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Abstract
Antibody immunodominance refers to the preferential and asymmetric elicitation of antibodies against specific epitopes on a complex protein antigen. Traditional vaccination approaches for rapidly evolving pathogens have had limited success in part because of this phenomenon, as elicited antibodies preferentially target highly variable regions of antigens, and thus do not confer long lasting protection. While antibodies targeting functionally conserved epitopes have the potential to be broadly protective, they often make up a minority of the overall repertoire. Here, we discuss recent protein engineering strategies used to favorably alter patterns of immunodominance, and selectively focus antibody responses toward broadly protective epitopes in the pursuit of next-generation vaccines for rapidly evolving pathogens.
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A Competitive Hemagglutination Inhibition Assay for Dissecting Functional Antibody Activity against Influenza Virus. J Virol 2021; 95:e0237920. [PMID: 34523961 DOI: 10.1128/jvi.02379-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Influenza remains one of the most contagious infectious diseases. Approximately, 25 to 50 million people suffer from influenza-like illness in the United States annually, leading to almost 1 million hospitalizations. Globally, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates 250,000 to 500,000 mortalities associated with secondary respiratory complications due to influenza virus infection every year. Currently, seasonal vaccination represents the best countermeasure to prevent influenza virus spread and transmission in the general population. However, presently licensed influenza vaccines are about 60% effective on average, and their effectiveness varies from season to season and among age groups, as well as between different influenza subtypes within a single season. The hemagglutination inhibition (HAI) assay represents the gold standard method for measuring the functional antibody response elicited following standard-of-care vaccination, along with evaluating the efficacy of under-development influenza vaccines in both animal models and clinical trial settings. However, using the classical HAI approach, it is not possible to dissect the complexities of variable epitope recognition within a polyclonal antibody response. In this paper, we describe a straightforward competitive HAI-based method using a combination of influenza virus and recombinant hemagglutinin (HA) proteins to dissect the HAI functional activity of HA-specific antibody populations in a single assay format. IMPORTANCE The hemagglutination inhibition (HAI) assay is a well-established and reproducible method that quantifies functional antibody activity against influenza viruses and, in particular, the capability of an antibody formulation to inhibit the binding of hemagglutinin (HA) to sialic acid. However, the HAI assay does not provide full insights on the breadth and epitope recognition of the antibody formulation, especially in the context of polyclonal sera, where multiple antibody specificities contribute to the overall observed functional activity. In this report we introduce the use of Y98F point-mutated recombinant HA (HAΔSA) proteins, which lack sialic acid binding activity, in the context of the HAI assay as a means to absorb out certain HA-directed (i.e., strain-specific or cross-reactive) antibody populations. This modification to the classical HAI assay, referred to as the competitive HAI assay, represents a new tool to dissect the magnitude and breadth of polyclonal antibodies elicited through vaccination or natural infection.
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Abstract
Dual oxidase 1 (DUOX1) is an NADPH oxidase that is highly expre-ssed in respiratory epithelial cells and produces H2O2 in the airway lumen. While a line of prior in vitro observations suggested that DUOX1 works in partnership with an airway peroxidase, lactoperoxidase (LPO), to produce antimicrobial hypothiocyanite (OSCN-) in the airways, the in vivo role of DUOX1 in mammalian organisms has remained unproven to date. Here, we show that Duox1 promotes antiviral innate immunity in vivo. Upon influenza airway challenge, Duox1 -/- mice have enhanced mortality, morbidity, and impaired lung viral clearance. Duox1 increases the airway levels of several cytokines (IL-1β, IL-2, CCL1, CCL3, CCL11, CCL19, CCL20, CCL27, CXCL5, and CXCL11), contributes to innate immune cell recruitment, and affects epithelial apoptosis in the airways. In primary human tracheobronchial epithelial cells, OSCN- is generated by LPO using DUOX1-derived H2O2 and inactivates several influenza strains in vitro. We also show that OSCN- diminishes influenza replication and viral RNA synthesis in infected host cells that is inhibited by the H2O2 scavenger catalase. Binding of the influenza virus to host cells and viral entry are both reduced by OSCN- in an H2O2-dependent manner in vitro. OSCN- does not affect the neuraminidase activity or morphology of the influenza virus. Overall, this antiviral function of Duox1 identifies an in vivo role of this gene, defines the steps in the infection cycle targeted by OSCN-, and proposes that boosting this mechanism in vivo can have therapeutic potential in treating viral infections.
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Sautto GA, Ecker JW, Ross TM. An H1N1 Computationally Optimized Broadly Reactive Antigen Elicits a Neutralizing Antibody Response against an Emerging Human-Infecting Eurasian Avian-Like Swine Influenza Virus. J Virol 2021; 95:e0242120. [PMID: 33853960 PMCID: PMC8316128 DOI: 10.1128/jvi.02421-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Giuseppe A. Sautto
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
| | - Jeffrey W. Ecker
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
| | - Ted M. Ross
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
- Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
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Forgacs D, Abreu RB, Sautto GA, Kirchenbaum GA, Drabek E, Williamson KS, Kim D, Emerling DE, Ross TM. Convergent antibody evolution and clonotype expansion following influenza virus vaccination. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0247253. [PMID: 33617543 PMCID: PMC7899375 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0247253] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2020] [Accepted: 02/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent advances in high-throughput single cell sequencing have opened up new avenues into the investigation of B cell receptor (BCR) repertoires. In this study, PBMCs were collected from 17 human participants vaccinated with the split-inactivated influenza virus vaccine during the 2016-2017 influenza season. A combination of Immune Repertoire Capture (IRCTM) technology and IgG sequencing was performed on ~7,800 plasmablast (PB) cells and preferential IgG heavy-light chain pairings were investigated. In some participants, a single expanded clonotype accounted for ~22% of their PB BCR repertoire. Approximately 60% (10/17) of participants experienced convergent evolution, possessing public PBs that were elicited independently in multiple participants. Binding profiles of one private and three public PBs confirmed they were all subtype-specific, cross-reactive hemagglutinin (HA) head-directed antibodies. Collectively, this high-resolution antibody repertoire analysis demonstrated the impact evolution can have on BCRs in response to influenza virus vaccination, which can guide future universal influenza prophylactic approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Forgacs
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, United States of America
| | - Rodrigo B. Abreu
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, United States of America
| | - Giuseppe A. Sautto
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, United States of America
| | - Greg A. Kirchenbaum
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, United States of America
| | - Elliott Drabek
- Atreca, Inc., South San Francisco, CA, United States of America
| | | | - Dongkyoon Kim
- Atreca, Inc., South San Francisco, CA, United States of America
| | | | - Ted M. Ross
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, United States of America
- Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Ecker JW, Kirchenbaum GA, Pierce SR, Skarlupka AL, Abreu RB, Cooper RE, Taylor-Mulneix D, Ross TM, Sautto GA. High-Yield Expression and Purification of Recombinant Influenza Virus Proteins from Stably-Transfected Mammalian Cell Lines. Vaccines (Basel) 2020; 8:vaccines8030462. [PMID: 32825605 PMCID: PMC7565037 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines8030462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2020] [Revised: 08/15/2020] [Accepted: 08/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Influenza viruses infect millions of people each year, resulting in significant morbidity and mortality in the human population. Therefore, generation of a universal influenza virus vaccine is an urgent need and would greatly benefit public health. Recombinant protein technology is an established vaccine platform and has resulted in several commercially available vaccines. Herein, we describe the approach for developing stable transfected human cell lines for the expression of recombinant influenza virus hemagglutinin (HA) and recombinant influenza virus neuraminidase (NA) proteins for the purpose of in vitro and in vivo vaccine development. HA and NA are the main surface glycoproteins on influenza virions and the major antibody targets. The benefits for using recombinant proteins for in vitro and in vivo assays include the ease of use, high level of purity and the ability to scale-up production. This work provides guidelines on how to produce and purify recombinant proteins produced in mammalian cell lines through either transient transfection or generation of stable cell lines from plasmid creation through the isolation step via Immobilized Metal Affinity Chromatography (IMAC). Collectively, the establishment of this pipeline has facilitated large-scale production of recombinant HA and NA proteins to high purity and with consistent yields, including glycosylation patterns that are very similar to proteins produced in a human host.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey W. Ecker
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA; (J.W.E.); (G.A.K.); (S.R.P.); (A.L.S.); (R.B.A.); (R.E.C.); (D.T.-M.); (T.M.R.)
| | - Greg A. Kirchenbaum
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA; (J.W.E.); (G.A.K.); (S.R.P.); (A.L.S.); (R.B.A.); (R.E.C.); (D.T.-M.); (T.M.R.)
| | - Spencer R. Pierce
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA; (J.W.E.); (G.A.K.); (S.R.P.); (A.L.S.); (R.B.A.); (R.E.C.); (D.T.-M.); (T.M.R.)
| | - Amanda L. Skarlupka
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA; (J.W.E.); (G.A.K.); (S.R.P.); (A.L.S.); (R.B.A.); (R.E.C.); (D.T.-M.); (T.M.R.)
| | - Rodrigo B. Abreu
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA; (J.W.E.); (G.A.K.); (S.R.P.); (A.L.S.); (R.B.A.); (R.E.C.); (D.T.-M.); (T.M.R.)
| | - R. Ethan Cooper
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA; (J.W.E.); (G.A.K.); (S.R.P.); (A.L.S.); (R.B.A.); (R.E.C.); (D.T.-M.); (T.M.R.)
| | - Dawn Taylor-Mulneix
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA; (J.W.E.); (G.A.K.); (S.R.P.); (A.L.S.); (R.B.A.); (R.E.C.); (D.T.-M.); (T.M.R.)
| | - Ted M. Ross
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA; (J.W.E.); (G.A.K.); (S.R.P.); (A.L.S.); (R.B.A.); (R.E.C.); (D.T.-M.); (T.M.R.)
- Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
| | - Giuseppe A. Sautto
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA; (J.W.E.); (G.A.K.); (S.R.P.); (A.L.S.); (R.B.A.); (R.E.C.); (D.T.-M.); (T.M.R.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +1-706-542-6711
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