Enzymatic synthesis of 2'-ara and 2'-deoxy analogues of c-di-GMP

Heterologous expression of diadenylate cyclase in the form of inclusion bodies with enzymatic activity

Using the DNA recombination technique, a new bacterial strain Escherichia coli DAC-22 was derived, whose cells are able to carry out the heterologous expression of Bacillus thuringiensis diadenylate cyclase – the enzyme catalyzing the reaction of adenosine-5′-triphosphate (ATP) transformation into cyclic 3′,5′-diadenylate (cyclo-di-AMP). To derive the strain, E. coli “Rosetta (DE3) pLysS” cells were originally used as recipients of plasmid pET42a+ with the inserted gene disA encoding diadenylate cyclase of B. thuringiensis. The cells of the recombinant strain are able to produce heterologous diadenylate cyclase localized predominantly (by 90 %) in the fraction of the catalytically active inclusion bodies. The productivity of the new strain with respect to diadenylate cyclase structurally arranged as the inclusion bodies was 720 units/l of cultural fluid. The inclusion bodies formed by the newly engineered strain are intended for use in the technology of producing pharmacologically promising cyclo-di-AMP.

The Promise and Challenges of Cyclic Dinucleotides as Molecular Adjuvants for Vaccine Development

Cyclic dinucleotides (CDNs), originally discovered as bacterial second messengers, play critical roles in bacterial signal transduction, cellular processes, biofilm formation, and virulence. The finding that CDNs can trigger the innate immune response in eukaryotic cells through the stimulator of interferon genes (STING) signalling pathway has prompted the extensive research and development of CDNs as potential immunostimulators and novel molecular adjuvants for induction of systemic and mucosal innate and adaptive immune responses. In this review, we summarize the chemical structure, biosynthesis regulation, and the role of CDNs in enhancing the crosstalk between host innate and adaptive immune responses. We also discuss the strategies to improve the efficient delivery of CDNs and the recent advance and future challenges in the development of CDNs as potential adjuvants in prophylactic vaccines against infectious diseases and in therapeutic vaccines against cancers.

Chemical Strategies to Boost Cancer Vaccines

Personalized cancer vaccines (PCVs) are reinvigorating vaccine strategies in cancer immunotherapy. In contrast to adoptive T-cell therapy and checkpoint blockade, the PCV strategy modulates the innate and adaptive immune systems with broader activation to redeploy antitumor immunity with individualized tumor-specific antigens (neoantigens). Following a sequential scheme of tumor biopsy, mutation analysis, and epitope prediction, the administration of neoantigens with synthetic long peptide (SLP) or mRNA formulations dramatically improves the population and activity of antigen-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Despite the promising prospect of PCVs, there is still great potential for optimizing prevaccination procedures and vaccine potency. In particular, the arduous development of tumor-associated antigen (TAA)-based vaccines provides valuable experience and rational principles for augmenting vaccine potency which is expected to advance PCV through the design of adjuvants, delivery systems, and immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME) reversion since current personalized vaccination simply admixes antigens with adjuvants. Considering the broader application of TAA-based vaccine design, these two strategies complement each other and can lead to both personalized and universal therapeutic methods. Chemical strategies provide vast opportunities for (1) exploring novel adjuvants, including synthetic molecules and materials with optimizable activity, (2) constructing efficient and precise delivery systems to avoid systemic diffusion, improve biosafety, target secondary lymphoid organs, and enhance antigen presentation, and (3) combining bioengineering methods to innovate improvements in conventional vaccination, "smartly" re-educate the TME, and modulate antitumor immunity. As chemical strategies have proven versatility, reliability, and universality in the design of T cell- and B cell-based antitumor vaccines, the union of such numerous chemical methods in vaccine construction is expected to provide new vigor and vitality in cancer treatment.