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Jones KM, Zhan B, Ernste KJ, Villar MJ, Bisht N, Nguyen D, Chang LY, Poveda C, Robinson GJ, Trivedi AJ, Hofferek CJ, Decker WK, Konduri V. Immunomodulatory proteins from hookworms reduce cardiac inflammation and modulate regulatory responses in a mouse model of chronic Trypanosoma cruzi infection. FRONTIERS IN PARASITOLOGY 2023; 2:1244604. [PMID: 38239430 PMCID: PMC10795693 DOI: 10.3389/fpara.2023.1244604] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2024]
Abstract
Introduction Hookworms are parasitic helminths that secrete a variety of proteins that induce anti-inflammatory immune responses, stimulating increased CD4 + Foxp3+ regulatory T cells and IL-10 production. Hookworm-derived recombinant proteins AIP-1 and AIP-2 have been shown to reduce inflammation in mouse models of inflammatory bowel disease and inflammatory airway disease by inducing CD4+Foxp3+ cells and IL-10 production. In contrast, chronic infection with the protozoal parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease, leads to chronic inflammation in tissues. Persistence of the parasites in tissues drives chronic low-grade inflammation, with increased infiltration of inflammatory cells into the heart, accompanied by increased production of inflammatory cytokines. There are no current antiparasitic drugs that effectively reduce or prevent chronic myocarditis caused by the onset of Chagas disease, thus new therapies are urgently needed. Therefore, the impact of AIP-1 and AIP-2 on myocarditis was investigated in a mouse model of chronic T. cruzi infection. Methods Female BALB/c mice infected with bioluminescent T. cruzi H1 strain trypomastigotes for 70 days were treated once daily for 7 days with 1mg/kg AIP-1 or AIP-2 protein by intraperitoneal injection. Control mice were left untreated or treated once daily for 14 days with 25mg/kg aspirin in drinking water. At 84 days of infection, splenocytes, cardiac tissue and serum were collected for evaluation. Results Treatment with both AIP-1 and AIP-2 proteins significantly reduced cardiac cellular infiltration, and reduced cardiac levels of IFNγ, IL-6 and IL-2. AIP-2 treatment reduced cardiac expression of COX-2. Further, while incubation with AIP-1 and AIP-2 proteins did not induce a significant upregulation of an immunoregulatory phenotype in dendritic cells (DC), there was a modest upregulation of CD11c +CD11b+MHCII+SIRPα+ expression, suggesting a regulatory phenotype. Ex-vivo stimulation of splenocytes from the treatment groups with AIP-1 loaded DC induced reduced levels of cytotoxic and pro-inflammatory T cells, stimulation with AIP-2 loaded DC specifically induced enhanced levels of CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory T cells among treatment groups. Discussion All in vivo and in vitro results demonstrate that hookworm-derived AIP-1 and AIP-2 proteins reduce T. cruzi induced cardiac inflammation, possibly through multiple anti-inflammatory mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn M. Jones
- National School of Tropical Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Bin Zhan
- National School of Tropical Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Keenan J. Ernste
- Department of Pathology & Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Maria Jose Villar
- National School of Tropical Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Nalini Bisht
- Department of Pathology & Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Duc Nguyen
- Center for Comparative Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Li-Yen Chang
- Department of Medical Microbiology, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Cristina Poveda
- National School of Tropical Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Gonteria J. Robinson
- Molecular & Human Genetics Department, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Akshar J. Trivedi
- Department of Pathology & Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Colby J. Hofferek
- Department of Pathology & Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - William K. Decker
- Department of Pathology & Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Dan L. Duncan Cancer, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Vanaja Konduri
- Department of Pathology & Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Dan L. Duncan Cancer, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
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Jung HE, Ku KB, Kang BH, Park JH, Kim HC, Kim KD, Lee HK. Intranasal delivery of an adenovirus-vector vaccine co-expressing a modified spike protein and a genetic adjuvant confers lasting mucosal immunity against SARS-CoV-2. Antiviral Res 2023; 216:105656. [PMID: 37327877 PMCID: PMC10265935 DOI: 10.1016/j.antiviral.2023.105656] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2023] [Revised: 06/11/2023] [Accepted: 06/14/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection has threatened global health. Since the first case of infection was reported in December 2019, SARS-CoV-2 has rapidly spread worldwide and caused millions of deaths. As vaccination is the best way to protect the host from invading pathogens, several vaccines have been developed to prevent the infection of SARS-CoV-2, saving numerous lives thus far. However, SARS-CoV-2 constantly changes its antigens, resulting in escape from vaccine-induced protection, and the longevity of immunity induced by vaccines remains an issue. Additionally, traditional intramuscular COVID-19 vaccines are insufficient at evoking mucosal-specific immune responses. Because the respiratory tract is the primary route of SARS-CoV-2 entry, the need for mucosal vaccines is strong. Using an adenoviral (Ad) vector platform, we generated Ad5-S.Mod, a recombinant COVID-19 vaccine that encodes modified-spike (S) antigen and the genetic adjuvant human CXCL9. Intranasal delivery of Ad5-S.Mod elicited superior airway humoral and T-cell responses over traditional intramuscular vaccines and protected mice from lethal SARS-CoV-2 infection. cDC1 cells were required for the generation of antigen-specific CD8+ T-cell responses and CD8+ tissue-resident memory T-cell development in intranasal Ad5-S.Mod vaccinated mice. Furthermore, we confirmed the efficacy of the intranasal Ad5-S.Mod vaccine in terms of transcriptional changes and identified lung macrophages as a key supporter of maintenance of lung-resident memory T and B cells. Our study demonstrates Ad5-S.Mod has the potential to confer protective immunity against SARS-CoV-2 and that lung macrophages support the maintenance of vaccine-induced tissue-resident memory lymphocytes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hi Eun Jung
- Graduate School of Medical Science and Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea
| | - Keun Bon Ku
- Graduate School of Medical Science and Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea; Department of Convergent Research of Emerging Virus Infection, Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology, Daejeon, 34114, Republic of Korea
| | - Byeong Hoon Kang
- Graduate School of Medical Science and Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea
| | - Jang Hyun Park
- Graduate School of Medical Science and Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyeon Cheol Kim
- Graduate School of Medical Science and Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea
| | - Kyun-Do Kim
- Department of Convergent Research of Emerging Virus Infection, Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology, Daejeon, 34114, Republic of Korea
| | - Heung Kyu Lee
- Graduate School of Medical Science and Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea; Department of Biological Sciences, KAIST, Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea.
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3
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González-López C, Chen WH, Alfaro-Chacón A, Villanueva-Lizama LE, Rosado-Vallado M, Ramirez-Sierra MJ, Teh-Poot CF, Pollet J, Asojo O, Jones KM, Hotez PJ, Elena Bottazzi M, Cruz-Chan JV. A novel multi-epitope recombinant protein elicits an antigen-specific CD8+ T cells response in Trypanosoma cruzi-infected mice. Vaccine 2022; 40:6445-6449. [PMID: 36184402 DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2022.09.068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2022] [Revised: 09/05/2022] [Accepted: 09/22/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
About 6.5 million people worldwide are afflicted by Chagas disease, which is caused by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. The development of a therapeutic vaccine to prevent the progression of Chagasic cardiomyopathy has been proposed as an alternative for antiparasitic chemotherapy. Bioinformatics tools can predict MHC class I CD8 + epitopes for inclusion in a single recombinant protein with the goal to develop a multivalent vaccine. We expressed a novel recombinant protein Tc24-C4.10E harboring ten nonameric CD8 + epitopes and using Tc24-C4 protein as scaffold to evaluate the therapeutic effect in acute T. cruzi infection. T. cruzi-infected mice were immunized with Tc24-C4.10E or Tc24-C4 in a 50-day model of acute infection. Tc24-C4.10E-treated mice showed a decreased parasitemia compared to the Tc24-C4 (non-adjuvant) immunized mice or control group. Moreover, Tc24-C4.10E induced a higher stimulation index of CD8 + T cells producing IFNγ and IL-4 cytokines. These results suggest that the addition of the MHC Class I epitopes to Tc24-C4 can synergize the antigen-specific cellular immune responses, providing proof-of-concept that this approach could lead to the development of a promising vaccine candidate for Chagas disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cristina González-López
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales "Dr. Hideyo Noguchi", Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, México; Department of Viroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Wen-Hsiang Chen
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA; Departments of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Andrea Alfaro-Chacón
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales "Dr. Hideyo Noguchi", Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, México
| | - Liliana E Villanueva-Lizama
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales "Dr. Hideyo Noguchi", Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, México; Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Miguel Rosado-Vallado
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales "Dr. Hideyo Noguchi", Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, México
| | - Maria Jesús Ramirez-Sierra
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales "Dr. Hideyo Noguchi", Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, México
| | - Christian F Teh-Poot
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales "Dr. Hideyo Noguchi", Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, México
| | - Jeroen Pollet
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA; Departments of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Oluwatoyin Asojo
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA; Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Hampton University, VA, USA
| | - Kathryn M Jones
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA; Departments of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Peter J Hotez
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA; Departments of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Maria Elena Bottazzi
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA; Departments of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Julio Vladimir Cruz-Chan
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales "Dr. Hideyo Noguchi", Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, México; Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.
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Dzul-Huchim VM, Ramirez-Sierra MJ, Martinez-Vega PP, Rosado-Vallado ME, Arana-Argaez VE, Ortega-Lopez J, Gusovsky F, Dumonteil E, Cruz-Chan JV, Hotez P, Bottazzi ME, Villanueva-Lizama LE. Vaccine-linked chemotherapy with a low dose of benznidazole plus a bivalent recombinant protein vaccine prevents the development of cardiac fibrosis caused by Trypanosoma cruzi in chronically-infected BALB/c mice. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2022; 16:e0010258. [PMID: 36095001 PMCID: PMC9499242 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0010258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2022] [Revised: 09/22/2022] [Accepted: 08/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Chagas disease (CD) is caused by Trypanosoma cruzi and affects 6–7 million people worldwide. Approximately 30% of chronic patients develop chronic chagasic cardiomyopathy (CCC) after decades. Benznidazole (BNZ), one of the first-line chemotherapy used for CD, induces toxicity and fails to halt the progression of CCC in chronic patients. The recombinant parasite-derived antigens, including Tc24, Tc24-C4, TSA-1, and TSA-1-C4 with Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR-4) agonist-adjuvants reduce cardiac parasite burdens, heart inflammation, and fibrosis, leading us to envision their use as immunotherapy together with BNZ. Given genetic immunization (DNA vaccines) encoding Tc24 and TSA-1 induce protective immunity in mice and dogs, we propose that immunization with the corresponding recombinant proteins offers an alternative and feasible strategy to develop these antigens as a bivalent human vaccine. We hypothesized that a low dose of BNZ in combination with a therapeutic vaccine (TSA-1-C4 and Tc24-C4 antigens formulated with a synthetic TLR-4 agonist-adjuvant, E6020-SE) given during early chronic infection, could prevent cardiac disease progression and provide antigen-specific T cell immunity. Methodology/ Principal findings We evaluated the therapeutic vaccine candidate plus BNZ (25 mg/kg/day/7 days) given on days 72 and 79 post-infection (p.i) (early chronic phase). Fibrosis, inflammation, and parasite burden were quantified in heart tissue at day 200 p.i. (late chronic phase). Further, spleen cells were collected to evaluate antigen-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cell immune response, using flow cytometry. We found that vaccine-linked BNZ treated mice had lower cardiac fibrosis compared to the infected untreated control group. Moreover, cells from mice that received the immunotherapy had higher stimulation index of antigen-specific CD8+Perforin+ T cells as well as antigen-specific central memory T cells compared to the infected untreated control. Conclusions Our results suggest that the bivalent immunotherapy together with BNZ treatment given during early chronic infection protects BALB/c mice against cardiac fibrosis progression and activates a strong CD8+ T cell response by in vitro restimulation, evidencing the induction of a long-lasting T. cruzi-immunity. Chagas disease (CD) is a neglected tropical disease caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, transmitted through contact with infected feces of vectors bugs. CD can induce cardiac abnormalities including the development of fibrosis and eventually death. Benznidazole (BNZ) is the first-line drug approved against CD, however, its toxicity and lack of efficacy in the chronic phase have limited its use. Previous studies have demonstrated the feasibility of reducing doses of BNZ given in combination with therapeutic vaccines during the acute phase of CD, which increases its tolerability and reduces adverse side effects. Considering that patients are often diagnosed until more advanced stages of the disease, its necessary to evaluate therapies given in the chronic phase of CD. In this study, we evaluated a vaccine formulated with the recombinant T. cruzi-antigens TSA-1-C4 and Tc24-C4 and the adjuvant E6020-SE in combination with a low dose of BNZ given during the chronic phase of T. cruzi-infection using a murine model. The authors found that the combination therapy protects mice against cardiac fibrosis progression, allows the activation of a CD8+ T cell response, and induces a prolonged memory response against T. cruzi. This study supports the development of the vaccine-linked chemotherapy approach to prevent T. cruzi chronic infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victor Manuel Dzul-Huchim
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales Dr. Hideyo Noguchi, Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, Yucatán, México
| | - Maria Jesus Ramirez-Sierra
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales Dr. Hideyo Noguchi, Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, Yucatán, México
| | - Pedro Pablo Martinez-Vega
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales Dr. Hideyo Noguchi, Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, Yucatán, México
| | - Miguel Enrique Rosado-Vallado
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales Dr. Hideyo Noguchi, Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, Yucatán, México
| | - Victor Ermilo Arana-Argaez
- Laboratorio de Farmacología, Facultad de Química, Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, Yucatán, México
| | - Jaime Ortega-Lopez
- Departamento de Biotecnología y Bioingeniería, Centro de Investigación y Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Ciudad de México, México
| | - Fabian Gusovsky
- Eisai, Inc., Eisai Inc, Andover, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Eric Dumonteil
- Department of Tropical Medicine, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, and Vector-Borne and Infectious Disease Research Center, Tulane University, New Orleans, Los Angeles, United States of America
| | - Julio Vladimir Cruz-Chan
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales Dr. Hideyo Noguchi, Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, Yucatán, México
| | - Peter Hotez
- Texas Children’s Center for Vaccine Development, Departments of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology & Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Department of Biology, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, United States of America
| | - María Elena Bottazzi
- Texas Children’s Center for Vaccine Development, Departments of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology & Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Department of Biology, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, United States of America
| | - Liliana Estefania Villanueva-Lizama
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales Dr. Hideyo Noguchi, Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, Yucatán, México
- * E-mail:
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5
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Cruz-Chan JV, Villanueva-Lizama LE, Versteeg L, Damania A, Villar MJ, González-López C, Keegan B, Pollet J, Gusovsky F, Hotez PJ, Bottazzi ME, Jones KM. Vaccine-linked chemotherapy induces IL-17 production and reduces cardiac pathology during acute Trypanosoma cruzi infection. Sci Rep 2021; 11:3222. [PMID: 33547365 PMCID: PMC7865072 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-82930-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2020] [Accepted: 12/21/2020] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Chagas disease resulting from Trypanosoma cruzi infection leads to a silent, long-lasting chronic neglected tropical disease affecting the poorest and underserved populations around the world. Antiparasitic treatment with benznidazole does not prevent disease progression or death in patients with established cardiac disease. Our consortium is developing a therapeutic vaccine based on the T. cruzi flagellar—derived antigen Tc24-C4 formulated with a Toll-like receptor 4 agonist adjuvant, to complement existing chemotherapy and improve treatment efficacy. Here we demonstrate that therapeutic treatment of acutely infected mice with a reduced dose of benznidazole concurrently with vaccine treatment – also known as “vaccine-linked chemotherapy”—induced a TH17 like immune response, with significantly increased production of antigen specific IL-17A, IL-23 and IL-22, and CD8 + T lymphocytes, as well as significantly increased T. cruzi specific IFNγ-producing CD4 + T lymphocytes. Significantly reduced cardiac inflammation, fibrosis, and parasite burdens and improved survival were achieved by vaccine-linked chemotherapy and individual treatments. Importantly, low dose treatments were comparably efficacious to high dose treatments, demonstrating potential dose sparing effects. We conclude that through induction of TH17 immune responses vaccine-linked chemotherapeutic strategies could bridge the tolerability and efficacy gaps of current drug treatment in Chagasic patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julio V Cruz-Chan
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.,Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales "Dr. Hideyo Noguchi", Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, Mexico
| | - Liliana E Villanueva-Lizama
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.,Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales "Dr. Hideyo Noguchi", Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, Mexico
| | - Leroy Versteeg
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.,Cell Biology and Immunology Group, Wageningen University & Research, De Elst 1, 6708 WD, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Ashish Damania
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Maria José Villar
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Cristina González-López
- Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales "Dr. Hideyo Noguchi", Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, Mexico
| | - Brian Keegan
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Jeroen Pollet
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | | | - Peter J Hotez
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.,Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.,James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Maria Elena Bottazzi
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.,Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Kathryn M Jones
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA. .,Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.
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Dumonteil E, Herrera C, Tu W, Goff K, Fahlberg M, Haupt E, Kaur A, Marx PA, Ortega-Lopez J, Hotez PJ, Bottazzi ME. Safety and immunogenicity of a recombinant vaccine against Trypanosoma cruzi in Rhesus macaques. Vaccine 2020; 38:4584-4591. [PMID: 32417142 DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2020.05.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2019] [Revised: 04/21/2020] [Accepted: 05/05/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Chagas disease, caused by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi is one of the most important neglected parasitic diseases in the Americas. Vaccines represent an attractive complementary strategy for the control of T. cruzi infection and pre-clinical studies in mice demonstrated that trypomastigote surface antigen (TSA-1) and the flagellar calcium-binding (Tc24) parasite antigens are promising candidates for vaccine development. We performed here the first evaluation of the safety and immunogenicity of two recombinant vaccine antigens (named TSA1-C4 and Tc24-C4) in naïve non-human primates. Three rhesus macaques received 3 doses of each recombinant protein, formulated with E6020 (Eisai Co., Ltd.), a novel Toll-like receptor-4 agonist, in a stable emulsion. All parameters from blood chemistry and blood cell counts were stable over the course of the study and unaffected by the vaccine. A specific IgG response against both antigens was detectable after the first vaccine dose, and increased with the second dose. After three vaccine doses, stimulation of PBMCs with a peptide pool derived from TSA1-C4 resulted in the induction of TSA1-C4-specific TNFα-, IL-2- and IFNγ-producing CD4+ in one or two animals while stimulation with a peptide pool derived from Tc24-C4 only activated IFNγ-producing CD4+T cells in one animal. In two animals there was also activation of TSA1-C4-specific IL2-producing CD8+ T cells. This is the first report of the immunogenicity of T. cruzi-derived recombinant antigens formulated as an emulsion with a TLR4 agonist in a non-human primate model. Our results strongly support the need for further evaluation of the preventive efficacy of this type of vaccine in non-human primates and explore the effect of the vaccine in a therapeutic model of naturally-infected Chagasic non-human primates, which would strengthen the rationale for the clinical development as a human vaccine against Chagas disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric Dumonteil
- Department of Tropical Medicine, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, and Vector-Borne and Infectious Disease Research Center, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, USA.
| | - Claudia Herrera
- Department of Tropical Medicine, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, and Vector-Borne and Infectious Disease Research Center, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, USA
| | - Weihong Tu
- Department of Tropical Medicine, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, and Vector-Borne and Infectious Disease Research Center, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, USA
| | - Kelly Goff
- Division of Microbiology, Tulane National Primate Research Center, Tulane University, Covington, LA, USA
| | - Marissa Fahlberg
- Division of Immunology, Tulane National Primate Research Center, Tulane University, Covington, LA, USA
| | - Erin Haupt
- Division of Immunology, Tulane National Primate Research Center, Tulane University, Covington, LA, USA
| | - Amitinder Kaur
- Division of Immunology, Tulane National Primate Research Center, Tulane University, Covington, LA, USA
| | - Preston A Marx
- Department of Tropical Medicine, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, and Vector-Borne and Infectious Disease Research Center, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, USA; Division of Microbiology, Tulane National Primate Research Center, Tulane University, Covington, LA, USA
| | - Jaime Ortega-Lopez
- Departmento de Biotecnología y Bioingeniería, CINVESTAV, Mexico, D.F., Mexico
| | - Peter J Hotez
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics and National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Maria Elena Bottazzi
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics and National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
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7
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Ribeiro V, Dias N, Paiva T, Hagström-Bex L, Nitz N, Pratesi R, Hecht M. Current trends in the pharmacological management of Chagas disease. Int J Parasitol Drugs Drug Resist 2020; 12:7-17. [PMID: 31862616 PMCID: PMC6928327 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpddr.2019.11.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2019] [Revised: 11/06/2019] [Accepted: 11/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Chagas disease (CD) is a tropical neglected illness, affecting mainly populations of low socioeconomic status in Latin America. An estimated 6 to 8 million people worldwide are infected with Trypanosoma cruzi, the etiological agent of CD. Despite being one of the main global health problems, this disease continues without effective treatment during the chronic phase of the infection. The limitation of therapeutic strategies has been one of the biggest challenges on the fight against CD. Nifurtimox and benznidazole, developed in the 1970s, are still the only commercial options with established efficacy on CD. However, the efficacy of these drugs have a proven efficacy only during early infection and the benefits in the chronic phase are questionable. Consequently, there is a growing need for new pharmacological alternatives, either by optimization of existing drugs or by the formulation of new compounds. In the present study, a literature review of the currently adopted therapy, its concomitant combination with other drugs, and potential future treatments for CD was performed, considering articles published from 2012. The revised articles were selected according to the protocol of treatment: evaluation of drug association, drug repositioning and research of new drugs. As a result of the present revision, it was possible to conclude that the use of benznidazole in combination with other compounds showed better results when compared with its use as a single therapy. The search of new drugs has been the strategy most used in pursuing more effective forms of treatment for CD. However, studies have still focused on basic research, that is, they are still in a pre-clinical stage, using methodologies based on in vitro or in animal studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vanessa Ribeiro
- Interdisciplinary Laboratory of Biosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Brasilia, Brasilia, Federal District, Brazil.
| | - Nayra Dias
- Interdisciplinary Laboratory of Biosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Brasilia, Brasilia, Federal District, Brazil.
| | - Taís Paiva
- Interdisciplinary Laboratory of Biosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Brasilia, Brasilia, Federal District, Brazil.
| | - Luciana Hagström-Bex
- Interdisciplinary Laboratory of Biosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Brasilia, Brasilia, Federal District, Brazil.
| | - Nadjar Nitz
- Interdisciplinary Laboratory of Biosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Brasilia, Brasilia, Federal District, Brazil.
| | - Riccardo Pratesi
- Interdisciplinary Laboratory of Biosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Brasilia, Brasilia, Federal District, Brazil.
| | - Mariana Hecht
- Interdisciplinary Laboratory of Biosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Brasilia, Brasilia, Federal District, Brazil.
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8
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Barry MA, Versteeg L, Wang Q, Pollet J, Zhan B, Gusovsky F, Bottazzi ME, Hotez PJ, Jones KM. A therapeutic vaccine prototype induces protective immunity and reduces cardiac fibrosis in a mouse model of chronic Trypanosoma cruzi infection. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2019; 13:e0007413. [PMID: 31145733 PMCID: PMC6542517 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0007413] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2018] [Accepted: 04/25/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Chagas disease, caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, develops into chronic Chagas’ cardiomyopathy in ~30% of infected individuals, characterized by conduction disorders, arrhythmias, heart failure, and even sudden cardiac death. Current anti-parasitic treatments are plagued by significant side effects and poor efficacy in the chronic phase of disease; thus, there is a pressing need for new treatment options. A therapeutic vaccine could bolster the protective TH1-mediated immune response, thereby slowing or halting the progression of chronic Chagas’ cardiomyopathy. Prior work in mice has demonstrated therapeutic efficacy of a Tc24 recombinant protein vaccine in the acute phase of Chagas disease. However, it is anticipated that humans will be vaccinated therapeutically when in the chronic phase of disease. This study investigates the therapeutic efficacy of a vaccine prototype containing recombinant protein Tc24, formulated with an emulsion containing the Toll-like receptor 4 agonist E6020 as an immunomodulatory adjuvant in a mouse model of chronic T. cruzi infection. Among outbred ICR mice vaccinated during chronic T. cruzi infection, there is a significant increase in the number of animals with undetectable systemic parasitemia (60% of vaccinated mice compared to 0% in the sham vaccine control group), and a two-fold reduction in cardiac fibrosis over the control group. The vaccinated mice produce a robust protective TH1-biased immune response to the vaccine, as demonstrated by a significant increase in antigen-specific IFNγ-production, the number of antigen-specific IFNγ-producing cells, and IgG2a antibody titers. Importantly, therapeutic vaccination significantly reduced cardiac fibrosis in chronically infected mice. This is a first study demonstrating therapeutic efficacy of the prototype Tc24 recombinant protein and E6020 stable emulsion vaccine against cardiac fibrosis in a mouse model of chronic T. cruzi infection. Chagas disease is a parasitic infection that can cause severe heart disease. Current treatments do not work well and have significant side effects. Because of this, the authors created a new vaccine prototype with the goal that it could be given to infected people to prevent Chagas-associated heart disease. The vaccine contains a manufactured protein identical to a protein in the parasite (called Tc24) as well as a component to help the body produce a protective immune response (a vaccine adjuvant called E6020). The vaccine would boost the body’s natural immune response to the parasite infection, reducing the number of parasites in the body, and protecting the heart. Frequently, people are not diagnosed until later in the infection, because the early (or acute) stage of disease can be mistaken for a common cold. Because of this, it is important to test the vaccine when given in the later (or chronic) stage of infection. The authors tested the vaccine in a mouse model of chronic T. cruzi infection and found that the vaccinated mice had lower levels of parasites in their body and less damage to their hearts. This research shows promising value of a therapeutic vaccine to prevent Chagas-associated heart disease in a mouse model, with the hope that the same effect could be found in humans one day.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meagan A. Barry
- Interdepartmental Program in Translational Biology and Molecular Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Medical Scientist Training Program, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Section of Tropical Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- * E-mail: (MB); (KJ)
| | - Leroy Versteeg
- Section of Tropical Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Qian Wang
- Section of Tropical Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Jeroen Pollet
- Section of Tropical Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Bin Zhan
- Section of Tropical Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Fabian Gusovsky
- Eisai, Inc., Eisai Inc, Andover, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Maria Elena Bottazzi
- Interdepartmental Program in Translational Biology and Molecular Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Section of Tropical Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Department of Biology, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, United States of America
| | - Peter J. Hotez
- Interdepartmental Program in Translational Biology and Molecular Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Section of Tropical Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Department of Biology, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, United States of America
| | - Kathryn M. Jones
- Section of Tropical Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- * E-mail: (MB); (KJ)
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9
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Bartsch SM, Bottazzi ME, Asti L, Strych U, Meymandi S, Falcón-Lezama JA, Randall S, Hotez PJ, Lee BY. Economic value of a therapeutic Chagas vaccine for indeterminate and Chagasic cardiomyopathy patients. Vaccine 2019; 37:3704-3714. [PMID: 31104883 DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2019.05.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2019] [Revised: 05/06/2019] [Accepted: 05/09/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Therapeutic vaccines to prevent Chagas disease progression to cardiomyopathy are under development because the only available medications (benznidazole and nifurtimox) are limited by their efficacy, long treatment course, and side effects. Better understanding the potential clinical and economic value of such vaccines can help guide development and implementation. METHODS We developed a computational Chagas Markov model to evaluate the clinical and economic value of a therapeutic vaccine given in conjunction with benznidazole in indeterminate and chronic Chagas patients. Scenarios explored the vaccine's impact on reducing drug treatment dosage, duration, and adverse events, and risk of disease progression. RESULTS When administering standard-of-care benznidazole to 1000 indeterminate patients, 148 discontinued treatment and 219 progressed to chronic disease, resulting in 119 Chagas-related deaths and 2293 DALYs, costing $18.9 million in lifetime societal costs. Compared to benznidazole-only, therapeutic vaccination administered with benznidazole (25-75% reduction in standard dose and duration), resulted in 37-111 more patients (of 1000) completing treatment, preventing 11-219 patients from progressing, 6-120 deaths, and 108-2229 DALYs (5-100% progression risk reduction), saving ≤$16,171 per patient. When vaccinating determinate Kuschnir class 1 Chagas patients, 10-197 fewer patients further progressed compared to benznidazole-only, averting 11-228 deaths and 144-3037 DALYs (5-100% progression risk reduction), saving ≤$34,059 per person. When vaccinating Kuschnir class 2 patients, 13-279 fewer progressed (279 with benznidazole-only), averting 13-692 deaths and 283-10,785 DALYs (5-100% progression risk reduction), saving ≤$89,759. Therapeutic vaccination was dominant (saved costs and provided health benefits) with ≥ 5% progression risk reduction, except when only reducing drug treatment regimen and adverse events, but remained cost-effective when costing <$200. CONCLUSIONS Our study helps outline the thresholds at which a therapeutic Chagas vaccine may be cost-effective (e.g., <5% reduction in preventing cardiac progression, 25% reduction in benznidazole treatment doses and duration) and cost-saving (e.g., ≥5% and 25%, respectively).
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah M Bartsch
- Public Health Computational and Operational Research (PHICOR), Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Global Obesity Prevention Center (GOPC), Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Maria Elena Bottazzi
- National School of Tropical Medicine and Departments of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology & Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, BCM113 Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Lindsey Asti
- Public Health Computational and Operational Research (PHICOR), Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Global Obesity Prevention Center (GOPC), Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Ulrich Strych
- National School of Tropical Medicine and Departments of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology & Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, BCM113 Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Sheba Meymandi
- Center of Excellence for Chagas Disease at Olive View-UCLA Medical Center, 14445 Olive View Drive, Sylmar, CA 91342, USA
| | - Jorge Abelardo Falcón-Lezama
- Carlos Slim Foundation, Lago Zurich 245, Piso 20. Ampliación Granada, Del. Miguel Hidalgo, C.P. 11529 Ciudad de México, Mexico
| | - Samuel Randall
- Public Health Computational and Operational Research (PHICOR), Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Global Obesity Prevention Center (GOPC), Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Peter J Hotez
- National School of Tropical Medicine and Departments of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology & Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, BCM113 Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Bruce Y Lee
- Public Health Computational and Operational Research (PHICOR), Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Global Obesity Prevention Center (GOPC), Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
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10
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Dendritic cell vaccination plus low-dose doxorubicin for the treatment of spontaneous canine hemangiosarcoma. Cancer Gene Ther 2019; 26:282-291. [PMID: 30670791 PMCID: PMC6760631 DOI: 10.1038/s41417-019-0080-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2018] [Accepted: 12/16/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Angiosarcoma is a deadly neoplasm of the vascular endothelium. Metastatic disease is often present at diagnosis, and 5-year survival is only 10–35%. Although there exist no immunocompetent mouse models of angiosarcoma with which to study immune-based approaches to therapy, angiosarcoma is a major killer of companion dogs, responsible for up to 2% of all canine deaths in some susceptible breeds or an estimated 120,000 per year in the US. The canine disease (HSA) often presents in the spleen as acute hemoabdomen secondary to splenic rupture. Even if life-saving splenectomy is performed, median overall survival (OS) is only 48 days, and 1-year survival is negligible. Here we report the analysis of a pilot phase I open-label trial of chemo-immunotherapy performed on consecutively presenting splenectomized canines with histologically verified HSA. Subjects received an abbreviated course of low-dose doxorubicin plus alpha interferon and an autologous dendritic cell-therapy reported to enhance durable CD8+ memory. Disease was monitored monthly by abdominal ultrasound, chest X-ray, and echocardiogram. Median OS in the per protocol population was 109 days including one of five animals that died cancer-free at 16 months after documented resolution of relapsed disease. These results indicate that therapeutic administration of chemo-immunotherapy is both feasible and safe, substantiating the rationale for additional veterinary and human clinical studies.
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11
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de la Cruz JJ, Villanueva-Lizama L, Dzul-Huchim V, Ramírez-Sierra MJ, Martinez-Vega P, Rosado-Vallado M, Ortega-Lopez J, Flores-Pucheta CI, Gillespie P, Zhan B, Bottazzi ME, Hotez PJ, Dumonteil E. Production of recombinant TSA-1 and evaluation of its potential for the immuno-therapeutic control of Trypanosoma cruzi infection in mice. Hum Vaccin Immunother 2018; 15:210-219. [PMID: 30192702 PMCID: PMC6363145 DOI: 10.1080/21645515.2018.1520581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
A therapeutic vaccine for human Chagas disease (American trypanosomiasis caused by Trypanosoma cruzi) is under development based on the success of vaccinating mice with DNA constructs expressing the antigens Tc24 and Tc-TSA-1. However, because DNA and nucleic acid vaccines produce less than optimal responses in humans, our strategy relies on administering a recombinant protein-based vaccine, together with adjuvants that promote Th1-type immunity. Here we describe a process for the purification and refolding of recombinant TSA-1 expressed in Escherichia coli. The overall yield (20–25%) and endotoxin level of the purified recombinant TSA-1 (rTSA-1) is suitable for pilot scale production of the antigen for use in phase 1 clinical trials. Mice infected with T. cruzi were treated with rTSA-1, either alone or with Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR-4) agonist adjuvants including monophosphoryl lipid A (MPLA), glucopyranosyl lipid A (GLA, IDRI), and E6020 (EISEI, Inc). TSA-1 with the TLR-4 agonists was effective at reducing parasitemia relative to rTSA-1 alone, although it was difficult to discern a therapeutic effect compared to treatment with TLR-4 agonists alone. However, rTSA-1 with a 10 ug dose of MPLA optimized reductions in cardiac tissue inflammation, which were significantly reduced compared to MPLA alone. It also elicited the lowest parasite burden and the highest levels of TSA-1-specific IFN-gamma levels and IFN-gamma/IL-4 ratios. These results warrant the further evaluation of rTSA-1 in combination with rTc24 in order to maximize the therapeutic effect of vaccine-linked chemotherapy in both mice and non-human primates before advancing to clinical development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan Jose de la Cruz
- a Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales Dr. Hideyo Noguchi , Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán , Mérida , Yucatán , México
| | - Liliana Villanueva-Lizama
- a Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales Dr. Hideyo Noguchi , Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán , Mérida , Yucatán , México
| | - Victor Dzul-Huchim
- a Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales Dr. Hideyo Noguchi , Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán , Mérida , Yucatán , México
| | - María-Jesus Ramírez-Sierra
- a Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales Dr. Hideyo Noguchi , Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán , Mérida , Yucatán , México
| | - Pedro Martinez-Vega
- a Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales Dr. Hideyo Noguchi , Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán , Mérida , Yucatán , México
| | - Miguel Rosado-Vallado
- a Laboratorio de Parasitología, Centro de Investigaciones Regionales Dr. Hideyo Noguchi , Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán , Mérida , Yucatán , México
| | - Jaime Ortega-Lopez
- b Departamento de Biotecnología y Bioingeniería , CINVESTAV-IPN , Ciudad de México , México
| | | | - Portia Gillespie
- c Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology and Microbiology , National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine , Houston , TX , USA
| | - Bin Zhan
- c Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology and Microbiology , National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine , Houston , TX , USA
| | - Maria Elena Bottazzi
- c Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology and Microbiology , National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine , Houston , TX , USA
| | - Peter J Hotez
- c Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology and Microbiology , National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine , Houston , TX , USA
| | - Eric Dumonteil
- d Department of Tropical Medicine , Vector-Borne and Infectious Disease Research Center, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Tulane University , New Orleans , LA , USA
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12
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Filardy AA, Guimarães-Pinto K, Nunes MP, Zukeram K, Fliess L, Pereira L, Oliveira Nascimento D, Conde L, Morrot A. Human Kinetoplastid Protozoan Infections: Where Are We Going Next? Front Immunol 2018; 9:1493. [PMID: 30090098 PMCID: PMC6069677 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2018.01493] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2017] [Accepted: 06/15/2018] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Kinetoplastida trypanosomatidae microorganisms are protozoan parasites exhibiting a developmental stage in the gut of insect vectors and tissues of vertebrate hosts. During the vertebrate infective stages, these parasites alter the differential expression of virulence genes, modifying their biological and antigenic properties in order to subvert the host protective immune responses and establish a persistent infection. One of the hallmarks of kinetoplastid parasites is their evasion mechanisms from host immunity, leading to disease chronification. The diseases caused by kinetoplastid parasites are neglected by the global expenditures in research and development, affecting millions of individuals in the low and middle-income countries located mainly in the tropical and subtropical regions. However, investments made by public and private initiatives have over the past decade leveraged important lines of intervention that if well-integrated to health care programs will likely accelerate disease control initiatives. This review summarizes recent advances in public health care principles, including new drug discoveries and their rational use with chemotherapeutic vaccines, and the implementation of control efforts to spatially mapping the kinetoplastid infections through monitoring of infected individuals in epidemic areas. These approaches should bring us the means to track genetic variation of parasites and drug resistance, integrating this knowledge into effective stewardship programs to prevent vector-borne kinetoplastid infections in areas at risk of disease spreading.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandra Almeida Filardy
- Department of Immunology, Paulo de Góes Microbiology Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Kamila Guimarães-Pinto
- Department of Immunology, Paulo de Góes Microbiology Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Marise Pinheiro Nunes
- Immunoparasitology Laboratory, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Oswaldo Cruz Institute, FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Ketiuce Zukeram
- Department of Immunology, Paulo de Góes Microbiology Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Lara Fliess
- Department of Immunology, Paulo de Góes Microbiology Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Ludimila Pereira
- Department of Immunology, Paulo de Góes Microbiology Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Danielle Oliveira Nascimento
- Department of Immunology, Paulo de Góes Microbiology Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Luciana Conde
- Department of Immunology, Paulo de Góes Microbiology Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Alexandre Morrot
- Immunoparasitology Laboratory, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Oswaldo Cruz Institute, FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.,Tuberculosis Research Center, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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13
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Paroli AF, Gonzalez PV, Díaz-Luján C, Onofrio LI, Arocena A, Cano RC, Carrera-Silva EA, Gea S. NLRP3 Inflammasome and Caspase-1/11 Pathway Orchestrate Different Outcomes in the Host Protection Against Trypanosoma cruzi Acute Infection. Front Immunol 2018; 9:913. [PMID: 29774028 PMCID: PMC5944318 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2018.00913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2018] [Accepted: 04/12/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Infection with protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi results in activation of nucleotide-binding domain and leucine-rich repeat containing receptors (NLRs). NLR activation leads to inflammasome formation, the activation of caspase-1, and the subsequent cleavage of IL-1β and IL-18. Considering that inflammasome activation and IL-1β induction by macrophages are key players for an appropriate T cell response, we investigated the relevance of NLR pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) and caspase-1/11 to elucidate their roles in the induction of different T cell phenotypes and the relationship with parasite load and hepatic inflammation during T. cruzi-Tulahuen strain acute infection. We demonstrated that infected nlrp3-/- and C57BL/6 wild type (WT) mice exhibited similar parasitemia and survival, although the parasite load was higher in the livers of nlrp3-/- mice than in those of WT mice. Increased levels of transaminases and pro-inflammatory cytokines were found in the plasma of WT and nlrp3-/- mice indicating that NLRP3 is dispensable to control the parasitemia but it is required for a better clearance of parasites in the liver. Importantly, we have found that NLRP3 and caspase-1/11-deficient mice differentially modulate T helper (Th1, Th2, and Th17) and cytotoxic T lymphocyte phenotypes. Strikingly, caspase-1/11-/- mice showed the most dramatic reduction in the number of IFN-γ- and IL-17-producing CD4+ and CD8+ T cells associated with higher parasitemia and lower survival. Additionally, caspase-1/11-/- mice demonstrated significantly reduced liver inflammation with the lowest alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels but the highest hepatic parasitic load. These results unequivocally demonstrate that caspase-1/11 pathway plays an important role in the induction of liver adaptive immunity against this parasite infection as well as in hepatic inflammation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Augusto F Paroli
- Centro de Investigaciones en Bioquímica Clínica e Inmunología (CIBICI - CONICET), Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Patricia V Gonzalez
- Centro de Investigaciones en Bioquímica Clínica e Inmunología (CIBICI - CONICET), Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Cintia Díaz-Luján
- Instituto de Biología Celular, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Luisina I Onofrio
- Centro de Investigaciones en Bioquímica Clínica e Inmunología (CIBICI - CONICET), Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Alfredo Arocena
- Centro de Investigaciones en Bioquímica Clínica e Inmunología (CIBICI - CONICET), Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Roxana C Cano
- Centro de Investigaciones en Bioquímica Clínica e Inmunología (CIBICI - CONICET), Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Eugenio A Carrera-Silva
- Instituto de Medicina Experimental (IMEX-CONICET), Academia Nacional de Medicina, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Susana Gea
- Centro de Investigaciones en Bioquímica Clínica e Inmunología (CIBICI - CONICET), Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
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