1
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Zhou P, Qiu T, Wang X, Yang X, Shi H, Zhu C, Dai W, Xing M, Zhang X, Xu J, Zhou D. One HA stalk topping multiple heads as a novel influenza vaccine. Emerg Microbes Infect 2024; 13:2290838. [PMID: 38044872 PMCID: PMC10810646 DOI: 10.1080/22221751.2023.2290838] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2023] [Accepted: 11/29/2023] [Indexed: 12/05/2023]
Abstract
Classic chimeric hemagglutinin (cHA) was designed to induce immune responses against the conserved stalk domain of HA. However, it is unclear whether combining more than one HA head domain onto one stalk domain is immunogenic and further induce immune responses against influenza viruses. Here, we constructed numerous novel cHAs comprising two or three fuzed head domains from different subtypes grafted onto one stalk domain, designated as cH1-H3, cH1-H7, cH1-H3-H7, and cH1-H7-H3. The three-dimensional structures of these novel cHAs were modelled using bioinformatics simulations. Structural analysis showed that the intact neutralizing epitopes were exposed in cH1-H7 and were predicted to be immunogenic. The immunogenicity of the cHAs constructs was evaluated in mice using a chimpanzee adenoviral vector (AdC68) vaccine platform. The results demonstrated that cH1-H7 expressed by AdC68 (AdC68-cH1-H7) induced the production of high levels of binding antibodies, neutralizing antibodies, and hemagglutinin inhibition antibodies against homologous pandemic H1N1, drifted seasonal H1N1, and H7N9 virus. Moreover, vaccinated mice were fully protected from a lethal challenge with the aforementioned influenza viruses. Hence, cH1-H7 cHAs with potent immunogenicity might be a potential novel vaccine to provide protection against different subtypes of influenza virus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ping Zhou
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China
- Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China
| | - Tianyi Qiu
- Institute of Clinical Science, ZhongShan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China
- Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China
| | - Xiang Wang
- Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China
| | - Xi Yang
- Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China
| | - Hongyang Shi
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China
| | - Caihong Zhu
- Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China
| | - Weiqian Dai
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China
| | - Man Xing
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China
| | - Xiaoyan Zhang
- Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China
| | - Jianqing Xu
- Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China
| | - Dongming Zhou
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China
- Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China
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2
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Xu D, Carter JJ, Li C, Utz A, Weidenbacher PAB, Tang S, Sanyal M, Pulendran B, Barnes CO, Kim PS. Vaccine design via antigen reorientation. Nat Chem Biol 2024:10.1038/s41589-023-01529-6. [PMID: 38225471 PMCID: PMC11247139 DOI: 10.1038/s41589-023-01529-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 12/14/2023] [Indexed: 01/17/2024]
Abstract
A major challenge in creating universal influenza vaccines is to focus immune responses away from the immunodominant, variable head region of hemagglutinin (HA-head) and toward the evolutionarily conserved stem region (HA-stem). Here we introduce an approach to control antigen orientation via site-specific insertion of aspartate residues that facilitates antigen binding to alum. We demonstrate the generalizability of this approach with antigens from Ebola, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and influenza viruses and observe enhanced neutralizing antibody responses in all cases. We then reorient an H2 HA in an 'upside-down' configuration to increase the exposure and immunogenicity of HA-stem. The reoriented H2 HA (reoH2HA) on alum induced stem-directed antibodies that cross-react with both group 1 and group 2 influenza A subtypes. Electron microscopy polyclonal epitope mapping (EMPEM) revealed that reoH2HA (group 1) elicits cross-reactive antibodies targeting group 2 HA-stems. Our results highlight antigen reorientation as a generalizable approach for designing epitope-focused vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Duo Xu
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Joshua J Carter
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Biophysics Program, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Medical Scientist Training Program, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Chunfeng Li
- Institute for Immunity, Transplantation and Infection, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Ashley Utz
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Biophysics Program, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Medical Scientist Training Program, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Payton A B Weidenbacher
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Shaogeng Tang
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Mrinmoy Sanyal
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Bali Pulendran
- Institute for Immunity, Transplantation and Infection, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Christopher O Barnes
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Peter S Kim
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA.
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA, USA.
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3
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Musunuri S, Weidenbacher PAB, Kim PS. Bringing immunofocusing into focus. NPJ Vaccines 2024; 9:11. [PMID: 38195562 PMCID: PMC10776678 DOI: 10.1038/s41541-023-00792-x] [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: 05/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/07/2023] [Indexed: 01/11/2024] Open
Abstract
Immunofocusing is a strategy to create immunogens that redirect humoral immune responses towards a targeted epitope and away from non-desirable epitopes. Immunofocusing methods often aim to develop "universal" vaccines that provide broad protection against highly variant viruses such as influenza virus, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1), and most recently, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). We use existing examples to illustrate five main immunofocusing strategies-cross-strain boosting, mosaic display, protein dissection, epitope scaffolding, and epitope masking. We also discuss obstacles for immunofocusing like immune imprinting. A thorough understanding, advancement, and application of the methods we outline here will enable the design of high-resolution vaccines that protect against future viral outbreaks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sriharshita Musunuri
- Stanford ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Payton A B Weidenbacher
- Stanford ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Peter S Kim
- Stanford ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA.
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA.
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA, 94158, USA.
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4
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Toapanta FR, Hu J, Meron-Sudai S, Mulard LA, Phalipon A, Cohen D, Sztein MB. Further characterization of Shigella-specific (memory) B cells induced in healthy volunteer recipients of SF2a-TT15, a Shigella flexneri 2a synthetic glycan-based vaccine candidate. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1291664. [PMID: 38022674 PMCID: PMC10653583 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1291664] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2023] [Accepted: 10/18/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Shigellosis is common worldwide, and it causes significant morbidity and mortality mainly in young children in low- and middle- income countries. To date, there are not broadly available licensed Shigella vaccines. A novel type of conjugate vaccine candidate, SF2a-TT15, was developed against S. flexneri serotype 2a (SF2a). SF2a-TT15 is composed of a synthetic 15mer oligosaccharide, designed to act as a functional mimic of the SF2a O-antigen and covalently linked to tetanus toxoid (TT). SF2a-TT15 was recently shown to be safe and immunogenic in a Phase 1 clinical trial, inducing specific memory B cells and sustained antibody response up to three years after the last injection. In this manuscript, we advance the study of B cell responses to parenteral administration of SF2a-TT15 to identify SF2a LPS-specific B cells (SF2a+ B cells) using fluorescently labeled bacteria. SF2a+ B cells were identified mainly within class-switched B cells (SwB cells) in volunteers vaccinated with SF2a-TT15 adjuvanted or not with aluminium hydroxide (alum), but not in placebo recipients. These cells expressed high levels of CXCR3 and low levels of CD21 suggesting an activated phenotype likely to represent the recently described effector memory B cells. IgG SF2a+ SwB cells were more abundant than IgA SF2a + SwB cells. SF2a+ B cells were also identified in polyclonally stimulated B cells (antibody secreting cells (ASC)-transformed). SF2a+ ASC-SwB cells largely maintained the activated phenotype (CXCR3 high, CD21 low). They expressed high levels of CD71 and integrin α4β7, suggesting a high proliferation rate and ability to migrate to gut associated lymphoid tissues. Finally, ELISpot analysis showed that ASC produced anti-SF2a LPS IgG and IgA antibodies. In summary, this methodology confirms the ability of SF2a-TT15 to induce long-lived memory B cells, initially identified by ELISpots, which remain identifiable in blood up to 140 days following vaccination. Our findings expand and complement the memory B cell data previously reported in the Phase 1 trial and provide detailed information on the immunophenotypic characteristics of these cells. Moreover, this methodology opens the door to future studies at the single-cell level to better characterize the development of B cell immunity to Shigella.
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Affiliation(s)
- Franklin R. Toapanta
- Department of Medicine and Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Jingping Hu
- Department of Medicine and Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Shiri Meron-Sudai
- School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Laurence A. Mulard
- Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, CNRS UMR3523, Unité Chimie des Biomolécules, Paris, France
| | - Armelle Phalipon
- Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, Laboratoire Innovation: Vaccins, Paris, France
| | - Dani Cohen
- School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Marcelo B. Sztein
- Department of Medicine and Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Department of Pediatrics and Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
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5
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Frey SJ, Carreño JM, Bielak D, Arsiwala A, Altomare CG, Varner C, Rosen-Cheriyan T, Bajic G, Krammer F, Kane RS. Nanovaccines Displaying the Influenza Virus Hemagglutinin in an Inverted Orientation Elicit an Enhanced Stalk-Directed Antibody Response. Adv Healthc Mater 2023; 12:e2202729. [PMID: 36689343 PMCID: PMC10386890 DOI: 10.1002/adhm.202202729] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2022] [Revised: 01/18/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Despite the availability of licensed vaccines, influenza causes considerable morbidity and mortality worldwide. Current influenza vaccines elicit an immune response that primarily targets the head domain of the viral glycoprotein hemagglutinin (HA). Influenza viruses, however, readily evade this response by acquiring mutations in the head domain. While vaccines that target the more conserved HA stalk may circumvent this problem, low levels of antistalk antibodies are elicited by vaccination, possibly due to the poor accessibility of the stalk domain to B cell receptors. In this work, it is demonstrated that nanoparticles presenting HA in an inverted orientation generate tenfold higher antistalk antibody titers after a prime immunization and fivefold higher antistalk titers after a boost than nanoparticles displaying HA in its regular orientation. Moreover, nanoparticles presenting HA in an inverted orientation elicit a broader antistalk response that reduces mouse weight loss and improves survival after challenge to a greater extent than nanoparticles displaying HA in a regular orientation. Refocusing the antibody response toward conserved epitopes by controlling antigen orientation may enable the design of broadly protective nanovaccines targeting influenza viruses and other pathogens with pandemic potential.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven J Frey
- School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332, USA
| | - Juan Manuel Carreño
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
- Center for Vaccine Research and Pandemic Preparedness (C-VaRPP), Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Dominika Bielak
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
- Center for Vaccine Research and Pandemic Preparedness (C-VaRPP), Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Ammar Arsiwala
- School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332, USA
| | - Clara G Altomare
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Chad Varner
- School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332, USA
| | - Tania Rosen-Cheriyan
- School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332, USA
| | - Goran Bajic
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Florian Krammer
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
- Center for Vaccine Research and Pandemic Preparedness (C-VaRPP), Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
- Department of Pathology, Molecular and Cell Based Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Ravi S Kane
- School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332, USA
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332, USA
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6
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Raj S, Vishwakarma P, Saxena S, Kumar V, Khatri R, Kumar A, Singh M, Mishra S, Asthana S, Ahmed S, Samal S. Intradermal Immunization of Soluble Influenza HA Derived from a Lethal Virus Induces High Magnitude and Breadth of Antibody Responses and Provides Complete Protection In Vivo. Vaccines (Basel) 2023; 11:vaccines11040780. [PMID: 37112692 PMCID: PMC10141624 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines11040780] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2023] [Revised: 03/05/2023] [Accepted: 03/07/2023] [Indexed: 04/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Immunogens mimicking the native-like structure of surface-exposed viral antigens are considered promising vaccine candidates. Influenza viruses are important zoonotic respiratory viruses with high pandemic potential. Recombinant soluble hemagglutinin (HA) glycoprotein-based protein subunit vaccines against Influenza have been shown to induce protective efficacy when administered intramuscularly. Here, we have expressed a recombinant soluble trimeric HA protein in Expi 293F cells and purified the protein derived from the Inf A/Guangdong-Maonan/ SWL1536/2019 virus which was found to be highly virulent in the mouse. The trimeric HA protein was found to be in the oligomeric state, highly stable, and the efficacy study in the BALB/c mouse challenge model through intradermal immunization with the prime-boost regimen conferred complete protection against a high lethal dose of homologous and mouse-adapted InfA/PR8 virus challenge. Furthermore, the immunogen induced high hemagglutinin inhibition (HI) titers and showed cross-protection against other Inf A and Inf B subtypes. The results are promising and warrant trimeric HA as a suitable vaccine candidate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sneha Raj
- Translational Health Science & Technology Institute, NCR Biotech Science Cluster, Faridabad 121001, India
| | - Preeti Vishwakarma
- Translational Health Science & Technology Institute, NCR Biotech Science Cluster, Faridabad 121001, India
| | - Shikha Saxena
- Translational Health Science & Technology Institute, NCR Biotech Science Cluster, Faridabad 121001, India
| | - Varun Kumar
- Translational Health Science & Technology Institute, NCR Biotech Science Cluster, Faridabad 121001, India
| | - Ritika Khatri
- Translational Health Science & Technology Institute, NCR Biotech Science Cluster, Faridabad 121001, India
| | - Amit Kumar
- Translational Health Science & Technology Institute, NCR Biotech Science Cluster, Faridabad 121001, India
| | - Mrityunjay Singh
- Translational Health Science & Technology Institute, NCR Biotech Science Cluster, Faridabad 121001, India
| | - Surbhi Mishra
- Translational Health Science & Technology Institute, NCR Biotech Science Cluster, Faridabad 121001, India
| | - Shailendra Asthana
- Translational Health Science & Technology Institute, NCR Biotech Science Cluster, Faridabad 121001, India
| | - Shubbir Ahmed
- Centralized Core Research Facility (CCRF), All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi 110029, India
| | - Sweety Samal
- Translational Health Science & Technology Institute, NCR Biotech Science Cluster, Faridabad 121001, India
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7
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Xu D, Li C, Utz A, Weidenbacher PA, Tang S, Sanyal M, Pulendran B, Kim PS. Designing epitope-focused vaccines via antigen reorientation. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2022:2022.12.20.521291. [PMID: 36597536 PMCID: PMC9810212 DOI: 10.1101/2022.12.20.521291] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
A major challenge in vaccine development, especially against rapidly evolving viruses, is the ability to focus the immune response toward evolutionarily conserved antigenic regions to confer broad protection. For example, while many broadly neutralizing antibodies against influenza have been found to target the highly conserved stem region of hemagglutinin (HA-stem), the immune response to seasonal influenza vaccines is predominantly directed to the immunodominant but variable head region (HA-head), leading to narrow-spectrum efficacy. Here, we first introduce an approach to controlling antigen orientation based on the site-specific insertion of short stretches of aspartate residues (oligoD) that facilitates antigen-binding to alum adjuvants. We demonstrate the generalizability of this approach to antigens from the Ebola virus, SARS-CoV-2, and influenza and observe enhanced antibody responses following immunization in all cases. Next, we use this approach to reorient HA in an "upside down" configuration, which we envision increases HA-stem exposure, therefore also improving its immunogenicity compared to HA-head. When applied to HA of H2N2 A/Japan/305/1957, the reoriented H2 HA (reoH2HA) on alum induced a stem-directed antibody response that cross-reacted with both group 1 and 2 influenza A HAs. Our results demonstrate the possibility and benefits of antigen reorientation via oligoD insertion, which represents a generalizable immunofocusing approach readily applicable for designing epitope-focused vaccine candidates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Duo Xu
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Chunfeng Li
- Institute for Immunity, Transplantation and Infection, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Ashley Utz
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Medical Scientist Training Program, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Biophysics Program, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Payton A.B. Weidenbacher
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Shaogeng Tang
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Mrinmoy Sanyal
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Bali Pulendran
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Institute for Immunity, Transplantation and Infection, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Peter S. Kim
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA, USA
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8
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Xu D, Li C, Utz A, Weidenbacher PAB, Tang S, Sanyal M, Pulendran B, Kim PS. Designing epitope-focused vaccines via antigen reorientation. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2022. [PMID: 36597536 DOI: 10.1101/2022.09.08.507187] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
UNLABELLED A major challenge in vaccine development, especially against rapidly evolving viruses, is the ability to focus the immune response toward evolutionarily conserved antigenic regions to confer broad protection. For example, while many broadly neutralizing antibodies against influenza have been found to target the highly conserved stem region of hemagglutinin (HA-stem), the immune response to seasonal influenza vaccines is predominantly directed to the immunodominant but variable head region (HA-head), leading to narrow-spectrum efficacy. Here, we first introduce an approach to controlling antigen orientation based on the site-specific insertion of short stretches of aspartate residues (oligoD) that facilitates antigen-binding to alum adjuvants. We demonstrate the generalizability of this approach to antigens from the Ebola virus, SARS-CoV-2, and influenza and observe enhanced antibody responses following immunization in all cases. Next, we use this approach to reorient HA in an "upside down" configuration, which we envision increases HA-stem exposure, therefore also improving its immunogenicity compared to HA-head. When applied to HA of H2N2 A/Japan/305/1957, the reoriented H2 HA (reoH2HA) on alum induced a stem-directed antibody response that cross-reacted with both group 1 and 2 influenza A HAs. Our results demonstrate the possibility and benefits of antigen reorientation via oligoD insertion, which represents a generalizable immunofocusing approach readily applicable for designing epitope-focused vaccine candidates. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT Seasonal influenza vaccines induce a biased antibody response against the variable head of hemagglutinin, whereas conserved epitopes on the stem are a target for universal vaccines. Here we show that reorienting HA in an "upside-down" configuration sterically occludes the head and redirects the antibody response to the more exposed stem, thereby inducing broad cross-reactivity against hemagglutinins from diverse influenza strains.
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9
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Moin SM, Boyington JC, Boyoglu-Barnum S, Gillespie RA, Cerutti G, Cheung CSF, Cagigi A, Gallagher JR, Brand J, Prabhakaran M, Tsybovsky Y, Stephens T, Fisher BE, Creanga A, Ataca S, Rawi R, Corbett KS, Crank MC, Karlsson Hedestam GB, Gorman J, McDermott AB, Harris AK, Zhou T, Kwong PD, Shapiro L, Mascola JR, Graham BS, Kanekiyo M. Co-immunization with hemagglutinin stem immunogens elicits cross-group neutralizing antibodies and broad protection against influenza A viruses. Immunity 2022; 55:2405-2418.e7. [PMID: 36356572 PMCID: PMC9772109 DOI: 10.1016/j.immuni.2022.10.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2022] [Revised: 08/19/2022] [Accepted: 10/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Current influenza vaccines predominantly induce immunity to the hypervariable hemagglutinin (HA) head, requiring frequent vaccine reformulation. Conversely, the immunosubdominant yet conserved HA stem harbors a supersite that is targeted by broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs), representing a prime target for universal vaccines. Here, we showed that the co-immunization of two HA stem immunogens derived from group 1 and 2 influenza A viruses elicits cross-group protective immunity and neutralizing antibody responses in mice, ferrets, and nonhuman primates (NHPs). Immunized mice were protected from multiple group 1 and 2 viruses, and all animal models showed broad serum-neutralizing activity. A bnAb isolated from an immunized NHP broadly neutralized and protected against diverse viruses, including H5N1 and H7N9. Genetic and structural analyses revealed strong homology between macaque and human bnAbs, illustrating common biophysical constraints for acquiring cross-group specificity. Vaccine elicitation of stem-directed cross-group-protective immunity represents a step toward the development of broadly protective influenza vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Syed M Moin
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Jeffrey C Boyington
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Seyhan Boyoglu-Barnum
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Rebecca A Gillespie
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Gabriele Cerutti
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Crystal Sao-Fong Cheung
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Alberto Cagigi
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - John R Gallagher
- Laboratory of Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Joshua Brand
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Madhu Prabhakaran
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Yaroslav Tsybovsky
- Vaccine Research Center Electron Microscopy Unit, Cancer Research Technology Program, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research sponsored by the National Cancer Institute, Frederick, MD, USA
| | - Tyler Stephens
- Vaccine Research Center Electron Microscopy Unit, Cancer Research Technology Program, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research sponsored by the National Cancer Institute, Frederick, MD, USA
| | - Brian E Fisher
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Adrian Creanga
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Sila Ataca
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Reda Rawi
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Kizzmekia S Corbett
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Michelle C Crank
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | | | - Jason Gorman
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Adrian B McDermott
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Audray K Harris
- Laboratory of Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Tongqing Zhou
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Peter D Kwong
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Lawrence Shapiro
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - John R Mascola
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Barney S Graham
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Masaru Kanekiyo
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
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10
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Prada LSD, Sanz-Muñoz I, de Lejarazu RO, Eiros JM, García-Sastre A, Aydillo T. Immunodominance hierarchy after seasonal influenza vaccination. Emerg Microbes Infect 2022; 11:2670-2679. [PMID: 36219456 DOI: 10.1080/22221751.2022.2135460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Current influenza vaccines elicit humoral immune responses against the hemagglutinin (HA) protein of influenza viruses. Different antigenic sites have been identified in the HA head as the main target of hemagglutination inhibition (HAI) antibodies (Sb, Sa, Cb, Ca1 and Ca2). To determine immunodominance (ID) of each site, we performed HAI assays against a panel of mutant viruses, each one lacking one of the classically defined antigenic sites and compared it to wild type (Wt). Agglutinating antibodies were measured before and after vaccination in two different regimens: Quadrivalent Influenza Vaccine (QIV) in young adults; or Adjuvanted Trivalent influenza Vaccine (ATIV) in elderly. Our results showed abs before vaccination were significantly reduced against all antigenic sites in the elderly and only against Sb and Ca2 in young adults compared to the Wt. Humoral response to vaccination was significantly reduced against all viruses compared to the Wt for the ATIV and only against Sb and Ca2 for the QIV. The strongest reduction was observed in all cases against Sb followed by Ca2. We concluded that ID profile was clearly dominated by Sb followed by Ca2. Additionally, the antibody response evolved with age, increasing the response towards less immunodominant epitopes of HA head. Adjuvants can positively influence ID hierarchy broadening responses towards multiple antigenic sites of HA head.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Sánchez-de Prada
- National Influenza Centre of Valladolid, 47010, Spain.,Hospital Clínico Universitario de Valladolid, 47003, Spain
| | | | | | | | - Adolfo García-Sastre
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.,Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.,Department of Pathology, Molecular and Cell-Based Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.,Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.,The Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Teresa Aydillo
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.,Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
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11
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TLR agonists induce sustained IgG to hemagglutinin stem and modulate T cells following newborn vaccination. NPJ Vaccines 2022; 7:102. [PMID: 36038596 PMCID: PMC9424286 DOI: 10.1038/s41541-022-00523-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2021] [Accepted: 08/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
The newborn immune system is characterized by diminished immune responses that leave infants vulnerable to virus-mediated disease and make vaccination more challenging. Optimal vaccination strategies for influenza A virus (IAV) in newborns should result in robust levels of protective antibodies, including those with broad reactivity to combat the variability in IAV strains across seasons. The stem region of the hemagglutinin (HA) molecule is a target of such antibodies. Using a nonhuman primate model, we investigate the capacity of newborns to generate and maintain antibodies to the conserved stem region following vaccination. We find adjuvanting an inactivated vaccine with the TLR7/8 agonist R848 is effective in promoting sustained HA stem-specific IgG. Unexpectedly, HA stem-specific antibodies were generated with a distinct kinetic pattern compared to the overall response. Administration of R848 was associated with increased influenza-specific T follicular helper cells as well as Tregs with a less suppressive phenotype, suggesting adjuvant impacts multiple cell types that have the potential to contribute to the HA-stem response.
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12
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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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13
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Clemens EA, Holbrook BC, Kanekiyo M, Yewdell JW, Graham BS, Alexander-Miller MA. An R848-Conjugated Influenza Virus Vaccine Elicits Robust Immunoglobulin G to Hemagglutinin Stem in a Newborn Nonhuman Primate Model. J Infect Dis 2021; 224:351-359. [PMID: 33245745 PMCID: PMC8280492 DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jiaa728] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2020] [Accepted: 11/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Eliciting broadly protective antibodies is a critical goal for the development of more effective vaccines against influenza. Optimizing protection is of particular importance in newborns, who are highly vulnerable to severe disease following infection. An effective vaccination strategy for this population must surmount the challenges associated with the neonatal immune system as well as mitigate the inherent immune subdominance of conserved influenza virus epitopes, responses to which can provide broader protection. Here, we show that prime-boost vaccination with a TLR7/8 agonist (R848)-conjugated influenza A virus vaccine elicits antibody responses to the highly conserved hemagglutinin stem and promotes rapid induction of virus neutralizing stem-specific antibodies following viral challenge. These findings support the efficacy of R848 as an effective adjuvant for newborns and demonstrate its ability to enhance antibody responses to subdominant antigenic sites in this at-risk population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elene A Clemens
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA
| | - Beth C Holbrook
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA
| | - Masaru Kanekiyo
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Jonathan W Yewdell
- Laboratory of Viral Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Barney S Graham
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Martha A Alexander-Miller
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA
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14
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Kerstetter LJ, Buckley S, Bliss CM, Coughlan L. Adenoviral Vectors as Vaccines for Emerging Avian Influenza Viruses. Front Immunol 2021; 11:607333. [PMID: 33633727 PMCID: PMC7901974 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.607333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2020] [Accepted: 12/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
It is evident that the emergence of infectious diseases, which have the potential for spillover from animal reservoirs, pose an ongoing threat to global health. Zoonotic transmission events have increased in frequency in recent decades due to changes in human behavior, including increased international travel, the wildlife trade, deforestation, and the intensification of farming practices to meet demand for meat consumption. Influenza A viruses (IAV) possess a number of features which make them a pandemic threat and a major concern for human health. Their segmented genome and error-prone process of replication can lead to the emergence of novel reassortant viruses, for which the human population are immunologically naïve. In addition, the ability for IAVs to infect aquatic birds and domestic animals, as well as humans, increases the likelihood for reassortment and the subsequent emergence of novel viruses. Sporadic spillover events in the past few decades have resulted in human infections with highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses, with high mortality. The application of conventional vaccine platforms used for the prevention of seasonal influenza viruses, such as inactivated influenza vaccines (IIVs) or live-attenuated influenza vaccines (LAIVs), in the development of vaccines for HPAI viruses is fraught with challenges. These issues are associated with manufacturing under enhanced biosafety containment, and difficulties in propagating HPAI viruses in embryonated eggs, due to their propensity for lethality in eggs. Overcoming manufacturing hurdles through the use of safer backbones, such as low pathogenicity avian influenza viruses (LPAI), can also be a challenge if incompatible with master strain viruses. Non-replicating adenoviral (Ad) vectors offer a number of advantages for the development of vaccines against HPAI viruses. Their genome is stable and permits the insertion of HPAI virus antigens (Ag), which are expressed in vivo following vaccination. Therefore, their manufacture does not require enhanced biosafety facilities or procedures and is egg-independent. Importantly, Ad vaccines have an exemplary safety and immunogenicity profile in numerous human clinical trials, and can be thermostabilized for stockpiling and pandemic preparedness. This review will discuss the status of Ad-based vaccines designed to protect against avian influenza viruses with pandemic potential.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucas J. Kerstetter
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Stephen Buckley
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Carly M. Bliss
- Division of Cancer & Genetics, Division of Infection & Immunity, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Wales, United Kingdom
| | - Lynda Coughlan
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
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15
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Abstract
Conventional influenza vaccines are based on predicting the circulating viruses year by year, conferring limited effectiveness since the antigenicity of vaccine strains does not always match the circulating viruses. This necessitates development of universal influenza vaccines that provide broader and lasting protection against pan-influenza viruses. The discovery of the highly conserved immunogens (epitopes) of influenza viruses provides attractive targets for universal vaccine design. Here we review the current understanding with broadly protective immunogens (epitopes) and discuss several important considerations to achieve the goal of universal influenza vaccines.
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