully expressed in BL21 (AI) E. coli strain. CONCLUSION The HBsAg-polytope fusion protein expressed in this study can be further evaluated for its immunogenicity in animal models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monireh Gholizadeh
- Department of Biology, Islamic Azad University, Tonekabon Branch, Tonekabon, Iran
| | - Hossein Khanahmad
- Department of Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
| | | | | | - Farzin Roohvand
- Department of Hepatitis and AIDS, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Seyed Mehdi Sadat
- Department of Hepatitis and AIDS, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | | | - Ali Nazemi
- Department of Biology, Islamic Azad University, Tonekabon Branch, Tonekabon, Iran
| | - Fatemeh Motevalli
- Department of Hepatitis and AIDS, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Vahid Asgary
- Department Of Rabies, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran ; Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Roghaye Arezumand
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
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Srivastava R, Khan AA, Huang J, Nesburn AB, Wechsler SL, BenMohamed L. A Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 Human Asymptomatic CD8+ T-Cell Epitopes-Based Vaccine Protects Against Ocular Herpes in a "Humanized" HLA Transgenic Rabbit Model. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 2015; 56:4013-28. [PMID: 26098469 DOI: 10.1167/iovs.15-17074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE A clinical vaccine that protects from ocular herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) infection and disease still is lacking. In the present study, preclinical vaccine trials of nine asymptomatic (ASYMP) peptides, selected from HSV-1 glycoproteins B (gB), and tegument proteins VP11/12 and VP13/14, were performed in the "humanized" HLA-transgenic rabbit (HLA-Tg rabbit) model of ocular herpes. We recently reported that these peptides are highly recognized by CD8+ T cells from "naturally" protected HSV-1-seropositive healthy ASYMP individuals (who have never had clinical herpes disease). METHODS Mixtures of three ASYMP CD8+ T-cell peptides derived from either HSV-1 gB, VP11/12, or VP13/14 were delivered subcutaneously to different groups of HLA-Tg rabbits (n = 10) in incomplete Freund's adjuvant, twice at 15-day intervals. The frequency and function of HSV-1 epitope-specific CD8+ T cells induced by these peptides and their protective efficacy, in terms of survival, virus replication in the eye, and ocular herpetic disease were assessed after an ocular challenge with HSV-1 (strain McKrae). RESULTS All mixtures elicited strong and polyfunctional IFN-γ- and TNF-α-producing CD107+CD8+ cytotoxic T cells, associated with a significant reduction in death, ocular herpes infection, and disease (P < 0.015). CONCLUSIONS The results of this preclinical trial support the screening strategy used to select the HSV-1 ASYMP CD8+ T-cell epitopes, emphasize their valuable immunogenic and protective efficacy against ocular herpes, and provide a prototype vaccine formulation that may be highly efficacious for preventing ocular herpes in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruchi Srivastava
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, California, United States
| | - Arif A Khan
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, California, United States
| | - Jiawei Huang
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, California, United States
| | - Anthony B Nesburn
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, California, United States
| | - Steven L Wechsler
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, California, United States 2Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of California Irvine, Schoo
| | - Lbachir BenMohamed
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, California, United States 4Department of Molecular Biology & Biochemistry 5Institute for Immunology, University of C
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Zhang C, Yang Y, Chi Y, Yin J, Yan L, Ku Z, Liu Q, Huang Z, Zhou D. Hexon-modified recombinant E1-deleted adenoviral vectors as bivalent vaccine carriers for Coxsackievirus A16 and Enterovirus 71. Vaccine 2015; 33:5087-94. [PMID: 26296491 DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2015.08.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2015] [Revised: 07/31/2015] [Accepted: 08/06/2015] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) is a major public health concern in Asia; more efficient vaccines against HFMD are urgently required. Adenoviral (Ad) capsids have been used widely for the presentation of foreign antigens to induce specific immune responses in the host. Here, we describe a novel bivalent vaccine for HFMD based on the hexon-modified, E1-deleted chimpanzee adenovirus serotype 68 (AdC68). The novel vaccine candidate was generated by incorporating the neutralising epitope of Coxsackievirus A16 (CA16), PEP71, into hypervariable region 1 (HVR1), and a shortened neutralising epitope of Enterovirus 71 (EV71), sSP70, into HVR2 of the AdC68 hexon. In order to enhance the immunogenicity of EV71, VP1 of EV71 was cloned into the E1-region of the AdC68 vectors. The results demonstrated that these two epitopes were well presented on the virion surface and had high affinity towards specific antibodies, and VP1 of EV71 was also significantly expressed. In pre-clinical mouse models, the hexon-modified AdC68 elicited neutralising antibodies against both CA16 and EV71, which conferred protection to suckling mice against a lethal challenge of CA16 and EV71. In summary, this study demonstrates that the hexon-modified AdC68 may represent a promising bivalent vaccine carrier against EV71 and CA16 and an epitope-display platform for other pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chao Zhang
- Vaccine Research Center, Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Yong Yang
- Vaccine Research Center, Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Yudan Chi
- Vaccine Research Center, Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Jieyun Yin
- Vaccine Research Center, Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Lijun Yan
- Vaccine Research Center, Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Zhiqiang Ku
- Vaccine Research Center, Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Qingwei Liu
- Vaccine Research Center, Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Zhong Huang
- Vaccine Research Center, Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China.
| | - Dongming Zhou
- Vaccine Research Center, Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China.
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Oany AR, Sharmin T, Chowdhury AS, Jyoti TP, Hasan MA. Highly conserved regions in Ebola virus RNA dependent RNA polymerase may be act as a universal novel peptide vaccine target: a computational approach. In Silico Pharmacol 2015; 3:7. [PMID: 26820892 PMCID: PMC4529428 DOI: 10.1186/s40203-015-0011-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2015] [Accepted: 07/22/2015] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose Ebola virus (EBOV) is such kind of virus which is responsible for 23,825 cases and 9675 deaths worldwide only in 2014 and with an average diseases fatality rate between 25 % and 90 %. Although, medical technology has tried to handle the problems, there is no Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved therapeutics or vaccines available for the prevention, post exposure, or treatment of Ebola virus disease (EVD). Methods In the present study, we used the immunoinformatics approach to design a potential epitope-based vaccine against the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase-L of EBOV. BioEdit v7.2.3 sequence alignment editor, Jalview v2 and CLC Sequence Viewer v7.0.2 were used for the initial sequence analysis for securing the conservancy from the sequences. Later the Immune Epitope Database and Analysis Resource (IEDB-AR) was used for the identification of T-cell and B-cellepitopes associated with type I and II major histocompatibility complex molecules analysis. Finally, the population coverage analysis was employed. Results The core epitope “FRYEFTAPF” was found to be the most potential one, with 100 % conservancy among all the strains of EBOV. It also interacted with both type I and II major histocompatibility complex molecules and is considered as nonallergenic in nature. Finally, with impressive cumulative population coverage of 99.87 % for the both MHC-I and MHC-II class throughout the world population was found for the proposed epitope. Conclusion To end, the projected peptide gave us a solid stand to propose for vaccine consideration and that might be experimented for its potency in eliciting immunity through humoral and cell mediated immune responses in vitro and in vivo. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s40203-015-0011-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arafat Rahman Oany
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Faculty of Life Science, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Santosh, Tangail-1902, Bangladesh
| | - Tahmina Sharmin
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Faculty of Life Science, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Santosh, Tangail-1902, Bangladesh
| | - Afrin Sultana Chowdhury
- Department of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Chittagong, Chittagong-4331, Bangladesh
| | - Tahmina Pervin Jyoti
- Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering Discipline, Life Science School, Khulna University, Khulna-9208, Bangladesh
| | - Md Anayet Hasan
- Department of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Chittagong, Chittagong-4331, Bangladesh.
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Oyarzun P, Kobe B. Computer-aided design of T-cell epitope-based vaccines: addressing population coverage. Int J Immunogenet 2015. [PMID: 26211755 DOI: 10.1111/iji.12214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Epitope-based vaccines (EVs) make use of short antigen-derived peptides corresponding to immune epitopes, which are administered to trigger a protective humoral and/or cellular immune response. EVs potentially allow for precise control over the immune response activation by focusing on the most relevant - immunogenic and conserved - antigen regions. Experimental screening of large sets of peptides is time-consuming and costly; therefore, in silico methods that facilitate T-cell epitope mapping of protein antigens are paramount for EV development. The prediction of T-cell epitopes focuses on the peptide presentation process by proteins encoded by the major histocompatibility complex (MHC). Because different MHCs have different specificities and T-cell epitope repertoires, individuals are likely to respond to a different set of peptides from a given pathogen in genetically heterogeneous human populations. In addition, protective immune responses are only expected if T-cell epitopes are restricted by MHC proteins expressed at high frequencies in the target population. Therefore, without careful consideration of the specificity and prevalence of the MHC proteins, EVs could fail to adequately cover the target population. This article reviews state-of-the-art algorithms and computational tools to guide EV design through all the stages of the process: epitope prediction, epitope selection and vaccine assembly, while optimizing vaccine immunogenicity and coping with genetic variation in humans and pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- P Oyarzun
- Biotechnology Centre, Facultad de Ingeniería y Tecnología, Universidad San Sebastián, Concepción, Chile
| | - B Kobe
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, Institute for Molecular Bioscience and Australian Infectious Diseases Research Centre, University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
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Singh SP, Verma V, Mishra BN. Characterization of Plasmodium falciparum Proteome at Asexual Blood Stages for Screening of Effective Vaccine Candidates: An Immunoinformatics Approach. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015. [DOI: 10.4137/iii.s24755] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
Malaria is a complex parasitic disease that is currently causing great concerns globally owing to the resistance to antimalarial drugs and lack of an effective vaccine. The present study involves the characterization of extracellular secretory proteins as vaccine candidates derived from proteome analysis of Plasmodium falciparum at asexual blood stages of malaria. Among the screened 32 proteins, 31 were predicted as antigens by the VaxiJen program, and 26 proteins had less than two transmembrane spanning regions predicted using the THMMM program. Moreover, 10 and 5 proteins were predicted to contain secretory signals by SignalP and TargetP, respectively. T-cell epitope prediction using MULTIPRED2 and NetCTL programs revealed that most of the predicted antigens are immunogenic and contain more than 10% supertype and 5% promiscuous epitopes of HLA-A, -B, or -DR. We anticipate that T-cell immune responses against asexual blood stages of Plasmodium are dispersed on a relatively large number of parasite antigens. This is the first report, to the best of our knowledge, offering new insights, at the proteome level, for the putative screening of effective vaccine candidates against the malaria pathogen. The findings also suggest new ways forward for the modern omics-guided vaccine target discovery using reverse vaccinology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Satarudra Prakash Singh
- Amity Institute of Biotechnology, Amity University Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow Campus, Lucknow, India
| | - Vishal Verma
- Amity Institute of Biotechnology, Amity University Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow Campus, Lucknow, India
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Srivastava R, Khan AA, Spencer D, Vahed H, Lopes PP, Thai NTU, Wang C, Pham TT, Huang J, Scarfone VM, Nesburn AB, Wechsler SL, BenMohamed L. HLA-A02:01-restricted epitopes identified from the herpes simplex virus tegument protein VP11/12 preferentially recall polyfunctional effector memory CD8+ T cells from seropositive asymptomatic individuals and protect humanized HLA-A*02:01 transgenic mice against ocular herpes. THE JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY 2015; 194:2232-48. [PMID: 25617474 DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.1402606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
The HSV type 1 tegument virion phosphoprotein (VP) 11/12 (VP11/12) is a major Ag targeted by CD8(+) T cells from HSV-seropositive individuals. However, whether and which VP11/12 epitope-specific CD8(+) T cells play a role in the "natural" protection seen in seropositive healthy asymptomatic (ASYMP) individuals (who have never had clinical herpes disease) remain to be determined. In this study, we used multiple prediction computer-assisted algorithms to identify 10 potential HLA-A*02:01-restricted CD8(+) T cell epitopes from the 718-aa sequence of VP11/12. Three of 10 epitopes exhibited high-to-moderate binding affinity to HLA-A*02:01 molecules. In 10 sequentially studied HLA-A*02:01-positive and HSV-1-seropositive ASYMP individuals, the most frequent, robust, and polyfunctional effector CD8(+) T cell responses, as assessed by a combination of tetramer frequency, granzyme B, granzyme K, perforin, CD107(a/b) cytotoxic degranulation, IFN-γ, and multiplex cytokines assays, were predominantly directed against three epitopes: VP11/1266-74, VP11/12220-228, and VP11/12702-710. Interestingly, ASYMP individuals had a significantly higher proportion of CD45RA(low)CCR7(low)CD44(high)CD62L(low)CD27(low)CD28(low)CD8(+) effector memory CD8(+) T cells (TEMs) specific to the three epitopes, compared with symptomatic individuals (with a history of numerous episodes of recurrent ocular herpetic disease). Moreover, immunization of HLA-A*02:01 transgenic mice with the three ASYMP CD8(+) TEM cell epitopes induced robust and polyfunctional epitope-specific CD8(+) TEM cells that were associated with a strong protective immunity against ocular herpes infection and disease. Our findings outline phenotypic and functional features of protective HSV-specific CD8(+) T cells that should guide the development of an effective T cell-based herpes vaccine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruchi Srivastava
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Arif A Khan
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Doran Spencer
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Hawa Vahed
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Patricia P Lopes
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Nhi Thi Uyen Thai
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Christine Wang
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Thanh T Pham
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Jiawei Huang
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Vanessa M Scarfone
- Stem Cell Research Center, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Anthony B Nesburn
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Steven L Wechsler
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697; Virology Research, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute and Department of Ophthalmology, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697; Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697; Center for Virus Research, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Lbachir BenMohamed
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697; Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697; and Institute for Immunology, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
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Phenotypic and functional characterization of herpes simplex virus glycoprotein B epitope-specific effector and memory CD8+ T cells from symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals with ocular herpes. J Virol 2015; 89:3776-92. [PMID: 25609800 DOI: 10.1128/jvi.03419-14] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) glycoprotein B (gB)-specific CD8(+) T cells protect mice from herpes infection and disease. However, whether and which HSV-1 gB-specific CD8(+) T cells play a key role in the "natural" protection seen in HSV-1-seropositive healthy asymptomatic (ASYMP) individuals (who have never had clinical herpes disease) remain to be determined. In this study, we have dissected the phenotypes and the functions of HSV-1 gB-specific CD8(+) T cells from HLA-A*02:01 positive, HSV-1 seropositive ASYMP and symptomatic (SYMP) individuals (with a history of numerous episodes of recurrent ocular herpes disease). We found the following. (i) Healthy ASYMP individuals maintained a significantly higher proportion of differentiated HSV-1 gB-specific effector memory CD8(+) T cells (TEM cells) (CD45RA(low) CCR7(low) CD44(high) CD62L(low)). In contrast, SYMP patients had frequent less-differentiated central memory CD8(+) T cells (TCM cells) (CD45RA(low) CCR7(high) CD44(low) CD62L(high)). (ii) ASYMP individuals had significantly higher proportions of multifunctional effector CD8(+) T cells which responded mainly to gB342-350 and gB561-569 "ASYMP" epitopes, and simultaneously produced IFN-γ, CD107(a/b), granzyme B, and perforin. In contrast, effector CD8(+) T cells from SYMP individuals were mostly monofunctional and were directed mainly against nonoverlapping gB17-25 and gB183-191 "SYMP" epitopes. (iii) Immunization of an HLA-A*02:01 transgenic mouse model of ocular herpes with "ASYMP" CD8(+) TEM cell epitopes, but not with "SYMP" CD8(+) TCM cell epitopes, induced a strong CD8(+) T cell-dependent protective immunity against ocular herpes infection and disease. Our findings provide insights into the role of HSV-specific CD8(+) TEM cells in protection against herpes and should be considered in the development of an effective vaccine. IMPORTANCE A significantly higher proportion of differentiated and multifunctional HSV-1 gB-specific effector memory CD8(+) T cells (TEM cells) (CD45RA(low) CCR7(low) CD44(high) CD62L(low)) were found in healthy ASYMP individuals who are seropositive for HSV-1 but never had any recurrent herpetic disease, while there were frequent less-differentiated and monofunctional central memory CD8(+) T cells (TCM cells) (CD45RA(low) CCR7(high) CD44(low) CD62L(high)) in SYMP patients. Immunization with "ASYMP" CD8(+) TEM cell epitopes, but not with "SYMP" CD8(+) TCM cell epitopes, induced a strong protective HSV-specific CD8(+) T cell response in HLA-A*02:01 transgenic mice. These findings are important for the development of a safe and effective T cell-based herpes vaccine.
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Oany AR, Ahmad SAI, Hossain MU, Jyoti TP. Identification of highly conserved regions in L-segment of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus and immunoinformatic prediction about potential novel vaccine. Adv Appl Bioinform Chem 2015; 8:1-10. [PMID: 25609983 PMCID: PMC4293217 DOI: 10.2147/aabc.s75250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a tick-borne zoonotic viral disease with a disease fatality rate between 15% and 70%. Despite the wide range of distribution, the virus (CCHFV) is basically endemic in Africa, Asia, eastern Europe, and the Middle East. Acute febrile illness associated with petechiae, disseminated intravascular coagulation, and multiple-organ failure are the main symptoms of the disease. With all these fatal effects, CCHFV is considered a huge threat as no successful therapeutic approach is currently available for the treatment of this disease. In the present study, we have used the immunoinformatics approach to design a potential epitope-based vaccine against the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase-L of CCHFV. Both the T-cell and B-cell epitopes were assessed, and the epitope "DCSSTPPDR" was found to be the most potential one, with 100% conservancy among all the strains of CCHFV. The epitope was also found to interact with both type I and II major histocompatibility complex molecules and is considered nonallergenic as well. In vivo study of our proposed peptide is advised for novel universal vaccine production, which might be an effective path to prevent CCHF disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arafat Rahman Oany
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Faculty of Life Science, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Santosh, Tangail, Bangladesh
| | - Shah Adil Ishtiyaq Ahmad
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Faculty of Life Science, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Santosh, Tangail, Bangladesh
| | - Mohammad Uzzal Hossain
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Faculty of Life Science, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Santosh, Tangail, Bangladesh
| | - Tahmina Pervin Jyoti
- Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering Discipline, Life Science School, Khulna University, Khulna, Bangladesh
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Mechanisms of HIV protein degradation into epitopes: implications for vaccine design. Viruses 2014; 6:3271-92. [PMID: 25196483 PMCID: PMC4147695 DOI: 10.3390/v6083271] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2014] [Revised: 08/06/2014] [Accepted: 08/11/2014] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
The degradation of HIV-derived proteins into epitopes displayed by MHC-I or MHC-II are the first events leading to the priming of HIV-specific immune responses and to the recognition of infected cells. Despite a wealth of information about peptidases involved in protein degradation, our knowledge of epitope presentation during HIV infection remains limited. Here we review current data on HIV protein degradation linking epitope production and immunodominance, viral evolution and impaired epitope presentation. We propose that an in-depth understanding of HIV antigen processing and presentation in relevant primary cells could be exploited to identify signatures leading to efficient or inefficient epitope presentation in HIV proteomes, and to improve the design of immunogens eliciting immune responses efficiently recognizing all infected cells.
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23
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Li YX, Zhao H, Cao RY, Deng YQ, Han JF, Zhu SY, Ma J, Liu L, Qin ED, Qin CF. Recombinant tandem multi-linear neutralizing epitopes of human enterovirus 71 elicited protective immunity in mice. Virol J 2014; 11:79. [PMID: 24885030 PMCID: PMC4030048 DOI: 10.1186/1743-422x-11-79] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2014] [Accepted: 04/30/2014] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Human Enterovirus 71 (EV71) has emerged as the leading cause of viral encephalitis in children, especially in the Asia-Pacific regions. EV71 vaccine development is of high priority at present, and neutralization antibodies have been documented to play critical roles during in vitro and in vivo protection against EV71 infection. RESULTS In this study, a novel strategy to produce EV71 vaccine candidate based on recombinant multiple tandem linear neutralizing epitopes (mTLNE) was proposed. The three well identified EV71 linear neutralizing epitopes in capsid proteins, VP1-SP55, VP1-SP70 and VP2-SP28, were sequentially linked by a Gly-Ser linker ((G4S)3), and expressed in E.coli in fusion with the Trx and His tag at either terminal. The recombinant protein mTLNE was soluble and could be purified by standard affinity chromatography. Following three dosage of immunization in adult mice, EV71-specific IgG and neutralization antibodies were readily induced by recombinant mTLNE. IgG subtyping demonstrated that lgG1 antibodies dominated the mTLNE-induced humoral immune response. Especially, cytokine profiling in spleen cells from the mTLNE-immunized mice revealed high production of IL-4 and IL-6. Finally, in vivo challenge experiments showed that passive transfer with anti-mTLNE sera conferred full protection against lethal EV71 challenge in neonatal mice. CONCLUSION Our results demonstrated that this rational designed recombinant mTLNE might have the potential to be further developed as an EV71 vaccine in the future.
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MESH Headings
- Animals
- Antibodies, Viral/blood
- Capsid Proteins/genetics
- Capsid Proteins/immunology
- Chromatography, Affinity
- Cytokines/analysis
- Disease Models, Animal
- Enterovirus A, Human/immunology
- Enterovirus Infections/immunology
- Enterovirus Infections/prevention & control
- Epitopes, B-Lymphocyte/immunology
- Escherichia coli/genetics
- Female
- Gene Expression
- Immunization, Passive
- Immunoglobulin G/blood
- Leukocytes, Mononuclear/immunology
- Mice, Inbred BALB C
- Recombinant Fusion Proteins/genetics
- Recombinant Fusion Proteins/immunology
- Survival Analysis
- Vaccination/methods
- Vaccines, Synthetic/administration & dosage
- Vaccines, Synthetic/genetics
- Vaccines, Synthetic/immunology
- Viral Vaccines/administration & dosage
- Viral Vaccines/genetics
- Viral Vaccines/immunology
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Affiliation(s)
- Yue-Xiang Li
- Graduate School, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, Anhui, China
- Department of Virology, State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Hui Zhao
- Department of Virology, State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Rui-Yuan Cao
- Department of Virology, State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Yong-Qiang Deng
- Department of Virology, State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Jian-Feng Han
- Department of Virology, State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Shun-Ya Zhu
- Department of Virology, State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Jie Ma
- Department of Virology, State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Long Liu
- Graduate School, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, Anhui, China
- Department of Virology, State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - E-De Qin
- Graduate School, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, Anhui, China
- Department of Virology, State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Cheng-Feng Qin
- Graduate School, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, Anhui, China
- Department of Virology, State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
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24
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Samandary S, Kridane-Miledi H, Sandoval JS, Choudhury Z, Langa-Vives F, Spencer D, Chentoufi AA, Lemonnier FA, BenMohamed L. Associations of HLA-A, HLA-B and HLA-C alleles frequency with prevalence of herpes simplex virus infections and diseases across global populations: implication for the development of an universal CD8+ T-cell epitope-based vaccine. Hum Immunol 2014; 75:715-29. [PMID: 24798939 DOI: 10.1016/j.humimm.2014.04.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2013] [Revised: 04/15/2014] [Accepted: 04/15/2014] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
A significant portion of the world's population is infected with herpes simplex virus type 1 and/or type 2 (HSV-1 and/or HSV-2), that cause a wide range of diseases including genital herpes, oro-facial herpes, and the potentially blinding ocular herpes. While the global prevalence and distribution of HSV-1 and HSV-2 infections cannot be exactly established, the general trends indicate that: (i) HSV-1 infections are much more prevalent globally than HSV-2; (ii) over a half billion people worldwide are infected with HSV-2; (iii) the sub-Saharan African populations account for a disproportionate burden of genital herpes infections and diseases; (iv) the dramatic differences in the prevalence of herpes infections between regions of the world appear to be associated with differences in the frequencies of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alleles. The present report: (i) analyzes the prevalence of HSV-1 and HSV-2 infections across various regions of the world; (ii) analyzes potential associations of common HLA-A, HLA-B and HLA-C alleles with the prevalence of HSV-1 and HSV-2 infections in the Caucasoid, Oriental, Hispanic and Black major populations; and (iii) discusses how our recently developed HLA-A, HLA-B, and HLA-C transgenic/H-2 class I null mice will help validate HLA/herpes prevalence associations. Overall, high prevalence of herpes infection and disease appears to be associated with high frequency of HLA-A(∗)24, HLA-B(∗)27, HLA-B(∗)53 and HLA-B(∗)58 alleles. In contrast, low prevalence of herpes infection and disease appears to be associated with high frequency of HLA-B(∗)44 allele. The finding will aid in developing a T-cell epitope-based universal herpes vaccine and immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Samandary
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, School of Medicine, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Hédia Kridane-Miledi
- UNITE INSERM 1016, Institut Cochin, Hôpital Saint-Vincent-de-Paul, 82, Avenue Denfert-Rochereau, 75674 Paris Cedex 14, France
| | - Jacqueline S Sandoval
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, School of Medicine, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Zareen Choudhury
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, School of Medicine, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Francina Langa-Vives
- Plate-Forme Technologique, Centre d'Ingénierie Génétique Murine, Département de Biologie du Développement, Institut Pasteur, 75015 Paris, France
| | - Doran Spencer
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, School of Medicine, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Aziz A Chentoufi
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, School of Medicine, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - François A Lemonnier
- UNITE INSERM 1016, Institut Cochin, Hôpital Saint-Vincent-de-Paul, 82, Avenue Denfert-Rochereau, 75674 Paris Cedex 14, France
| | - Lbachir BenMohamed
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, School of Medicine, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA; Department of Molecular Biology & Biochemistry, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA; Institute for Immunology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA.
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25
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Pierce BG, Hellman LM, Hossain M, Singh NK, Vander Kooi CW, Weng Z, Baker BM. Computational design of the affinity and specificity of a therapeutic T cell receptor. PLoS Comput Biol 2014; 10:e1003478. [PMID: 24550723 PMCID: PMC3923660 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1003478] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2013] [Accepted: 01/02/2014] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
T cell receptors (TCRs) are key to antigen-specific immunity and are increasingly being explored as therapeutics, most visibly in cancer immunotherapy. As TCRs typically possess only low-to-moderate affinity for their peptide/MHC (pMHC) ligands, there is a recognized need to develop affinity-enhanced TCR variants. Previous in vitro engineering efforts have yielded remarkable improvements in TCR affinity, yet concerns exist about the maintenance of peptide specificity and the biological impacts of ultra-high affinity. As opposed to in vitro engineering, computational design can directly address these issues, in theory permitting the rational control of peptide specificity together with relatively controlled increments in affinity. Here we explored the efficacy of computational design with the clinically relevant TCR DMF5, which recognizes nonameric and decameric epitopes from the melanoma-associated Melan-A/MART-1 protein presented by the class I MHC HLA-A2. We tested multiple mutations selected by flexible and rigid modeling protocols, assessed impacts on affinity and specificity, and utilized the data to examine and improve algorithmic performance. We identified multiple mutations that improved binding affinity, and characterized the structure, affinity, and binding kinetics of a previously reported double mutant that exhibits an impressive 400-fold affinity improvement for the decameric pMHC ligand without detectable binding to non-cognate ligands. The structure of this high affinity mutant indicated very little conformational consequences and emphasized the high fidelity of our modeling procedure. Overall, our work showcases the capability of computational design to generate TCRs with improved pMHC affinities while explicitly accounting for peptide specificity, as well as its potential for generating TCRs with customized antigen targeting capabilities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian G. Pierce
- Program in Bioinformatics and Integrative Biology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Lance M. Hellman
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Moushumi Hossain
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Nishant K. Singh
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Craig W. Vander Kooi
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, United States of America
| | - Zhiping Weng
- Program in Bioinformatics and Integrative Biology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Brian M. Baker
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
- Harper Cancer Research Institute, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
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26
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Harjanto S, Ng LFP, Tong JC. Clustering HLA class I superfamilies using structural interaction patterns. PLoS One 2014; 9:e86655. [PMID: 24475163 PMCID: PMC3903569 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0086655] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2013] [Accepted: 12/15/2013] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I molecules are critical components of the cell-mediated immune system that bind and present intracellular antigenic peptides to CD8(+) T cell receptors. To understand the interaction mechanism underlying human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I specificity in detail, we studied the structural interaction characteristics of 16,393 nonameric peptides binding to 58 HLA-A and -B molecules. Our analysis showed for the first time that HLA-peptide intermolecular bonding patterns vary among different alleles and may be grouped in a superfamily dependent manner. Through the use of these HLA class I 'fingerprints', a high resolution HLA class I superfamily classification schema was developed. This classification is capable of separating HLA alleles into well resolved, non-overlapping clusters, which is consistent with known HLA superfamily definitions. Such structural interaction approach serves as an excellent alternative to the traditional methods of HLA superfamily definitions that use peptide binding motifs or receptor information, and will help identify appropriate antigens suitable for broad-based subunit vaccine design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sumitro Harjanto
- Duke-National University of Singapore Graduate Medical School, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Lisa F. P. Ng
- Department of Biochemistry, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- Singapore Immunology Network, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Joo Chuan Tong
- Department of Biochemistry, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- Institute of High Performance Computing, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
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27
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Karpenko LI, Bazhan SI, Antonets DV, Belyakov IM. Novel approaches in polyepitope T-cell vaccine development against HIV-1. Expert Rev Vaccines 2013; 13:155-73. [PMID: 24308576 DOI: 10.1586/14760584.2014.861748] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
RV144 clinical trial was modestly effective in preventing HIV infection. New alternative approaches are needed to design improved HIV-1 vaccines and their delivery strategies. One of these approaches is construction of synthetic polyepitope HIV-1 immunogen using protective T- and B-cell epitopes that can induce broadly neutralizing antibodies and responses of cytotoxic (CD8(+) CTL) and helpers (CD4(+) Th) T-lymphocytes. This approach seems to be promising for designing of new generation of vaccines against HIV-1, enables in theory to cope with HIV-1 antigenic variability, focuses immune responses on protective determinants and enables to exclude from the vaccine compound that can induce autoantibodies or antibodies enhancing HIV-1 infectivity. Herein, the authors will focus on construction and rational design of polyepitope T-cell HIV-1 immunogens and their delivery, including: advantages and disadvantages of existing T-cell epitope prediction methods; features of organization of polyepitope immunogens, which can generate high-level CD8(+) and CD4(+) T-lymphocyte responses; the strategies to optimize efficient processing, presentation and immunogenicity of polyepitope constructs; original software to design polyepitope immunogens; and delivery vectors as well as mucosal strategies of vaccination. This new knowledge may bring us a one step closer to developing an effective T-cell vaccine against HIV-1, other chronic viral infections and cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Larisa I Karpenko
- State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology "Vector", Koltsovo, Novosibirsk region, 630559, Russia
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28
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Ghosh M, Solanki AK, Roy K, Dhoke RR, Ashish, Roy S. Carrier protein influences immunodominance of a known epitope: implication in peptide vaccine design. Vaccine 2013; 31:4682-8. [PMID: 23928464 DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2013.06.110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2013] [Revised: 06/10/2013] [Accepted: 06/14/2013] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
We investigated how the processing of a given antigen by antigen presenting cells (APC) is dictated by the conformation of the antigen and how this governs the immunodominance hierarchy. To address the question, a known immunodominant sequence of bacteriophage lambda repressor N-terminal sequence 12-26 [λR(12-26)] was engineered at the N and C termini of a heterologous leishmanial protein, Kinetoplastid membrane protein-11 (KMP-11); the resulting proteins were defined as N-KMP-11 and C-KMP-11 respectively. The presence of λR(12-26) in N-KMP-11 and C-KMP-11 was established by western blot analysis with antibody to λR(12-26) peptide. N-KMP-11 but not C-KMP-11 could stimulate the anti λR(12-26) T-cell clonal population very efficiently in the presence of APCs. Priming of BALB/c mice with N-KMP-11 or C-KMP-11 generated similar levels of anti-KMP-11 IgG, but anti-λR(12-26) specific IgG was observed only upon priming with N-KMP-11. Interestingly, uptake of both N-KMP-11 and C-KMP-11 by APCs was similar but catabolism of N-KMP-11 but not C-KMP-11 was biphasic and fast at the initial time point. Kratky plots of small angle X-ray scattering showed that while N-KMP-11 adopts flexible Gaussian type of topology, C-KMP-11 prefers Globular nature. To show that KMP-11 is not unique as a carrier protein, an epitope (SPITBTNLBTMBK) of Plasmodium yoelii (PY) apical membrane protein 1[AMA-1 (136-148)], is placed at the C and N terminals of a dominant T-cell epitope of ovalbumin protein OVA(323-339) and the resulting peptides are defined as PY-OVA and OVA-PY respectively. Interestingly, only OVA-PY could stimulate anti-OVA T-cells and produce IgG response upon priming of BALB/c mice with it. Thus for rational design of peptide vaccine it is important to place the dominant epitope appropriately in the context of the carrier protein.
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Affiliation(s)
- Moumita Ghosh
- Division of Infectious diseases and Immunology, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, 4 Raja S.C. Mullick Road, Kolkata 700032, India
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29
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The average IFN-γ secreting capacity of specific CD8(+) T cells is compromised while increasing copies of a single T cell epitope encoded by DNA vaccine. Clin Dev Immunol 2012; 2012:478052. [PMID: 23251217 PMCID: PMC3509377 DOI: 10.1155/2012/478052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2012] [Revised: 09/24/2012] [Accepted: 09/25/2012] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Previous studies suggested that both the frequency and the mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) of cytokine secreting T cells could be of great value for immunogenicity evaluation of a vaccine. In this study, by constructing epitope-based DNA vaccines encoding a previously identified CD8+ T cell epitope, we investigated the influence of multiplying epitope copies on both the frequency and the MFI of specific IFN-γ secreting CD8+ T cells. We found that frequencies of specific CD8+ T cell could be improved by multiplying epitope copies, while the MFI of IFN-γ secreted by epitope-specific CD8+ T cells decreased synchronously. And further analysis showed that the decrease of MFI was not caused by the functional avidity variation of CD8+ T cell receptor.
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30
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Richie TL. Malaria vaccines for travelers. Travel Med Infect Dis 2012; 2:193-210. [PMID: 17291981 DOI: 10.1016/j.tmaid.2004.07.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2004] [Accepted: 07/07/2004] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Thomas L Richie
- Naval Medical Research Center Malaria Program, 503 Robert Grant Avenue, Silver Spring, MD 20910-7500, USA
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31
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Wang F, Feng X, Zheng Q, Hou H, Cao R, Zhou B, Liu Q, Liu X, Pang R, Zhao J, Deng W, Chen P. Multiple linear epitopes (B-cell, CTL and Th) of JEV expressed in recombinant MVA as multiple epitope vaccine induces a protective immune response. Virol J 2012; 9:204. [PMID: 22985466 PMCID: PMC3511265 DOI: 10.1186/1743-422x-9-204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2011] [Accepted: 07/06/2012] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Epitope-based vaccination might play an important role in the protective immunity against Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) infection. The purpose of the study is to evaluate the immune characteristics of recombinant MVA carrying multi-epitope gene of JEV (rMVA-mep). The synthetic gene containing critical epitopes (B-cell, CTL and Th) of JEV was cloned into the eukaryotic expression vector pGEM-K1L, and the rMVA-mep was prepared. BALB/c mice were immunized with different dosages of purified rMVA-mep and the immune responses were determined in the form of protective response against JEV, antibodies titers (IgG1 and IgG2a), spleen cell lymphocyte proliferation, and the levels of interferon-γ and interleukin-4 cytokines. The results showed that live rMVA-mep elicited strongly immune responses in dose-dependent manner, and the highest level of immune responses was observed from the groups immunized with 107 TCID50 rMVA-mep among the experimental three concentrations. There were almost no difference of cytokines and neutralizing antibody titers among 107 TCID50 rMVA-mep, recombinant ED3 and inactivated JEV vaccine. It was noteworthy that rMVA-mep vaccination potentiates the Th1 and Th2-type immune responses in dose-dependent manner, and was sufficient to protect the mice survival against lethal JEV challenge. These findings demonstrated that rMVA-mep can produce adequate humoral and cellular immune responses, and protection in mice, which suggested that rMVA-mep might be an attractive candidate vaccine for preventing JEV infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fengjuan Wang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Diseases Diagnosis and Immunology, Ministry of Agriculture, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, China
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32
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Bozzacco L, Yu H, Dengjel J, Trumpfheller C, Zebroski HA, Zhang N, Küttner V, Ueberheide BM, Deng H, Chait BT, Steinman RM, Mojsov S, Fenyö D. Strategy for identifying dendritic cell-processed CD4+ T cell epitopes from the HIV gag p24 protein. PLoS One 2012; 7:e41897. [PMID: 22860026 PMCID: PMC3408443 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0041897] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2012] [Accepted: 06/26/2012] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Mass Spectrometry (MS) is becoming a preferred method to identify class I and class II peptides presented on major histocompability complexes (MHC) on antigen presenting cells (APC). We describe a combined computational and MS approach to identify exogenous MHC II peptides presented on mouse spleen dendritic cells (DCs). This approach enables rapid, effective screening of a large number of possible peptides by a computer-assisted strategy that utilizes the extraordinary human ability for pattern recognition. To test the efficacy of the approach, a mixture of epitope peptide mimics (mimetopes) from HIV gag p24 sequence were added exogenously to Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 ligand (Flt3L)-mobilized splenic DCs. We identified the exogenously added peptide, VDRFYKTLRAEQASQ, and a second peptide, DRFYKLTRAEQASQ, derived from the original exogenously added 15-mer peptide. Furthermore, we demonstrated that our strategy works efficiently with HIV gag p24 protein when delivered, as vaccine protein, to Flt3L expanded mouse splenic DCs in vitro through the DEC-205 receptor. We found that the same MHC II-bound HIV gag p24 peptides, VDRFYKTLRAEQASQ and DRFYKLTRAEQASQ, were naturally processed from anti-DEC-205 HIV gag p24 protein and presented on DCs. The two identified VDRFYKTLRAEQASQ and DRFYKLTRAEQASQ MHC II-bound HIV gag p24 peptides elicited CD4+ T-cell mediated responses in vitro. Their presentation by DCs to antigen-specific T cells was inhibited by chloroquine (CQ), indicating that optimal presentation of these exogenously added peptides required uptake and vesicular trafficking in mature DCs. These results support the application of our strategy to identify and characterize peptide epitopes derived from vaccine proteins processed by DCs and thus has the potential to greatly accelerate DC-based vaccine development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonia Bozzacco
- Laboratory of Cellular Physiology and Immunology and Chris Browne Center, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Haiqiang Yu
- Proteomics Resource Center, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Jörn Dengjel
- Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- Center for Biological Systems Analysis, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Christine Trumpfheller
- Laboratory of Cellular Physiology and Immunology and Chris Browne Center, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Henry A. Zebroski
- Proteomics Resource Center, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Nawei Zhang
- Proteomics Resource Center, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Victoria Küttner
- Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- Center for Biological Systems Analysis, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Beatrix M. Ueberheide
- Laboratory of Mass Spectrometry and Gaseous Ion Chemistry, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Haiteng Deng
- Proteomics Resource Center, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Brian T. Chait
- Laboratory of Mass Spectrometry and Gaseous Ion Chemistry, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Ralph M. Steinman
- Laboratory of Cellular Physiology and Immunology and Chris Browne Center, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Svetlana Mojsov
- Laboratory of Cellular Physiology and Immunology and Chris Browne Center, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - David Fenyö
- Laboratory of Computational Proteomics, Center for Health Informatics and Bioinformatics, New York University Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
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33
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Wu KW, Chien CY, Li SW, King CC, Chang CH. Highly conserved influenza A virus epitope sequences as candidates of H3N2 flu vaccine targets. Genomics 2012; 100:102-9. [PMID: 22698979 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2012.06.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2012] [Revised: 06/04/2012] [Accepted: 06/04/2012] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
This study focused on identifying the conserved epitopes in a single subtype A (H3N2)-as candidates for vaccine targets. We identified a total of 32 conserved epitopes in four viral proteins [22 HA, 4PB1, 3 NA, 3 NP]. Evaluation of conserved epitopes in coverage during 1968-2010 revealed that (1) 12 HA conserved epitopes were highly present in the circulating viruses; (2) the remaining 10 HA conserved epitopes appeared with lower percentage but a significantly increasing trend after 1989 [p<0.001]; and (3) the conserved epitopes in NA, NP and PB1 are also highly frequent in wild-type viruses. These conserved epitopes also covered an extremely high percentage of the 16 vaccine strains during the 42 year period. The identification of highly conserved epitopes using our approach can also be applied to develop broad-spectrum vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ko-Wen Wu
- Institute of BioMedical Informatics, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan
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Alami Chentoufi A, Kritzer E, Yu DM, Nesburn AB, BenMohamed L. Towards a rational design of an asymptomatic clinical herpes vaccine: the old, the new, and the unknown. Clin Dev Immunol 2012; 2012:187585. [PMID: 22548113 PMCID: PMC3324142 DOI: 10.1155/2012/187585] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2011] [Accepted: 01/10/2012] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The best hope of controlling the herpes simplex virus type 1 and type 2 (HSV-1 and HSV-2) pandemic is the development of an effective vaccine. However, in spite of several clinical trials, starting as early as 1920s, no vaccine has been proven sufficiently safe and efficient to warrant commercial development. In recent years, great strides in cellular and molecular immunology have stimulated creative efforts in controlling herpes infection and disease. However, before moving towards new vaccine strategy, it is necessary to answer two fundamental questions: (i) why past herpes vaccines have failed? (ii) Why the majority of HSV seropositive individuals (i.e., asymptomatic individuals) are naturally "protected" exhibiting few or no recurrent clinical disease, while other HSV seropositive individuals (i.e., symptomatic individuals) have frequent ocular, orofacial, and/or genital herpes clinical episodes? We recently discovered several discrete sets of HSV-1 symptomatic and asymptomatic epitopes recognized by CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells from seropositive symptomatic versus asymptomatic individuals. These asymptomatic epitopes will provide a solid foundation for the development of novel herpes epitope-based vaccine strategy. Here we provide a brief overview of past clinical vaccine trials, outline current progress towards developing a new generation "asymptomatic" clinical herpes vaccines, and discuss future mucosal "asymptomatic" prime-boost vaccines that could optimize local protective immunity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aziz Alami Chentoufi
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697-4375, USA
- Department of Immunology, Pathology and Clinical Laboratory Medicine, King Fahad Medical City, Riyadh 11525, Saudi Arabia
| | - Elizabeth Kritzer
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697-4375, USA
| | - David M. Yu
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697-4375, USA
| | - Anthony B. Nesburn
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697-4375, USA
| | - Lbachir BenMohamed
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697-4375, USA
- Institute for Immunology, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697-4120, USA
- Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, Irvine Medical Center, Irvine, CA 92868-3201, USA
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Epitope based recombinant BCG vaccine elicits specific Th1 polarized immune responses in BALB/c mice. Vaccine 2012; 30:1364-70. [DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2011.12.059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2011] [Revised: 12/05/2011] [Accepted: 12/12/2011] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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van Hall T, van der Burg SH. Mechanisms of peptide vaccination in mouse models: tolerance, immunity, and hyperreactivity. Adv Immunol 2012; 114:51-76. [PMID: 22449778 DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-396548-6.00003-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
The development of synthetic peptide vaccines capable of inducing strong and protective T-cell immunity has taken more than 20 years. Peptide vaccines come in many flavors and although their design is simple, their use is more complicated as the success of a particular peptide vaccine is influenced by many parameters. In fact, peptide vaccination may lead to tolerance, immunity or even hyper-reactivity causing death of the animals. Here we systematically dissect the parameters that influence the final outcome of peptide vaccines as examined in mouse models and this will guide the rational design of new vaccines in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thorbald van Hall
- Department of Clinical Oncology, Experimental Cancer Immunology and Therapy, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, Netherlands
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Wieser A, Magistro G, Nörenberg D, Hoffmann C, Schubert S. First multi-epitope subunit vaccine against extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli delivered by a bacterial type-3 secretion system (T3SS). Int J Med Microbiol 2011; 302:10-8. [PMID: 22000741 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijmm.2011.09.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2011] [Revised: 09/14/2011] [Accepted: 09/20/2011] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Infections due to extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli (ExPEC) are very common in humans as well as in animals. In humans ExPEC infections include urinary tract infections (UTI), septicemia, and wound infections, which result in significant morbidity, mortality, and substantial healthcare costs. In view of the increasing number of ExPEC infections caused by more and more resistant strains, effective prevention would be desirable. Given the rising treatment costs, a vaccine may be cost-effective in selected patient groups, such as women with recurrent UTI, patients with neurologic disorders impairing bladder function and men with prostate hyperplasia. Previous vaccine studies used single target proteins or whole inactivated ExPEC cells. Here, we describe a vaccine system for oral application based on artificial multiple subunit vaccine proteins. Those multi-epitope proteins are composed of predicted epitopes derived from ExPEC virulence-associated proteins. As ExPEC are known to form intracellular biofilms in the urothelium and can also resist killing by non-activated macrophages, T-cell responses are supposed to be an important measure to counteract these stages of ExPEC during infection. Therefore, a live bacterial antigen delivery system based upon the Salmonella type-III secretion system (T3SS) was used in this study to directly deliver the vaccine proteins into the cytoplasm of the host cells. Epitope-rich domains of the proteins FyuA, IroN, ChuA, IreA, Iha, and Usp were expressed in an attenuated Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium strain and translocated into target cells for extended periods of time inducing a strong T-cell response. No significant antibody titre increase against the secreted vaccine proteins could be detected in vaginal wash or serum. Despite that, one of the vaccine proteins was able to significantly reduce bacterial load in the challenge model of intraperitoneal sepsis. This study shows that a vaccine encompassing distinct epitopes of virulence-associated ExPEC proteins (i) can be applied for a T3SS-dependent vaccination strategy, (ii) elicits T-cell responses and (iii) confers protection after a single application.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Wieser
- Max von Pettenkofer-Institut für Hygiene und Medizinische Mikrobiologie, Marchioninistr. 17, 81377 München, Germany
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Yang G, Chen S, Zhu X, Liang S, Liu L, Ren D. A synthetic multi-epitope antigen enhances hepatitis C virus-specific B- and T-cell responses. Viral Immunol 2011; 24:109-18. [PMID: 21449721 DOI: 10.1089/vim.2010.0096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Combining results from previous studies, a multi-epitope antigen PCXZ against the hepatitis C virus was synthesized in this study. The antigenic specificity of PCXZ was determined by recognizing antibodies in serum samples from hepatitis C virus patients, but not from healthy subjects or subjects who had the hepatitis B virus. The characteristics of PCXZ immunogenicity were evaluated in BALB/c mice. Strong antibody responses were generated in mice immunized with either naked PCXZ or PCXZ in Freund's adjuvant. As for the T-cell responses, Freund's adjuvant significantly increased interferon-γ secretion and enhanced the lytic activity of cytotoxic T lymphocytes. The epitope Pa, one component of PCXZ, made the most significant contribution to specific CTL lysis; this epitope was also a B-cell epitope and was able to induce high IgG titers. In summary, PCXZ was found to be highly immunogenic, and elicited both humoral and cellular immune responses in mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guimei Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
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Staneková Z, Varečková E. Conserved epitopes of influenza A virus inducing protective immunity and their prospects for universal vaccine development. Virol J 2010; 7:351. [PMID: 21118546 PMCID: PMC3009981 DOI: 10.1186/1743-422x-7-351] [Citation(s) in RCA: 119] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2010] [Accepted: 11/30/2010] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Influenza A viruses belong to the best studied viruses, however no effective prevention against influenza infection has been developed. The emerging of still new escape variants of influenza A viruses causing epidemics and periodic worldwide pandemics represents a threat for human population. Therefore, current, hot task of influenza virus research is to look for a way how to get us closer to a universal vaccine. Combination of chosen conserved antigens inducing cross-protective antibody response with epitopes activating also cross-protective cytotoxic T-cells would offer an attractive strategy for improving protection against drift variants of seasonal influenza viruses and reduces the impact of future pandemic strains. Antigenically conserved fusion-active subunit of hemagglutinin (HA2 gp) and ectodomain of matrix protein 2 (eM2) are promising candidates for preparation of broadly protective HA2- or eM2-based vaccine that may aid in pandemic preparedness. Overall protective effect could be achieved by contribution of epitopes recognized by cytotoxic T-lymphocytes (CTL) that have been studied extensively to reach much broader control of influenza infection. In this review we present the state-of-art in this field. We describe known adaptive immune mechanisms mediated by influenza specific B- and T-cells involved in the anti-influenza immune defense together with the contribution of innate immunity. We discuss the mechanisms of neutralization of influenza infection mediated by antibodies, the role of CTL in viral elimination and new approaches to develop epitope based vaccine inducing cross-protective influenza virus-specific immune response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zuzana Staneková
- Institute of Virology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 05 Bratislava, Slovak Republic.
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Signori E, Iurescia S, Massi E, Fioretti D, Chiarella P, De Robertis M, Rinaldi M, Tonon G, Fazio VM. DNA vaccination strategies for anti-tumour effective gene therapy protocols. Cancer Immunol Immunother 2010; 59:1583-91. [PMID: 20390416 PMCID: PMC11030090 DOI: 10.1007/s00262-010-0853-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2010] [Accepted: 03/26/2010] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
After more than 15 years of experimentation, DNA vaccines have become a promising perspective for tumour diseases, and animal models are widely used to study the biological features of human cancer progression and to test the efficacy of vaccination protocols. In recent years, immunisation with naked plasmid DNA encoding tumour-associated antigens or tumour-specific antigens has revealed a number of advantages: antigen-specific DNA vaccination stimulates both cellular and humoral immune responses; multiple or multi-gene vectors encoding several antigens/determinants and immune-modulatory molecules can be delivered as single administration; DNA vaccination does not induce autoimmune disease in normal animals; DNA vaccines based on plasmid vectors can be produced and tested rapidly and economically. However, DNA vaccines have shown low immunogenicity when tested in human clinical trials, and compared with traditional vaccines, they induce weak immune responses. Therefore, the improvement of vaccine efficacy has become a critical goal in the development of effective DNA vaccination protocols for anti-tumour therapy. Several strategies are taken into account for improving the DNA vaccination efficacy, such as antigen optimisation, use of adjuvants and delivery systems like electroporation, co-expression of cytokines and co-stimulatory molecules in the same vector, different vaccination protocols. In this review we discuss how the combination of these approaches may contribute to the development of more effective DNA vaccination protocols for the therapy of lymphoma in a mouse model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emanuela Signori
- CNR-Institute of Neurobiology and Molecular Medicine, Via Fosso del Cavaliere100, 00133 Rome, Italy
- Section of Molecular Medicine and Biotechnology, PRABB, Centre of Integrated Research, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Via A. del Portillo 21, 00128 Rome, Italy
| | - Sandra Iurescia
- CNR-Institute of Neurobiology and Molecular Medicine, Via Fosso del Cavaliere100, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Emanuela Massi
- CNR-Institute of Neurobiology and Molecular Medicine, Via Fosso del Cavaliere100, 00133 Rome, Italy
- Section of Molecular Medicine and Biotechnology, PRABB, Centre of Integrated Research, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Via A. del Portillo 21, 00128 Rome, Italy
| | - Daniela Fioretti
- CNR-Institute of Neurobiology and Molecular Medicine, Via Fosso del Cavaliere100, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Pieranna Chiarella
- CNR-Institute of Neurobiology and Molecular Medicine, Via Fosso del Cavaliere100, 00133 Rome, Italy
- Section of Molecular Medicine and Biotechnology, PRABB, Centre of Integrated Research, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Via A. del Portillo 21, 00128 Rome, Italy
| | - Mariangela De Robertis
- CNR-Institute of Neurobiology and Molecular Medicine, Via Fosso del Cavaliere100, 00133 Rome, Italy
- Section of Molecular Medicine and Biotechnology, PRABB, Centre of Integrated Research, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Via A. del Portillo 21, 00128 Rome, Italy
| | - Monica Rinaldi
- CNR-Institute of Neurobiology and Molecular Medicine, Via Fosso del Cavaliere100, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Giancarlo Tonon
- Bio-ker S.r.l., POLARIS, Località Piscinamanna, 09010 Pula, Cagliari Italy
| | - Vito Michele Fazio
- Section of Molecular Medicine and Biotechnology, PRABB, Centre of Integrated Research, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Via A. del Portillo 21, 00128 Rome, Italy
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Pierce BG, Haidar JN, Yu Y, Weng Z. Combinations of affinity-enhancing mutations in a T cell receptor reveal highly nonadditive effects within and between complementarity determining regions and chains. Biochemistry 2010; 49:7050-9. [PMID: 20681514 DOI: 10.1021/bi901969a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Understanding the energetic and structural response to multiple mutations in a protein-protein interface is a key aspect of rational protein design. Here we investigate the cooperativity of combinations of point mutations of a T cell receptor (TCR) that binds in vivo to HLA-A2 MHC and a viral peptide. The mutations were obtained from two sources: a structure-based design study on the TCR alpha chain (nine mutations) and an in vitro selection study on the TCR beta chain (four mutations). In addition to combining the highest-affinity variants from each chain, we tested other combinations of mutations within and among the chains, for a total of 23 TCR mutants that we measured for binding kinetics to the peptide and major histocompatibility complex. A wide range of binding affinities was observed, from 2- to 1000-fold binding improvement versus that of the wild type, with significant nonadditive effects observed within and between TCR chains. This included an amino acid-dependent cooperative interaction between CDR1 and CDR3 residues that are separated by more than 9 A in the wild-type complex. When analyzing the kinetics of the mutations, we found that the association rates were primarily responsible for the cooperativity, while the dissociation rates were responsible for the anticooperativity (less-than-additive energetics). On the basis of structural modeling of anticooperative mutants, we determined that side chain clash between proximal mutants likely led to nonadditive binding energies. These results highlight the complex nature of TCR association and binding and will be informative in future design efforts that combine multiple mutant residues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian G Pierce
- Bioinformatics Program, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA
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42
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Lee Y, Ferrari G, Lee SC. Estimating design space available for polyepitopes through consideration of major histocompatibility complex binding motifs. Biomed Microdevices 2010; 12:207-22. [PMID: 20033850 DOI: 10.1007/s10544-009-9376-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Major histocompatibility complex (MHC ) epitope presentation is needed for robust adaptive immune responses. Core peptide binding motifs for class I and class II MHC are 8-10 amino acids long, containing two or more "anchor" residues. These binding motifs define epitope anchor amino acid content and spacing, and knowledge of them has facilitated emergence of polyepitope vaccines. However, polyepitopes can exhibit "junctional epitopes" (neoepitopes interfering with vaccine function) resulting from juxtaposition of authentic epitopes. We have developed an algorithm for consideration of polyepitope sequence in light of MHC motifs to exhaustively identify all junctional-free polyepitope designs for any given set of authentic epitopes, and in so doing discovered that the number of such variants of any given polyepitope can be astronomically high. Our approach designs polyepitopes of any length, considers multiple MHC class I or class II motifs simultaneously and can be adapted to design variants of existing proteins with pre-selected epitope contents. We have also implemented the algorithm as a computer-based tool (CANVAC II), which we make available to interested parties. The vast diversity of junctional-free polyepitopes suggests that the number of potential T-helper epitope free protein variants may also be large, which may have implications for discovery of bioactive but non-immunogenic therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yvonne Lee
- College of Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
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A multiepitope subunit vaccine conveys protection against extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli in mice. Infect Immun 2010; 78:3432-42. [PMID: 20498257 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00174-10] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Infections due to extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli (ExPEC) are common in humans and animals and include urinary tract infections (from uropathogenic E. coli [UPEC]), septicemia, and wound infections. These infections result in significant morbidity and mortality and in high health care costs. In view of the increasing number of ExPEC infections and the ever-growing antibiotic resistance capability of ExPEC isolates, preventive measures such as an effective vaccine against ExPEC are desirable. An ExPEC vaccine may be cost-effective for select patient groups. Previous vaccine candidates consisted of single target proteins or whole ExPEC cells. Here we describe a subunit vaccine against ExPEC which is based on immunodominant epitopes of the virulence-associated ExPEC proteins FyuA, IroN, ChuA, IreA, Iha, and Usp. Using a novel approach of computer-aided design, two completely artificial genes were created, both encoding eight peptide domains derived from these ExPEC proteins. The recombinant expression of these two genes resulted in a protein vaccine directed against ExPEC but not against commensal E. coli of the gut flora. In mice, the vaccine was highly immunogenic, eliciting both strong humoral and cellular immune responses. Nasal application resulted in high secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) production, which was detectable on the mucosal surface of the urogenital tract. Finally, it conveyed protection, as shown by a significant reduction of bacterial load in a mouse model of ExPEC peritonitis. This study provides evidence that a novel vaccine design encompassing distinct epitopes of virulence-associated ExPEC proteins may represent a means for providing a protective and pathogen-specific vaccine.
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Wei JC, Huang YZ, Zhong DK, Kang L, Ishag H, Mao X, Cao RB, Zhou B, Chen PY. Design and evaluation of a multi-epitope peptide against Japanese encephalitis virus infection in BALB/c mice. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2010; 396:787-92. [PMID: 20457131 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2010.04.133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2010] [Accepted: 04/26/2010] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Epitope-based vaccination is a promising means to achieve protective immunity and to avoid immunopathology in Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) infection. Several B-cell and T-cell epitopes have been mapped to the E protein of JEV, and they are responsible for the elicitation of the neutralizing antibodies and CTLs that impart protective immunity to the host. In the present study, we optimized a proposed multi-epitope peptide (MEP) using an epitope-based vaccine strategy, which combined six B-cell epitopes (amino acid residues 75-92, 149-163, 258-285, 356-362, 373-399 and 397-403) and two T-cell epitopes (amino acid residues 60-68 and 436-445) from the E protein of JEV. This recombinant protein was expressed in Escherichia coli, named rMEP, and its protective efficacy against JEV infection was assessed in BALB/c mice. The results showed that rMEP was highly immunogenic and could elicit high titer neutralizing antibodies and cell-mediated immune responses. It provided complete protection against lethal challenge with JEV in mice. Our findings indicate that the multi-epitope vaccine rMEP may be an attractive candidate vaccine for the prevention of JEV infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian-chao Wei
- Key Laboratory of Animal Disease Diagnosis and Immunology, Ministry of Agriculture at Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China
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Chentoufi AA, Dasgupta G, Christensen ND, Hu J, Choudhury ZS, Azeem A, Jester JV, Nesburn AB, Wechsler SL, BenMohamed L. A novel HLA (HLA-A*0201) transgenic rabbit model for preclinical evaluation of human CD8+ T cell epitope-based vaccines against ocular herpes. JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY (BALTIMORE, MD. : 1950) 2010; 184:2561-71. [PMID: 20124097 PMCID: PMC3752373 DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.0902322] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
We introduced a novel humanized HLA-A*0201 transgenic (HLA Tg) rabbit model to assess the protective efficacy of a human CD8(+) T cell epitope-based vaccine against primary ocular herpes infection and disease. Each of the three immunodominant human CD8(+) T cell peptide epitopes from HSV-1 glycoprotein D (gD(53-61), gD(70-78), and gD(278-286)) were joined with a promiscuous human CD4(+) T cell peptide epitope (gD(49-82)) to construct three separate pairs of CD4-CD8 peptides. Each CD4-CD8 peptide pair was then covalently linked to an N(epsilon)-palmitoyl-lysine residue via a functional base lysine amino group to construct CD4-CD8 lipopeptides. HLA Tg rabbits were immunized s.c. with a mixture of the three CD4-CD8 HSV-1 gD lipopeptides. The HSV-gD-specific T cell responses induced by the mixture of CD4-CD8 lipopeptide vaccine and the protective efficacy against acute virus replication and ocular disease were determined. Immunization induced HSV-gD(49-82)-specific CD4(+) T cells in draining lymph node (DLN); induced HLA-restricted HSV-gD(53-61), gD(70-78), and gD(278-286)-specific CD8(+) T cells in DLN, conjunctiva, and trigeminal ganglia and reduced HSV-1 replication in tears and corneal eye disease after ocular HSV-1 challenge. In addition, the HSV-1 epitope-specific CD8(+) T cells induced in DLNs, conjunctiva, and the trigeminal ganglia were inversely proportional with corneal disease. The humanized HLA Tg rabbits appeared to be a useful preclinical animal model for investigating the immunogenicity and protective efficacy of human CD8(+) T cell epitope-based prophylactic vaccines against ocular herpes. The relevance of HLA Tg rabbits for future investigation of human CD4-CD8 epitope-based therapeutic vaccines against recurrent HSV-1 is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aziz A. Chentoufi
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, The Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Gargi Dasgupta
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, The Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | | | - Jiafen Hu
- Hershey Medical Center, Pennsylvania State University, Hershey, PA 17033
| | - Zareen S. Choudhury
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, The Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Arfan Azeem
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, The Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - James V. Jester
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, The Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Anthony B. Nesburn
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, The Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Steven L. Wechsler
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, The Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, School of Medicine, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697
- The Center for Virus Research, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Lbachir BenMohamed
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, The Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697
- Institute for Immunology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697
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Singh SP, Khan F, Mishra BN. Computational characterization of Plasmodium falciparum proteomic data for screening of potential vaccine candidates. Hum Immunol 2010; 71:136-43. [DOI: 10.1016/j.humimm.2009.11.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2009] [Revised: 10/09/2009] [Accepted: 11/05/2009] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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Dimitrov I, Garnev P, Flower DR, Doytchinova I. Peptide binding to the HLA-DRB1 supertype: a proteochemometrics analysis. Eur J Med Chem 2009; 45:236-43. [PMID: 19896246 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2009.09.049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2009] [Revised: 09/04/2009] [Accepted: 09/29/2009] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
A proteochemometrics approach was applied to a set of 2666 peptides binding to 12 HLA-DRB1 proteins. Sequences of both peptide and protein were described using three z-descriptors. Cross terms accounting for adjacent positions and for every second position in the peptides were included in the models, as well as cross terms for peptide/protein interactions. Models were derived based on combinations of different blocks of variables. These models had moderate goodness of fit, as expressed by r2, which ranged from 0.685 to 0.732; and good cross-validated predictive ability, as expressed by q2, which varied from 0.678 to 0.719. The external predictive ability was tested using a set of 356 HLA-DRB1 binders, which showed an r2(pred) in the range 0.364-0.530. Peptide and protein positions involved in the interactions were analyzed in terms of hydrophobicity, steric bulk and polarity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ivan Dimitrov
- Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical University of Sofia, 2 Dunav st, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria
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48
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Abstract
OBJECTIVE To design a vaccine construct containing various but conserved HIV-1-derived epitopes and generating broad CD8 T cell responses. METHODS HLA-B7 transgenic H-2KD KO transgenic mice were used to identify potential new HLA-B07.02-restricted HIV-1-derived epitopes. Immunological recognition of these epitopes was confirmed by IFN-gamma ELISpot assays with PBMCs from HLA-B*0702 HIV-1-infected individuals. For these peptides as well as others previously identified, the capacity to induce cross-reactive responses against their frequent allelic variants was evaluated in the mouse model. A set of epitopes inducing strong T cell responses against various and conserved regions of HIV-1 was selected. A DNA vaccine was designed to express them as a unique antigen with or without a three amino acid ARY extension flanking each epitope. The spectrum of CD8 T responses generated by polyepitope constructs was tested in HLA-B7 transgenic mice. RESULTS Five new epitopes were identified in accessory and regulatory HIV-1 proteins. Twelve HLA-B07.02-restricted epitopes were selected on the basis of their structural conservation and cross-reactive immunogenicity. The ARY N-terminal extension flanking each epitope markedly increases their affinity for TAP and the use of this flanking extension in polyepitope vaccine has a sizable advantage to induce CD8 T cell cytotoxic responses in mice following DNA immunization. CONCLUSION The HLA-B7 mouse model allows to rapidly identify various HIV-1-derived epitopes of vaccine interest. Grouped in a polyepitope construct designed to increase their processing, this vaccine may be suitable for inducing multiple and relevant HIV-1-specific CTL responses in humans.
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Lico C, Mancini C, Italiani P, Betti C, Boraschi D, Benvenuto E, Baschieri S. Plant-produced potato virus X chimeric particles displaying an influenza virus-derived peptide activate specific CD8+ T cells in mice. Vaccine 2009; 27:5069-76. [PMID: 19563889 DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2009.06.045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2009] [Revised: 06/08/2009] [Accepted: 06/10/2009] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Plant viruses can be genetically modified to produce chimeric virus particles (CVPs) carrying heterologous peptides. The efficacy of plant-produced CVPs in inducing antibody responses specific to the displayed peptide has been extensively demonstrated. To determine if plants can be used to produce CVPs able to activate peptide-specific major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I-restricted CD8+ T cells, potato virus X (PVX) has been engineered to display the H-2D(b)-restricted epitope ASNENMETM of influenza A virus nucleoprotein (NP). Engineering criteria were devised to comply not only with plant virus genetic stability and infectivity but also with antigen processing rules. The immunological properties of different doses of endotoxin-free preparations of CVPs or unmodified PVX have been evaluated by s.c. immunizing C57BL/6J mice and testing at different time intervals splenocyte responses by interferon gamma (IFN-gamma) enzyme-linked immunospot (ELISPOT) assay. These experiments demonstrated that CVPs activate ASNENMTEM-specific CD8+ T cells. Remarkably, the best response was achieved without adjuvant co-delivery. These results represent the proof of concept that well-designed plant virus carriers of epitopes produced in plant can reasonably be used into peptide vaccine formulations aimed to activate cell-mediated immune responses.
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Weaver JM, Sant AJ. Understanding the focused CD4 T cell response to antigen and pathogenic organisms. Immunol Res 2009; 45:123-43. [PMID: 19198764 DOI: 10.1007/s12026-009-8095-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Immunodominance is a term that reflects the final, very limited peptide specificity of T cells that are elicited during an immune response. Recent experiments in our laboratory compel us to propose a new paradigm for the control of immunodominance in CD4 T cell responses, stating that immunodominance is peptide-intrinsic and is dictated by the off-rate of peptides from MHC class II molecules. Our studies have revealed that persistence of peptide:class II complexes both predicts and controls CD4 T cell immunodominance and that this parameter can be rationally manipulated to either promote or eliminate immune responses. Mechanistically, we have determined that DM editing in APC is a key event that is influenced by the kinetic stability of class II:peptide complexes and that differential persistence of complexes also impacts the expansion phase of the immune response. These studies have important implications for rational vaccine design and for understanding the immunological mechanisms that limit the specificity of CD4 T cell responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jason M Weaver
- David H. Smith Center for Vaccine Biology and Immunology, AaB Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Rochester, NY 14642, USA
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