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Duan H, Huang W, Lv Q, Liu P, Li Q, Kong D, Sun X, Zhang X, Jiang Y, Chen S. Using Surface Immunogenic Protein as a Carrier Protein to Elicit Protective Antibody to Multiple Serotypes for Candidate Group B Streptococcal Glycan Conjugate Vaccines. Vaccines (Basel) 2024; 12:573. [PMID: 38932301 PMCID: PMC11209137 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines12060573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2024] [Revised: 05/15/2024] [Accepted: 05/18/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is a life-threatening opportunistic pathogen, particularly in pregnant women, infants, and the elderly. Currently, maternal vaccination is considered the most viable long-term option for preventing GBS mother-to-infant infection, and two polysaccharide conjugate vaccines utilizing CRM197 as a carrier protein have undergone clinical phase II trials. Surface immunogenic protein (Sip), present in all identified serotypes of GBS strains so far, is a protective surface protein of GBS. In this study, the type Ia capsular polysaccharide (CPS) of GBS was utilized as a model to develop candidate antigens for a polysaccharide conjugate vaccine by coupling it with the Sip of GBS and the traditional carrier protein CRM197. Serum analysis from immunized New Zealand rabbits and CD1 mice revealed that there was no significant difference in antibody titers between the Ia-Sip group and Ia-CRM197 group; however, both were significantly higher than those observed in the Ia polysaccharide group. Opsonophagocytosis and passive immune protection results using rabbit serum indicated no significant difference between the Ia-Sip and Ia-CRM197 groups, both outperforming the Ia polysaccharide group. Furthermore, serum from the Ia-Sip group had a cross-protective effect on multiple types of GBS strains. The challenge test results in CD1 mice demonstrated that the Ia-Sip group provided complete protection against lethal doses of bacteria and also showed cross-protection against type III strain. Our study demonstrates for the first time that Ia-Sip is immunogenic and provides serotype-independent protection in glycan conjugate vaccines, which also indicates Sip may serve as an excellent carrier protein for GBS glycan conjugate vaccines and provide cross-protection against multiple GBS strains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huiqi Duan
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Wenhua Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Qingyu Lv
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Peng Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Qian Li
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Decong Kong
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Xuyang Sun
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing 100071, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Breeding and Healthy Husbandry, College of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Tianjin Agricultural University, Tianjin 300392, China
| | - Xinran Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Yongqiang Jiang
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Shaolong Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing 100071, China
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Abstract
The surface of the Gram-positive opportunistic pathogen Streptococcus agalactiae, or group B Streptococcus (GBS), harbors several carbohydrate and protein antigens with the potential to be effective vaccines. Capsular polysaccharides of all clinically-relevant GBS serotypes coupled to immunogenic proteins of both GBS and non-GBS origin have undergone extensive testing in animals that led to advanced clinical trials in healthy adult women. In addition, GBS proteins either alone or in combination have been tested in animals; a fusion protein construct has recently advanced to human clinical studies. Given our current understanding of the antigenicity and immunogenicity of the wide array of GBS surface antigens, formulations now exist for the generation of viable vaccines against diseases caused by GBS.
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Vasilyeva A, Santos Sanches I, Florindo C, Dmitriev A. Natural Mutations in Streptococcus agalactiae Resulting in Abrogation of β Antigen Production. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0128426. [PMID: 26047354 PMCID: PMC4457541 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0128426] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2014] [Accepted: 04/27/2015] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Streptococcus agalactiae genome encodes 21 two-component systems (TCS) and a variety of regulatory proteins in order to control gene expression. One of the TCS, BgrRS, comprising the BgrR DNA-binding regulatory protein and BgrS sensor histidine kinase, was discovered within a putative virulence island. BgrRS influences cell metabolism and positively control the expression of bac gene, coding for β antigen at transcriptional level. Inactivation of bgrR abrogated bac gene expression and increased virulence properties of S. agalactiae. In this study, a total of 140 strains were screened for the presence of bac gene, and the TCS bgrR and bgrS genes. A total of 53 strains carried the bac, bgrR and bgrS genes. Most of them (48 strains) expressed β antigen, while five strains did not express β antigen. Three strains, in which bac gene sequence was intact, while bgrR and/or bgrS genes had mutations, and expression of β antigen was absent, were complemented with a constructed plasmid pBgrRS(P) encoding functionally active bgrR and bgrS gene alleles. This procedure restored expression of β antigen indicating the crucial regulatory role of TCS BgrRS. The complemented strain A49V/BgrRS demonstrated attenuated virulence in intraperitoneal mice model of S. agalactiae infection compared to parental strain A49V. In conclusion we showed that disruption of β antigen expression is associated with: i) insertion of ISSa4 upstream the bac gene just after the ribosomal binding site; ii) point mutation G342A resulting a stop codon TGA within the bac gene and a truncated form of β antigen; iii) single deletion (G) in position 439 of the bgrR gene resulting in a frameshift and the loss of DNA-binding domain of the BgrR protein, and iv) single base substitutions in bgrR and bgrS genes causing single amino acid substitutions in BgrR (Arg187Lys) and BgrS (Arg252Gln). The fact that BgrRS negatively controls virulent properties of S. agalactiae gives a novel clue for understanding of S. agalactiae adaptation to the human.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anastasia Vasilyeva
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Institute of Experimental Medicine, Saint-Petersburg, Russia
| | - Ilda Santos Sanches
- Department of Life Sciences, Centro de Recursos Microbiológicos (CREM) and Research Unit on Applied Molecular Biosciences (UCIBIO, REQUIMTE), Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Caparica, Portugal
- * E-mail:
| | - Carlos Florindo
- Department of Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Health, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Alexander Dmitriev
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Institute of Experimental Medicine, Saint-Petersburg, Russia
- Department of Fundamental Problems of Medicine and Medical Technologies, Saint-Petersburg State University, Saint-Petersburg, Russia
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Liu G, Zhang W, Lu C. Comparative genomics analysis of Streptococcus agalactiae reveals that isolates from cultured tilapia in China are closely related to the human strain A909. BMC Genomics 2013; 14:775. [PMID: 24215651 PMCID: PMC3831827 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2164-14-775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2013] [Accepted: 10/28/2013] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Streptococcus agalactiae, also referred to as Group B Streptococcus (GBS), is a frequent resident of the rectovaginal tract in humans, and a major cause of neonatal infection. In addition, S. agalactiae is a known fish pathogen, which compromises food safety and represents a zoonotic hazard. The complete genome sequence of the piscine S. agalactiae isolate GD201008-001 was compared with 14 other piscine, human and bovine strains to explore their virulence determinants, evolutionary relationships and the genetic basis of host tropism in S. agalactiae. RESULTS The pan-genome of S. agalactiae is open and its size increases with the addition of newly sequenced genomes. The core genes shared by all isolates account for 50 ~ 70% of any single genome. The Chinese piscine isolates GD201008-001 and ZQ0910 are phylogenetically distinct from the Latin American piscine isolates SA20-06 and STIR-CD-17, but are closely related to the human strain A909, in the context of the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPRs), prophage, virulence-associated genes and phylogenetic relationships. We identified a unique 10 kb gene locus in Chinese piscine strains. CONCLUSIONS Isolates from cultured tilapia in China have a close genomic relationship with the human strain A909. Our findings provide insight into the pathogenesis and host-associated genome content of piscine S. agalactiae isolated in China.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guangjin Liu
- Key Laboratory of Animal Bacteriology, Ministry of Agriculture, Nanjing Agricultural University, Weigang No.1, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210095, China
| | - Wei Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Bacteriology, Ministry of Agriculture, Nanjing Agricultural University, Weigang No.1, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210095, China
| | - Chengping Lu
- Key Laboratory of Animal Bacteriology, Ministry of Agriculture, Nanjing Agricultural University, Weigang No.1, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210095, China
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Animal models for neonatal diseases in humans. Vaccine 2013; 31:2489-99. [DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2012.11.089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2012] [Revised: 11/20/2012] [Accepted: 11/28/2012] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
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Marió MJS, Valenzuela I, Vásquez AE, Illanes SE. Prevention of Early-onset Neonatal Group B Streptococcal Disease. REVIEWS IN OBSTETRICS & GYNECOLOGY 2013; 6:63-68. [PMID: 24358406 PMCID: PMC3861949] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
Streptococcus agalactiae, also known as Group B Streptococcus (GBS), is an opportunistic pathogen that colonizes the gastrointestinal and genitourinary tracts of up to 50% of healthy adults and newborns; it is responsible for significant morbidity and mortality. Early detection can be used to establish the use of antibiotic prophylaxis to significantly reduce neonatal sepsis. This article reviews methods of detection and prevention of GBS infection in the neonate.
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Affiliation(s)
- M J Soto Marió
- Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology and Laboratory of Reproductive Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Los Andes, Santiago, Chile
| | - I Valenzuela
- Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology and Laboratory of Reproductive Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Los Andes, Santiago, Chile
| | - A E Vásquez
- Biotechnology Section, Department of Environmental Health, Instituto de Salud Pública de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - S E Illanes
- Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology and Laboratory of Reproductive Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Los Andes, Santiago, Chile
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Mavenyengwa RT, Maeland JA, Moyo SR. Serotype markers in a Streptococcus agalactiae strain collection from Zimbabwe. Indian J Med Microbiol 2010; 28:313-9. [DOI: 10.4103/0255-0857.71819] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
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Progress in the development of effective vaccines to prevent selected gram-positive bacterial infections. Am J Med Sci 2010; 340:218-25. [PMID: 20697258 DOI: 10.1097/maj.0b013e3181e939ab] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Infections caused by virulent Gram-positive bacteria, such as Staphylococcus aureus, group B streptococci and group A streptococci, remain significant causes of morbidity and mortality despite progress in antimicrobial therapy. Despite significant advances in the understanding of the pathogenesis of infection caused by these organisms, there are only limited strategies to prevent infection. In this article, we review efforts to develop safe and effective vaccines that would prevent infections caused by these 3 pathogens.
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Yang Q, Zhang M, Harrington DJ, Black GW, Sutcliffe IC. A proteomic investigation of Streptococcus agalactiae grown under conditions associated with neonatal exposure reveals the upregulation of the putative virulence factor C protein β antigen. Int J Med Microbiol 2010; 300:331-7. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijmm.2010.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2009] [Revised: 11/30/2009] [Accepted: 01/06/2010] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
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Putative novel surface-exposed Streptococcus agalactiae protein frequently expressed by the group B streptococcus from Zimbabwe. CLINICAL AND VACCINE IMMUNOLOGY : CVI 2009; 16:1302-8. [PMID: 19587152 DOI: 10.1128/cvi.00133-09] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Group B streptococci (GBS) express a variety of surface-exposed and strain-variable proteins which function as phenotypic markers and as antigens which are able to induce protective immunity in experimental settings. Among these proteins, the chimeric and immunologically cross-reacting alpha-like proteins are particularly important. Another protein, R3, which has been less well studied, occurred at a frequency of 21.5% in GBS from Zimbabwe and, notably, occurred in serotype V strains at a frequency of 75.9%. Working with rabbit antiserum raised against the R3 reference strain ATCC 49447 (strain 10/84; serotype V/R3) to detect the expression of the R3 protein, we recorded findings which suggested that strain 10/84 expressed a strain-variable protein antigen, in addition to R3. The antigen was detected by various enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay-based tests by using acid extract antigens or GBS whole-cell coats and by whole-cell-based Western blotting. We named the putative novel antigen the Z antigen. The Z antigen was a high-molecular-mass antigen that was susceptible to degradation by pepsin and trypsin but that was resistant to m-periodate oxidation and failed to show immunological cross-reactivity with any of a variety of other GBS protein antigens. The Z antigen was expressed by 33/121 (27.2%) of strains of a Zimbabwean GBS strain collection and by 64.2% and 72.4% of the type Ib and type V strains, respectively, and was occasionally expressed by GBS of other capsular serotypes. Thus, the putative novel GBS protein named Z showed distinct capsular antigen associations and presented as an important phenotypic marker in GBS from Zimbabwe. It may be an important antigen in GBS from larger areas of southern Africa. Its prevalence in GBS from Western countries is not known.
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Radtke A, Kong F, Bergh K, Lyng RV, Ko D, Gilbert GL. Identification of surface proteins of group B streptococci: serotyping versus genotyping. J Microbiol Methods 2009; 78:363-5. [PMID: 19573567 DOI: 10.1016/j.mimet.2009.06.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2009] [Revised: 06/22/2009] [Accepted: 06/23/2009] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
We compared serotyping to genotyping of group B streptococcal (GBS) surface proteins in 147 Australasian isolates. Results were concordant for the two methods in 73.8% of 122 isolates, discordant for three and partially discordant for 29 isolates. For the purpose of epidemiological typing of GBS, genotyping is superior to serotyping.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Radtke
- Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Children's and Women's Health, Trondheim, Norway.
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Guttormsen HK, Liu Y, Paoletti LC. Functional activity of antisera to group B streptococcal conjugate vaccines measured with an opsonophagocytosis assay and HL-60 effector cells. HUMAN VACCINES 2008; 4:370-4. [PMID: 18398304 DOI: 10.4161/hv.4.5.5988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Conjugate vaccines against group B Streptococcus (GBS), which is a leading cause of bacterial disease among newborns and the elderly with underlying illnesses, have progressed from animal studies to phase 1 and 2 clinical trials in healthy adults. Due to the wide-spread use of antibiotics to treat at-risk deliveries, a phase 3 efficacy trial of a GBS vaccine to prevent neonatal disease in the United States is unlikely. A viable approach to assess a vaccine's efficacy is to use a surrogate of protection which in the case of GBS is the opsonizing activity of serum antibody. The opsonophagocytosis assay (OPA) measures the ability of serum antibody to opsonize GBS for killing by effector cells in the presence of complement. In this report we demonstrate that differentiated HL-60 cells can substitute for human peripheral blood leukocytes (hPMNLs) in the OPA. Antisera to GBS type Ia CPS and type III CPS conjugate vaccines opsonized homologous GBS for killing at effector cells to GBS ratios of 2-4:1 regardless of whether HL-60 or hPMNLs were used. These results represent the first important step in developing a standardized, high-throughput OPA that could be used to assess the functional activity of vaccine-induced antibody and potentially serve as a surrogate of efficacy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hilde-Kari Guttormsen
- Channing Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.
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Recombinant group B Streptococcus alpha-like protein 3 is an effective immunogen and carrier protein. CLINICAL AND VACCINE IMMUNOLOGY : CVI 2008; 15:1035-41. [PMID: 18463225 DOI: 10.1128/cvi.00030-08] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Conjugate vaccines against pathogens of multiple serotypes are optimized when all components induce functional antibody, resulting in broadened coverage. While most clinical studies of vaccines against group B Streptococcus (GBS) have evaluated conjugates composed of capsular polysaccharide (CPS) coupled to tetanus toxoid, conjugates prepared with GBS proteins as carriers have also been efficacious in animals. Here, we report that recombinant GBS alpha-like protein 3 (rAlp3) is both a strong immunogen and a viable carrier protein for type III CPS. The type III CPS-specific immunoglobulin G (IgG) titer rose from <100 to 64,000 among mice that received type III CPS coupled to rAlp3 (III-rAlp3) compared with an absence of a specific response among mice that received an uncoupled mixture. Most (94%) newborn pups born to III-rAlp-vaccinated dams survived challenge with viable type III GBS, compared with 43% survival among those born to dams that received the uncoupled mixture (P < 0.0001). A tricomponent conjugate of type III CPS, rAlp3, and a GBS recombinant beta C protein lacking its IgA binding site (III-rAlp3-rBCP(DeltaIgA)) provided protection against a serotype III strain and a serotype Ia strain bearing beta C protein. High-titered anti-rAlp3 rabbit serum opsonized Alp3-containing strains of two GBS serotypes (types V and VIII) and invasive type III strains bearing the cross-reactive Rib protein for in vitro killing by human peripheral blood leukocytes. Thus, the potential exists for the inclusion of rAlp3 in a GBS vaccine formulated to provide multiserotype coverage.
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