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Cudjoe O, Afful R, Hagan TA. Toxoplasma-host endoplasmic reticulum interaction: How T. gondii activates unfolded protein response and modulates immune response. CURRENT RESEARCH IN MICROBIAL SCIENCES 2024; 6:100223. [PMID: 38352129 PMCID: PMC10861954 DOI: 10.1016/j.crmicr.2024.100223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii is a neurotropic single-celled zoonotic parasite that can infect human beings and animals. Infection with T. gondii is usually asymptomatic in immune-competent individual, however, it can cause symptomatic and life-threatening conditions in immunocompromised individuals and in developing foetuses. Although the mechanisms that allow T. gondii to persist in host cells are poorly understood, studies in animal models have greatly improved our understanding of Toxoplasma-host cell interaction and how this interaction modulates parasite proliferation and development, host immune response and virulence of the parasite. T. gondii is capable of recruiting the host endoplasmic reticulum (ER), suggesting it may influence the host ER function. Herein, we provide an overview of T. gondii infection and the role of host ER during stressed conditions. Furthermore, we highlight studies that explore T. gondii's interaction with the host ER. We delve into how this interaction activates the unfolded protein response (UPR) and ER stress-mediated apoptosis. Additionally, we examine how T. gondii exploits these pathways to its advantage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Obed Cudjoe
- Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Klintaps College of Health and Allied Sciences, DTD TDC Plot 30A, Klagon, Tema, Ghana
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medical Sciences, College of Health and Allied Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Ghana
| | - Roger Afful
- Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Klintaps College of Health and Allied Sciences, DTD TDC Plot 30A, Klagon, Tema, Ghana
| | - Tonny Abraham Hagan
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, China
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Xiong C, He W, Xiao J, Hao G, Pu J, Chen H, Xu L, Zhu Y, Yang G. Assessment of the Immunoprotective Efficacy of Recombinant 14-3-3 Protein and Dense Granule Protein 10 (GRA10) as Candidate Antigens for Rabbit Vaccines against Eimeria intestinalis. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:14418. [PMID: 37833865 PMCID: PMC10572514 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241914418] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2023] [Revised: 09/17/2023] [Accepted: 09/19/2023] [Indexed: 10/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Eimeria intestinalis infects rabbits, causing severe intestinal coccidiosis. Prolonged anticoccidial drug use might lead to coccidia resistance and drug residues in food. Thus, vaccines are required to control rabbit coccidiosis. In this study, recombinant E. intestinalis 14-3-3 and GRA10 proteins (rEi-14-3-3 and rEi-GRA10) were obtained via prokaryotic expression and used as recombinant subunit vaccines. Fifty 30-day-old rabbits were randomly grouped as follows: PBS-uninfected group, PBS-infected group, Trx-His-S control group, and rEi-14-3-3 and rEi-GRA10 immunized groups. The rabbits were subcutaneously immunized twice at 2-week intervals, challenged with 7 × 104 sporulated oocysts, and sacrificed 14 days later. The protective effects were assessed via clinical signs, relative weight gain, oocyst reduction, mean intestinal lesion score, ACI (anticoccidial index), cytokine, and specific antibody levels in sera. The rEi-14-3-3 and rEi-GRA10 groups had higher relative weight gain rates of 81.94% and 73.61% (p < 0.05), and higher oocyst reduction rates of 86.13% and 84.87% (p < 0.05), respectively. The two immunized groups had fewer intestinal lesions (p < 0.05) and higher IgG levels (p < 0.05). Higher levels of IL-2, IL-4, and IFN-γ cytokines in the rEi-14-3-3 group (p < 0.05) and a higher level of IFN-γ in the rEi-GRA10 group (p < 0.05) were observed. The ACI values of the rEi-14-3-3 and rEi-GRA10 groups were 168.24 and 159.91, with good and moderate protective effects, respectively. Both rEi-14-3-3 and rEi-GRA10 induced humoral immunity in the rabbits. In addition, rEi-14-3-3 induced Th1- and Th2-type immune responses. Both recombinant proteins were protective against E. intestinalis infection in rabbits, with rEi-14-3-3 showing a better protective effect.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Guangyou Yang
- Department of Parasitology, College of Veterinary, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China; (C.X.); (W.H.); (J.X.); (G.H.); (J.P.); (H.C.); (L.X.); (Y.Z.)
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Wang R, Wu M, Cai H, An R, Chen Y, Wang J, Zhou N, Du J. Preparation and Preliminary Application of Epitope Peptide-Based Antibody against Toxoplasma gondii GRA3. Trop Med Infect Dis 2023; 8:tropicalmed8030143. [PMID: 36977144 PMCID: PMC10053247 DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed8030143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2023] [Revised: 02/22/2023] [Accepted: 02/23/2023] [Indexed: 03/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii dense granule protein GRA3 has been shown to promote Toxoplasma gondii transmission and proliferation by interacting with the host cell endoplasmic reticulum (ER) through calcium-regulated cyclophilin ligands (CAMLG). Although many studies have focused on the interaction between the host cell endoplasmic reticulum and GRA3, no polyclonal antibodies (PcAbs) against GRA3 have been reported to date. According to the antigenicity prediction and exposure site analysis, three antigen peptide sequences were selected to prepare polyclonal antibodies targeting GRA3. Peptide scans revealed that the major antigenic epitope sequences were 125ELYDRTDRPGLK136, 202FFRRRPKDGGAG213, and 68NEAGESYSSATSG80, respectively. The GRA3 PcAb specifically recognized the GRA3 of T. gondii type Ⅱ ME49. The development of PcAbs against GRA3 is expected to elucidate the molecular mechanisms by which GRA3 regulates host cell function and contribute to the development of diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for toxoplasmosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ru Wang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Minmin Wu
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Haijian Cai
- Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Center for Scientific Research of Anhui Medical University, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Ran An
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Ying Chen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Jie Wang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Nan Zhou
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Jian Du
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
- Correspondence:
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Obed C, Wu M, Chen Y, An R, Cai H, Luo Q, Yu L, Wang J, Liu F, Shen J, Du J. Toxoplasma gondii dense granule protein 3 promotes endoplasmic reticulum stress-induced apoptosis by activating the PERK pathway. Parasit Vectors 2022; 15:276. [PMID: 35918751 PMCID: PMC9344675 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-022-05394-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 07/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Toxoplasma gondii is a neurotropic single-celled parasite that can infect mammals, including humans. Central nervous system infection with T. gondii infection can lead to Toxoplasma encephalitis. Toxoplasma infection can cause endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and unfolded protein response (UPR) activation, which ultimately can lead to apoptosis of host cells. The dense granule protein GRA3 has been identified as one of the secretory proteins that contribute to the virulence of T. gondii; however, the mechanism remains enigmatic. Methods The expression of the GRA3 gene in RH, ME49, Wh3, and Wh6 strains was determined using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT–PCR). pEGFP-GRA3Wh6 was constructed by inserting Chinese 1 Wh6 GRA3 (GRA3Wh6) cDNA into a plasmid encoding the enhanced GFP. Mouse neuro2a (N2a) cells were transfected with either pEGFP or pEGFP-GRA3Wh6 (GRA3Wh6) and incubated for 24–36 h. N2a cell apoptosis and ER stress-associated proteins were determined using flow cytometry and immunoblotting. Furthermore, N2a cells were pretreated with GSK2656157 (a PERK inhibitor) and Z-ATAD-FMK (a caspase-12 inhibitor) before GRA3Wh6 transfection, and the effect of the inhibitors on GRA3Wh6-induced ER stress and apoptosis were investigated. Results GRA3 gene expression was higher in the less virulent strains of type II ME49 and type Chinese 1 Wh6 strains compared with the virulent strains of type I RH strain and type Chinese 1 Wh3 strain. Transfection with GRA3Wh6 plasmid induced neuronal apoptosis and increased the expression of GRP78, p-PERK, cleaved caspase-12, cleaved caspase-3, and CHOP compared with the control vector. Pretreatment with GSK2656157 and Z-ATAD-FMK decreased apoptosis in N2a cells, and similarly, ER stress- and apoptosis-associated protein levels were significantly decreased. Conclusion GRA3 induces neural cell apoptosis via the ER stress signaling pathway, which could play a role in toxoplasmic encephalitis. Graphical Abstract ![]()
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Affiliation(s)
- Cudjoe Obed
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Key Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology of Anhui Province, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,Department of Microbiology & Immunology School of Medical Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana
| | - Minmin Wu
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Key Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology of Anhui Province, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China
| | - Ying Chen
- The Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,School of Nursing, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China
| | - Ran An
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Key Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology of Anhui Province, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China
| | - Haijian Cai
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Key Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology of Anhui Province, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China
| | - Qingli Luo
- The Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Key Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology of Anhui Province, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China
| | - Li Yu
- The Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Key Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology of Anhui Province, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China
| | - Jie Wang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Key Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology of Anhui Province, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China
| | - Fang Liu
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.,The Key Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology of Anhui Province, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China
| | - Jilong Shen
- The Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China. .,The Key Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology of Anhui Province, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.
| | - Jian Du
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China. .,The Research Center for Infectious Diseases, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China. .,The Provincial Key Laboratory of Zoonoses of High Institutions in Anhui, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China. .,The Key Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology of Anhui Province, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.
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Allahyari M. PLGA Nanoparticles as an Efficient Platform in Protein Vaccines Against Toxoplasma gondii. Acta Parasitol 2022; 67:582-591. [PMID: 35013939 DOI: 10.1007/s11686-021-00499-w] [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: 04/02/2021] [Accepted: 11/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) as an obligatory intracellular is widespread all over the world and causes considerable concerns in immunocompromised patients by developing toxoplasmic encephalitis and in pregnancy because of serious consequences in the fetus. Although vaccination is the only approach to overcome toxoplasmosis, there is no commercially available human vaccine against T. gondii. PURPOSE The remarkable features of poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) particles have brought up the application of PLGA as a promising vaccine delivery vehicle against T. gondii and other intracellular parasites. This review focuses on the application of the PLGA delivery system in the development of preventive vaccines against T. gondii. METHODS In this study, all required data were collected from articles indexed in English databases, including Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science, Science Direct, and Google Scholar. RESULT Immunity against T. gondii, characteristics of PLGA particles as a delivery vehicle, and all researches on particulate PLGA vaccines with different T. gondii antigens and DNA against were discussed and their efficacies in conferring protection against a lethal challenge based on increased survival or reduced brain cyst loads have been shown. CONCLUSION Although various levels of protection against lethal challenge have been achieved through PLGA-based vaccinations, there is still no complete protection against T. gondii infection. Surprisingly, the application of surface modifications of PLGA particles by mucoadhesive polymers, cationic agents, DCs (dendritic cells) targeting receptors, specialized membranous epithelial cells (M-cells), and co-delivery of the desired antigen along with toll-like receptor ligands would be a revolutionized vaccine strategy against T. gondii.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mojgan Allahyari
- Recombinant Protein Production Department, Production and Research Complex, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Karaj, Iran.
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6
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Warner RC, Chapman RC, Davis BN, Davis PH. REVIEW OF DNA VACCINE APPROACHES AGAINST THE PARASITE TOXOPLASMA GONDII. J Parasitol 2021; 107:882-903. [PMID: 34852176 DOI: 10.1645/20-157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii is an apicomplexan parasite that affects both humans and livestock. Transmitted to humans through ingestion, it is the second-leading cause of foodborne illness-related death. Currently, there exists no approved vaccine for humans or most livestock against the parasite. DNA vaccines, a type of subunit vaccine which uses segments of the pathogen's DNA to generate immunity, have shown varying degrees of experimental efficacy against infection caused by the parasite. This review compiles DNA vaccine efforts against Toxoplasma gondii, segmenting the analysis by parasite antigen, as well as a review of concomitant adjuvant usage. No single antigenic group was consistently more effective within in vivo trials relative to others.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rosalie C Warner
- Department of Biology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska, 68182
| | - Ryan C Chapman
- Department of Biology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska, 68182
| | - Brianna N Davis
- Department of Biology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska, 68182
| | - Paul H Davis
- Department of Biology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska, 68182
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Zhu L, Lei Z, Xia X, Zhang Y, Chen Y, Wang B, Li J, Li G, Yang G, Cao G, Yin Z. Yeast Shells Encapsulating Adjuvant AS04 as an Antigen Delivery System for a Novel Vaccine against Toxoplasma Gondii. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2021; 13:40415-40428. [PMID: 34470103 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.1c12366] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) infection causes severe zoonotic toxoplasmosis, which threatens the safety of almost one-third of the human population globally. However, there is no effective protective vaccine against human toxoplasmosis. This necessitates anti-T. gondii vaccine development, which is a main priority of public health. In this study, we optimized the adjuvant system 04 (AS04), a vaccine adjuvant constituted by 3-O-desacyl-4'-monophosphoryl lipid A (a TLR4 agonist) and aluminum salts, by packing it within natural extracts of β-glucan particles (GPs) from Saccharomyces cerevisiae to form a GP-AS04 hybrid adjuvant system. Through a simple mixing procedure, we loaded GP-AS04 particles with the total extract (TE) of T. gondii lysate, forming a novel anti-T. gondii vaccine GP-AS04-TE. Results indicated that the hybrid adjuvant can efficiently and stably load antigens, mediate antigen delivery, facilitate the dendritic uptake of antigens, boost dendritic cell maturation and stimulation, and increase the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines. In the mouse inoculation model, GP-AS04-TE significantly stimulated the function of dendritic cells, induced a very strong TE-specific humoral and cellular immune response, and finally showed a strong and effective protection against toxoplasma chronic and acute infections. This work proves the potential of GP-AS04 for exploitation as a vaccine against a range of pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leqing Zhu
- The First Affiliated Hospital, Faculty of Medical Science, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
- The Biomedical Translational Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Science, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Zhiwei Lei
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Virology, Institute of Medical Microbiology, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
- The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Qingyuan People's Hospital, Qingyuan 511518, China
| | - Xichun Xia
- Zhuhai Institute of Translational Medicine, Zhuhai People's Hospital (Zhuhai Hospital Affiliated with Jinan University), Jinan University, Zhuhai 51900, China
- The Biomedical Translational Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Science, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Yingying Zhang
- The Biomedical Translational Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Science, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Yuyuan Chen
- The Biomedical Translational Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Science, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Baocheng Wang
- Tsinghua-Berkeley Shenzhen Institute, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Jiawei Li
- Zhuhai Institute of Translational Medicine, Zhuhai People's Hospital (Zhuhai Hospital Affiliated with Jinan University), Jinan University, Zhuhai 51900, China
- The Biomedical Translational Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Science, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Guangqiang Li
- The First Affiliated Hospital, Faculty of Medical Science, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Guang Yang
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Medicine, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Guangchao Cao
- Zhuhai Institute of Translational Medicine, Zhuhai People's Hospital (Zhuhai Hospital Affiliated with Jinan University), Jinan University, Zhuhai 51900, China
- The Biomedical Translational Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Science, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Zhinan Yin
- Zhuhai Institute of Translational Medicine, Zhuhai People's Hospital (Zhuhai Hospital Affiliated with Jinan University), Jinan University, Zhuhai 51900, China
- The Biomedical Translational Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Science, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
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Multi-epitope vaccine expressed in Leishmania tarentolae confers protective immunity to Toxoplasma gondii in BALB/c mice. Microb Pathog 2021; 155:104925. [PMID: 33933602 DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2021.104925] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2020] [Revised: 03/09/2021] [Accepted: 03/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Current study deals with a novel multi-epitope vaccine designed in silico and its confirmation experiments for potential efficacy in BALB/c mice. Major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-binding and B-cell binding epitopes of five Toxoplasma antigens (SAG1, ROP16, GRA12, MIC4 and M2AP) were predicted. Selected epitopes were fused together using SAPGTP linker, and antigenicity, allergenicity, physico-chemical features, secondary and tertiary structures and validations were all performed via bioinformatics servers. Then, vaccine construct was cloned into pLEXSY-neo 2.1 vector. After Leishmania tarentolae transfection, live recombinant and wild parasites were subcutaneously injected into 6-8 week female BALB/c mice and immune responses were measured. Results showed that the peptide possessed 282 amino acid residues with average molecular weight of 28.06 kDa. About 90% of the peptide residues were incorporated in favored and allowed regions of the Ramachandran plot. Vaccinated mice showed remarkably elevated levels of specific antibodies (P < 0.05) with predominance of IgG2a production. Also, a Th1 immune response with production of IFN-γ and relatively increased survival rate against intraperitoneal challenge with RH strain was demonstrated in immunized mice than control groups (P < 0.05). Also, very low levels of IL-4 were demonstrated, which showed statistically significant association with controls (P < 0.05). The findings clarified that multi-epitope vaccine expressed in Leishmania tarentolae induced significant immune responses against acute toxoplasmosis.
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Hanafiah M, Helmi TZ, Sutriana A, Priyowidodo D, Fihiruddin F. Cloning and expression of Toxoplasma gondii GRA-4 recombinant protein as a toxoplasmosis diagnostic kit candidate. Vet World 2020; 13:2085-2091. [PMID: 33281340 PMCID: PMC7704308 DOI: 10.14202/vetworld.2020.2085-2091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2020] [Accepted: 08/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Aim: The objective of this study was to produce recombinant protein GRA-4 (rGRA-4) of a local Toxoplasma gondii isolate as a candidate for a toxoplasmosis diagnosis kit in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) competent cells using pET SUMO plasmid. Materials and Methods: Samples used were stock T. gondii tachyzoites DNA from the Parasitology Laboratory, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Gadjah Mada University, Yogyakarta. Amplified GRA-4 polymerase chain reaction product of T. gondii tachyzoite DNA was cloned in the pET-SUMO TAR cloning vector. The GRA-4 gene from T. gondii local isolate was sequenced, followed by plasmid transformation, recombinant plasmid DNA isolation, and recombinant protein expression in DE3 competent cells. Results: The amplification product of GRA-4T. gondii gene was 1036 bp, with 48 kDa molecular weight after expression in DE3 competent cells. An alignment of the amino acid sequence of GRA-4 from the local isolate which was cloned with GRA-4 was obtained from NCBI database and showed 99.61% homology to the predicted GRA-4 from the T. gondii Izatnagar isolate. Amino acid sequence of the predicted GRA-4 protein from local isolate was different at positions 19 and 304. Conclusion: This research cloned rGRA-4 in pET SUMO plasmid.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Hanafiah
- Parasitology Laboratory, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, Indonesia
| | - Teuku Zahrial Helmi
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, Indonesia
| | - Amalia Sutriana
- Pharmacology Laboratory, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universitas Syiah Kuala Banda Aceh, Indonesia
| | - Dwi Priyowidodo
- Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Gadjah Mada University, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
| | - Fihiruddin Fihiruddin
- Department of Medical Laboratory Technology, Politeknik Kemenkes Mataram, Sandubaya Mataram Nusa Tenggara Barat Indonesia
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Liu Z, Wu J, Ma Y, Hao L, Liang Z, Ma J, Ke H, Li Y, Cao J. Protective immunity against CyHV-3 infection via different prime-boost vaccination regimens using CyHV-3 ORF131-based DNA/protein subunit vaccines in carp Cyprinus carpio var. Jian. FISH & SHELLFISH IMMUNOLOGY 2020; 98:342-353. [PMID: 31978531 DOI: 10.1016/j.fsi.2020.01.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2019] [Revised: 12/31/2019] [Accepted: 01/18/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Cyprinid Herpesvirus 3 (CyHV-3), also known as Koi Herpesvirus (KHV), causes Koi Herpesvirus Disease (KHVD) which leads to serious economic losses worldwide. To exploit DNA/subunit vaccine candidates, CyHV-3 ORF131 gene and cDNA was cloned and analyzed in the present study. Major B cell epitopes of deduced CyHV-3 pORF131 was also predicted. Then the complete CDS of CyHV-3 ORF131 was inserted into pEGFP-N1 vector and a modified pYD1/EBY100 system to construct the DNA and subunit vaccine, respectively. Subsequently, carp were immunized with homologous and heterologous prime-boost regimens relying on the constructed DNA and oral subunit vaccines. Then the protective immunity generated from different vaccines and regimens as well as the capacity of yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) as an oral vaccine vehicle was evaluated. Our study confirmed that CyHV-3 ORF131 gene consisted of 2 introns and 3 exons encoding a 428 amino acids peptide. Further analysis indicated that four fragments of CyHV-3 pORF131 contained the major B cell epitopes (Cys20~Val140, Ser169~Tyr245, Thr258~Pro390, Phe414~Gln428), which could be linked and expressed in E. coli (BL21) as a truncated pORF131. The expression of full-length CyHV-3 pORF131 by pEGFP-N1 and yeast surface display was verified by In vitro assays before vaccination. Immunization of carp with CyHV-3 ORF131 DNA and subunit vaccines could evoke the activation of immune-related genes such as CXCa, CXCR1, IL-1β, TNF-α, INF-a1, Mx-1, IgM, IgT1 and production of specific serum IgM measured by ELISA. RPS (relative percent of survival) ranging from 53.33% to 66.67% was acquired post challenge test. Moreover, flow cytometry analysis illustrated the delivery of surface-displayed CyHV-3 pORF131 to midgut after oral gavage. Thus, our findings suggest that CyHV-3 ORF131 can serve as DNA/subunit vaccines candidate and the yeast as an ideal oral vaccine vehicle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenxing Liu
- Institute of Animal Health, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, 510640, China; Key Laboratory of Livestock Disease Prevention of Guangdong Province, Guangzhou, 510640, China; Scientific Observation and Experiment Station of Veterinary Drugs and Diagnostic Techniques of Guangdong Province, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, PRC, Guangzhou, 510640, China.
| | - Jing Wu
- College of Veterinary Medicine, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Yanping Ma
- Institute of Animal Health, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, 510640, China; Key Laboratory of Livestock Disease Prevention of Guangdong Province, Guangzhou, 510640, China; Scientific Observation and Experiment Station of Veterinary Drugs and Diagnostic Techniques of Guangdong Province, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, PRC, Guangzhou, 510640, China
| | - Le Hao
- Institute of Animal Health, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, 510640, China; Key Laboratory of Livestock Disease Prevention of Guangdong Province, Guangzhou, 510640, China; Scientific Observation and Experiment Station of Veterinary Drugs and Diagnostic Techniques of Guangdong Province, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, PRC, Guangzhou, 510640, China
| | - Zhiling Liang
- Institute of Animal Health, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, 510640, China; Key Laboratory of Livestock Disease Prevention of Guangdong Province, Guangzhou, 510640, China; Scientific Observation and Experiment Station of Veterinary Drugs and Diagnostic Techniques of Guangdong Province, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, PRC, Guangzhou, 510640, China
| | - Jiangyao Ma
- Institute of Animal Health, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, 510640, China; Key Laboratory of Livestock Disease Prevention of Guangdong Province, Guangzhou, 510640, China; Scientific Observation and Experiment Station of Veterinary Drugs and Diagnostic Techniques of Guangdong Province, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, PRC, Guangzhou, 510640, China
| | - Hao Ke
- Institute of Animal Health, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, 510640, China; Key Laboratory of Livestock Disease Prevention of Guangdong Province, Guangzhou, 510640, China; Scientific Observation and Experiment Station of Veterinary Drugs and Diagnostic Techniques of Guangdong Province, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, PRC, Guangzhou, 510640, China
| | - Yugu Li
- College of Veterinary Medicine, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Junming Cao
- Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, 524088, China.
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11
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Maraghi S, Ghadiri AA, Tavalla M, Shojaee S, Abdizadeh R. Evaluation of immunogenicity and protective effect of DNA vaccine encoding surface antigen1 (SAG1) of Toxoplasma gondii and TLR-5 ligand as a genetic adjuvant against acute toxoplasmosis in BALB/c mice. Biologicals 2019; 62:39-49. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biologicals.2019.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2019] [Revised: 10/03/2019] [Accepted: 10/04/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
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12
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Zhou P, Wu H, Chen S, Bai Q, Chen X, Chen L, Zeng X, Liu L, Chen L. MOMP and MIP DNA-loaded bacterial ghosts reduce the severity of lung lesions in mice after Chlamydia psittaci respiratory tract infection. Immunobiology 2019; 224:739-746. [DOI: 10.1016/j.imbio.2019.09.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2019] [Revised: 08/22/2019] [Accepted: 09/03/2019] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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13
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Pagheh AS, Sarvi S, Gholami S, Asgarian-Omran H, Valadan R, Hassannia H, Ahmadpour E, Fasihi-Ramandie M, Dodangeh S, Hosseni-khah Z, Daryani A. Protective efficacy induced by DNA prime and recombinant protein boost vaccination with Toxoplasma gondii GRA14 in mice. Microb Pathog 2019; 134:103601. [DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2019.103601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2019] [Revised: 06/14/2019] [Accepted: 06/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
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14
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Rezaei F, Sharif M, Sarvi S, Hejazi SH, Aghayan S, Pagheh AS, Dodangeh S, Daryani A. A systematic review on the role of GRA proteins of Toxoplasma gondii in host immunization. J Microbiol Methods 2019; 165:105696. [PMID: 31442457 DOI: 10.1016/j.mimet.2019.105696] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2019] [Revised: 08/19/2019] [Accepted: 08/19/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii is a widespread obligatory intracellular parasite infecting humans and most of all other warm-blooded animals. Currently there is no any accepted vaccine for prevention of T. gondii infection. Many studies are focused on using of various excretory secretory antigens (ESA); and among them dense granule antigens (GRAs) being involved in parasite survival, virulence and replication processes, are considered as one of the predominant vaccine candidates. The aim of this systematic review is to prepare more comprehensive understanding of these antigens to reduce T. gondii infection in humans and animals. English databases, including PubMed, Science Direct, Google Scholar, Scopus, ISI Web of Science were systematically searched and papers evaluating GRA antigens published until June 2019 were selected. Evaluation of selected publications revealed that GRA4 and GRA7 substantially increased survival time of the experimental animals. It is noticeable that the maximum reduction in cyst burden was observed in BALB/c mice vaccinated with combination of GRA3, GRA7 and M2AP antigens (93.5%). GRA6 and GRA10 have shown high immunogenicity and GRA1 and 2 are important for virulence and induction of immune responses. This review will be helpful for researchers to conduct more effective studies in the field of immunization against T. gondii infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fatemeh Rezaei
- Toxoplasmosis Research Center, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran; Department of Parasitology & Mycology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran; Students Research Committee, Department of Parasitology and Mycology, School of Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran
| | - Mahdi Sharif
- Toxoplasmosis Research Center, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran; Department of Parasitology and Mycology, Sari Medical School, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran
| | - Shahabeddin Sarvi
- Toxoplasmosis Research Center, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran; Department of Parasitology and Mycology, Sari Medical School, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran
| | - Seyed Hossein Hejazi
- Skin Diseases and Leishmaniosis Research Center, Department of Parasitology & Mycology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
| | - Sargis Aghayan
- Laboratory of Zoology, Research Institute of Biology, Yerevan State University, Yerevan, Armenia
| | - Abdol Sattar Pagheh
- Infectious Disease Research Center, Birjand University Of Medical Sciences, Birjand, Iran
| | - Samira Dodangeh
- Toxoplasmosis Research Center, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran; Department of Parasitology and Mycology, Sari Medical School, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran
| | - Ahmad Daryani
- Toxoplasmosis Research Center, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran; Department of Parasitology and Mycology, Sari Medical School, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran.
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Mavi SA, Modarressi MH, Mohebali M, Shojaee S, Zeraati H, Teimouri A, Keshavarz H. Assessment of the immunogenicity and protective efficiency of a novel dual-promoter DNA vaccine, harboring SAG1 and GRA7 genes, from RH strain of Toxoplasma gondii in BALB/c mice. Infect Drug Resist 2019; 12:2519-2530. [PMID: 31616167 PMCID: PMC6699518 DOI: 10.2147/idr.s209270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2019] [Accepted: 07/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Toxoplasmosis, a protozoan parasitic disease caused by Toxoplasma gondii, has been a serious human and veterinary medicine problem with global distribution. In the current study, we assessed immunogenicity and protective efficiency of a novel dual-promoter DNA vaccine, harboring SAG1 and GRA7 genes, from RH strain of Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) with or without CpG-ODN as adjuvant in a murine model. METHODS BALB/c mice were immunized intramuscularly with pVitro-SAG1-GRA7 alone and pVitro-SAG1-GRA7 with CpG-ODN three times at three-week intervals. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to assess total IgG, IgG1 and IgG2a antibodies and gamma interferon (IFN-γ) and interleukin-10 (IL-10) cytokines in mice sera. Four weeks post final vaccination, MTT assay and lethal challenge-infection with 1×103 tachyzoites of T. gondii RH strain were carried out to assess stimulation index (SI) and mice survival time, respectively. RESULTS The IgG levels in mice immunized with multicomponent vaccines, including pVitro-SAG1-GRA7 alone and pVitro-SAG1-GRA7 with CpG-ODN, were significantly higher than those in control mice or single-gene DNA-vaccinated ones (P<0.05). Furthermore, level of IgG2a in mice receiving pVitro-SAG1-GRA7 with CpG-ODN was significantly higher than that in mice receiving pVitro-SAG1-GRA7 alone (P<0.05). The Toxoplasma lysate antigen (TLA)-stimulated lymphocytes from pVitro-SAG1-GRA7 with CpG-ODN group responded more dramatically than those from control groups or single-gene DNA-vaccinated groups (P<0.001). The pVitro-SAG1-GRA7 with CpG-ODN-vaccinated mice developed high levels of IgG2a and IFN-γ (P<0.001) and low levels of IgG1 and IL-10, compared to control groups, suggesting a modulated immune response type Th1. In addition, survival time of the mice immunized with pVitro-SAG1-GRA7 with CpG-ODN was significantly extended, compared to controls (P<0.05); however, all mice died. CONCLUSION The multivalent pVitro-SAG1-GRA7 DNA vaccine with CpG-ODN adjuvant is a promising vaccine candidate against toxoplasmosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Ayazian Mavi
- Department of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | | | - Mehdi Mohebali
- Department of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
- Center for Research of Endemic Parasites of Iran, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Saeedeh Shojaee
- Department of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Hojjat Zeraati
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Aref Teimouri
- Department of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
- Students Scientific Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Hossein Keshavarz
- Department of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
- Center for Research of Endemic Parasites of Iran, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
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16
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Zhang J, Shen L, Johnston SA. Using Frameshift Peptide Arrays for Cancer Neo-Antigens Screening. Sci Rep 2018; 8:17366. [PMID: 30478295 PMCID: PMC6255861 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-35673-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2018] [Accepted: 11/05/2018] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
It has been demonstrated that DNA mutations generating neo-antigens are important for an effective immune response to tumors as evident from recent clinical studies of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs). Further, it was shown that frameshift peptides (FSP) generated in tumors from insertions and deletions (INDELs) of microsatellites (MS) in coding region are a very good correlate of positive response to PD1 treatment. However, these types of DNA-sourced FSPs are infrequent in cancer. We hypothesize that tumors may also generate FSPs in transcription errors through INDELs in MS or by exon mis-splicing. Since there are a finite number of predictable sequences of such possible FSPs in the genome, we propose that peptide arrays with all possible FSPs could be used to analyze antibody reactivity to FSPs in patient sera as a FS neo-antigen screen. If this were the case it would facilitate finding common tumor neoantigens for cancer vaccines. Here we test this proposal using an array of 377 predicted FS antigens. The results of screening 9 types of dog cancer sera indicate that cancer samples had significantly higher antibody responses against FSPs than non-cancer samples. Both common reactive FSPs and cancer-type specific immune responses were detected. In addition, the protection of a common reactive FSP was tested in mouse tumor models, comparing to the non-reactive FSPs. The mouse homologs non-reactive FSPs did not offer protection in either the mouse melanoma or breast cancer models while the reactive FSP did in both models. The tumor protection was positively correlated to antibody response to the FSP. These data suggest that FSP arrays could be used for cancer neo-antigen screening.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Zhang
- The Biodesign Institute Center for Innovations in Medicine, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
| | - Luhui Shen
- The Biodesign Institute Center for Innovations in Medicine, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
| | - Stephen Albert Johnston
- The Biodesign Institute Center for Innovations in Medicine, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA.
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17
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A systematic review of Toxoplasma gondii antigens to find the best vaccine candidates for immunization. Microb Pathog 2018; 126:172-184. [PMID: 30399440 DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2018.11.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2018] [Revised: 10/30/2018] [Accepted: 11/02/2018] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
At present, there is not any available accepted vaccine for prevention of Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) in human and animals. We conducted literature search through English (Google Scholar, PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus, EBSCO, ISI Web of Science) scientific paper databases to find the best vaccine candidates against toxoplasmosis among T. gondii antigens. Articles with information on infective stage, pathogenicity, immunogenicity and characterization of antigens were selected. We considered that the ideal and significant vaccines should include different antigens and been expressed in all infective stages of the parasite with a high pathogenicity and immunogenicity. Evaluation within this systematic review indicates that MIC 3, 4, 13, ROP 2, RON 5, GRA 1, 6, 8, 14 are expressed in all three infective stages and have pathogenicity and immunogenicity. MIC 5, ROM 4, GRA 2, 4, 15, ROP 5, 16, 17, 38, RON 4, MIC 1, GRA 10, 12, 16, SAG 3 are expressed in only tachyzoites and bradyzoites stages of T. gondii with pathogenicity/immunogenicity. Some antigens appeared to be expressed in a single stage (tachyzoites) but have high pathogenicity and induce immune response. They include enolase2 (ENO2), SAG 1, SAG5D, HSP 70, ROM 1, ROM 5, AMA 1, ROP 18, RON2 and GRA 24. In conclusion, current vaccination against T. gondii infection is not satisfactory, and with the increasing number of high-risk individuals, the development of an effective and safe specific vaccine is greatly valuable for toxoplasmosis prevention. This systematic review reveals prepare candidates for immunization studies.
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18
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Goodswen SJ, Kennedy PJ, Ellis JT. A Gene-Based Positive Selection Detection Approach to Identify Vaccine Candidates Using Toxoplasma gondii as a Test Case Protozoan Pathogen. Front Genet 2018; 9:332. [PMID: 30177953 PMCID: PMC6109633 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2018.00332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2018] [Accepted: 08/02/2018] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Over the last two decades, various in silico approaches have been developed and refined that attempt to identify protein and/or peptide vaccines candidates from informative signals encoded in protein sequences of a target pathogen. As to date, no signal has been identified that clearly indicates a protein will effectively contribute to a protective immune response in a host. The premise for this study is that proteins under positive selection from the immune system are more likely suitable vaccine candidates than proteins exposed to other selection pressures. Furthermore, our expectation is that protein sequence regions encoding major histocompatibility complexes (MHC) binding peptides will contain consecutive positive selection sites. Using freely available data and bioinformatic tools, we present a high-throughput approach through a pipeline that predicts positive selection sites, protein subcellular locations, and sequence locations of medium to high T-Cell MHC class I binding peptides. Positive selection sites are estimated from a sequence alignment by comparing rates of synonymous (dS) and non-synonymous (dN) substitutions among protein coding sequences of orthologous genes in a phylogeny. The main pipeline output is a list of protein vaccine candidates predicted to be naturally exposed to the immune system and containing sites under positive selection. Candidates are ranked with respect to the number of consecutive sites located on protein sequence regions encoding MHCI-binding peptides. Results are constrained by the reliability of prediction programs and quality of input data. Protein sequences from Toxoplasma gondii ME49 strain (TGME49) were used as a case study. Surface antigen (SAG), dense granules (GRA), microneme (MIC), and rhoptry (ROP) proteins are considered worthy T. gondii candidates. Given 8263 TGME49 protein sequences processed anonymously, the top 10 predicted candidates were all worthy candidates. In particular, the top ten included ROP5 and ROP18, which are T. gondii virulence determinants. The chance of randomly selecting a ROP protein was 0.2% given 8263 sequences. We conclude that the approach described is a valuable addition to other in silico approaches to identify vaccines candidates worthy of laboratory validation and could be adapted for other apicomplexan parasite species (with appropriate data).
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen J Goodswen
- School of Life Sciences, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, NSW, Australia
| | - Paul J Kennedy
- School of Software, Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology, Centre for Artificial Intelligence, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, NSW, Australia
| | - John T Ellis
- School of Life Sciences, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, NSW, Australia
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19
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Döşkaya M, Liang L, Jain A, Can H, Gülçe İz S, Felgner PL, Değirmenci Döşkaya A, Davies DH, Gürüz AY. Discovery of new Toxoplasma gondii antigenic proteins using a high throughput protein microarray approach screening sera of murine model infected orally with oocysts and tissue cysts. Parasit Vectors 2018; 11:393. [PMID: 29973272 PMCID: PMC6033234 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-018-2934-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2018] [Accepted: 06/04/2018] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite that causes congenital toxoplasmosis, as well as other serious clinical presentations in immune compromised humans. The parasite has also been recently linked to behavioral diseases in humans and other mammalian hosts. New antigens are being evaluated to develop a diagnostic kit for the diagnosis of acute infection or a protective vaccine. METHODS In this study, we have focused on the discovery of new antigenic proteins from T. gondii genomic data using a high throughput protein microarray screening. To date, microarrays containing > 2870 candidate exon products of T. gondii have been probed with sera collected from patients with toxoplasmosis. Here, the protein microarrays are probed with well-characterized serum samples from animal models administered orally with oocysts or tissue cysts. The aim was to discover the antigens that overlap in the mouse profile with human antibody profiles published previously. For this, a reactive antigen list of 240 antigens recognized by murine IgG and IgM was identified using pooled sera from orally infected mice. RESULTS Analyses of screening data have identified plenty of antigens and showed strong immunogenicity in both mouse and human antibody profiles. Among them, ROP1, GRA2, GRA3, GRA4, GRA5, GRA6, GRA7, GRA8, GRA14, MIC1, MIC2 and MAG1 have shown strong immunogenicity and used as antigen in development of vaccines or serological diagnostic assays in previous studies. CONCLUSION In addition to the above findings, ROP6, MIC12, SRS29A and SRS13 have shown strong immunogenicity but have not been tested in development of a diagnostic assay or a vaccine model yet.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mert Döşkaya
- Department of Parasitology, Vaccine Research and Development Laboratory, Ege University Faculty of Medicine, Bornova/İzmir, Turkey
| | - Li Liang
- Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, University of California Irvine, Irvine, California USA
| | - Aarti Jain
- Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, University of California Irvine, Irvine, California USA
| | - Hüseyin Can
- Department of Molecular Biology, Ege University Faculty of Sciences, Bornova/İzmir, Turkey
| | - Sultan Gülçe İz
- Department of Bioengineering, Ege University Faculty of Engineering, Bornova/İzmir, Turkey
| | - Philip Louis Felgner
- Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, University of California Irvine, Irvine, California USA
| | - Aysu Değirmenci Döşkaya
- Department of Parasitology, Vaccine Research and Development Laboratory, Ege University Faculty of Medicine, Bornova/İzmir, Turkey
| | - David Huw Davies
- Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, University of California Irvine, Irvine, California USA
| | - Adnan Yüksel Gürüz
- Department of Parasitology, Vaccine Research and Development Laboratory, Ege University Faculty of Medicine, Bornova/İzmir, Turkey
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AGHDASI M, GHAFFARIFAR F, FOROOGHI F, DALIMI ASL AH, SHARIFI Z, MASPI N. Expression of Plasmid Encoded GRA4 Gene of Toxoplasma gondii RH Strain in CHO Eukaryotic Cells. IRANIAN JOURNAL OF PARASITOLOGY 2018; 13:392-398. [PMID: 30483330 PMCID: PMC6243160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/31/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Toxoplasmosis is a common infection all around the world. During pregnancy; it may lead to congenital disorders or abortion in human and animals. Severe damage of toxoplasmosis indicates to require effective vaccine. One of dense granules antigen is GRA4 that secrete from tachyzoite and bradyzoite. GRA4 genome is unique without intron and is one of the major immunogenic proteins from Toxoplasma gondii. METHODS We confirmed the cloning of GRA4 gene into pcDNA3 by restriction enzyme and PCR of GRA4 gene with pcGRA4 plasmids as template. Then with using calcium-phosphate method we transfected the pcGRA4 into CHO (Chinesehamster ovary) cells. The yielded protein was separated by SDS-PAGE and moved by electroblotting to nitrocellulose paper. RESULTS Result of SDS-PAGE analysis showed the appearance of band approximately 42 kDa which was absent in the negative control, that was able to identify toxoplasmosis antibody IgM+ serum in western blot analysis. CONCLUSION pcGRA4 plasmid is able to synthesis of antigenic protein in CHO cells. The ability of pcGRA4 for induction of protective immune response against toxoplasmosis will be evaluated in mouse model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marjaneh AGHDASI
- Dept. of Parasitology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Tarbiat Modarres, Tehran, Iran
| | - Fatemeh GHAFFARIFAR
- Dept. of Parasitology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Tarbiat Modarres, Tehran, Iran,Correspondence
| | - Fatemeh FOROOGHI
- Dept. of Parasitology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Tarbiat Modarres, Tehran, Iran
| | - Abdol Hossein DALIMI ASL
- Dept. of Parasitology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Tarbiat Modarres, Tehran, Iran
| | - Zohre SHARIFI
- Research Center of Iranian Blood Transfusion Organization, Tehran, Iran
| | - Nahid MASPI
- Dept. of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, Ilam University of Medical Sciences, Ilam, Iran
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21
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Han Y, Zhou A, Lu G, Zhao G, Sha W, Wang L, Guo J, Zhou J, Zhou H, Cong H, He S. DNA Vaccines Encoding Toxoplasma gondii Cathepsin C 1 Induce Protection against Toxoplasmosis in Mice. THE KOREAN JOURNAL OF PARASITOLOGY 2017; 55:505-512. [PMID: 29103265 PMCID: PMC5678475 DOI: 10.3347/kjp.2017.55.5.505] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2017] [Revised: 09/14/2017] [Accepted: 09/19/2017] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii cathepsin C proteases (TgCPC1, 2, and 3) are important for the growth and survival of T. gondii. In the present study, B-cell and T-cell epitopes of TgCPC1 were predicted using DNAstar and the Immune Epitope Database. A TgCPC1 DNA vaccine was constructed, and its ability to induce protective immune responses against toxoplasmosis in BALB/c mice was evaluated in the presence or absence of the adjuvant α-GalCer. As results, TgCPC1 DNA vaccine with or without adjuvant α-GalCer showed higher levels of IgG and IgG2a in the serum, as well as IL-2 and IFN-γ in the spleen compared to controls (PBS, pEGFP-C1, and α-Galcer). Upon challenge infection with tachyzoites of T. gondii (RH), pCPC1/α-Galcer immunized mice showed the longest survival among all the groups. Mice vaccinated with DNA vaccine without adjuvant (pCPC1) showed better protective immunity compared to other controls (PBS, pEGFP-C1, and α-Galcer). These results indicate that a DNA vaccine encoding TgCPC1 is a potential vaccine candidate against toxoplasmosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yali Han
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, P. R. China
| | - Aihua Zhou
- Department of Pediatrics, Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong University, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, 250021, P. R. China
| | - Gang Lu
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, P. R. China
| | - Guanghui Zhao
- Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Qingdao, Shandong, 266035, P. R. China
| | - Wenchao Sha
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, P. R. China
| | - Lin Wang
- Department of Jinan Children's Hospital, Jinan, Shandong, 250022, P. R. China
| | - Jingjing Guo
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, P. R. China
| | - Jian Zhou
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, P. R. China
| | - Huaiyu Zhou
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, P. R. China
| | - Hua Cong
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, P. R. China
| | - Shenyi He
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, P. R. China
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Zhou J, Wang L. SAG4 DNA and Peptide Vaccination Provides Partial Protection against T. gondii Infection in BALB/c Mice. Front Microbiol 2017; 8:1733. [PMID: 28936207 PMCID: PMC5594090 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.01733] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2017] [Accepted: 08/25/2017] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii can lead to congenital infections in human. Surface antigen protein 4 (SAG4) of T. gondii is a potential stimulator for humoral and cellular immune responses. In the present study, a DNA vaccine encoding SAG4 from T. gondii was constructed and used to immunize BALB/c mice with peptide to evaluate the protective efficacy of the vaccine. The productions of IgG antibodies and cytokines (gamma interferon) from the vaccine (pSAG4/peptide) group were significantly higher than pSAG4 or peptide groups. After a lethal challenge by 1 × 104 tachyzoites from the I strain (RH), the survival time of mice immunized by pSAG4/peptide was longer than that of pSAG4 or peptide immunized mice or control mice. Moreover, after challenging by 20 cysts of the II strain (PRU) of T. gondii, the number of brain cysts from pSAG4/peptide vaccinated mice was only 31% of the number in PBS injected mice. The findings suggested the SAG4 DNA vaccine with peptide led significant immune responses and improved the protection against T. gondii challenges.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Zhou
- Department of Orthopedics, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South UniversityChangsha, China
| | - Lin Wang
- Department of Electroneurophysiology, Jinan Children's HospitalJinan, China
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Resistance to Chronic Toxoplasma gondii Infection Induced by a DNA Vaccine Expressing GRA16. BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2017; 2017:1295038. [PMID: 28875149 PMCID: PMC5569751 DOI: 10.1155/2017/1295038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2017] [Accepted: 07/09/2017] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii can infect all warm-blooded animals including human beings. T. gondii dense granule protein 16 (TgGRA16) as a crucial virulence factor could modulate the host gene expression. Here, a DNA vaccine expressing TgGRA16 was constructed to explore the protective efficacy against T. gondii infection in Kunming mice. The immune responses induced by pVAX-GRA16 were also evaluated. Mice immunized with pVAX-GRA16 could elicit higher levels of specific IgG antibody and strong cellular response compared to those in controls. The DNA vaccination significantly increased the levels of cytokines (IFN-γ, IL-2, IL-4, and IL-10) and the percentages of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells in mice. After lethal challenge, mice immunized with pVAX-GRA16 (8.4 ± 0.78 days) did not show a significant longer survival time than that in controls (7.1 ± 0.30 days) (p > 0.05). However, in chronic toxoplasmosis model (administration of 10 brain cysts of PRU strain orally), numbers of tissue cysts in mice immunized with pVAX-GRA16 were significantly reduced compared to those in controls (p < 0.05) and the rate of reduction could reach 43.89%. The results indicated that the TgGRA16 would be a promising vaccine candidate for further development of effective epitope-based vaccines against chronic T. gondii infection in mice.
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Han Y, Zhou A, Lu G, Zhao G, Wang L, Guo J, Song P, Zhou J, Zhou H, Cong H, He S. Protection via a ROM4 DNA vaccine and peptide against Toxoplasma gondii in BALB/c mice. BMC Infect Dis 2017; 17:59. [PMID: 28077075 PMCID: PMC5225637 DOI: 10.1186/s12879-016-2104-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2016] [Accepted: 12/10/2016] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) is an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite with a broad host range including most warm-blooded animals, including humans. T. gondii surface antigen 1 (SAG1) is a well-characterized T. gondii antigen. T. gondii expresses five nonmitochondrial rhomboid intramembrane proteases, TgROM1-5. TgROM4 is uniformly distributed on the surface of T. gondii and involved in regulating MIC2, MIC3, MIC6, and AMA1 during T. gondii invasion of host cells. Bioinformatics have predicted ROM4 B-cell and T-cell epitopes. Immunization strategy is also a key factor in determining the effectiveness of the immune response and has gained increasing attention in T. gondii vaccine research. In this study, we used a DNA prime-peptide boost vaccination regimen to assess the protective efficacy of various vaccination strategies using TgROM4. Methods We identified a polypeptide (YALLGALIPYCVEYWKSIPR) using a bioinformatics approach, and immunized mice using a DNA-prime and polypeptide-boost regimen. BALB/c mice were randomly divided into six groups, including three experimental groups (peptide, pROM4 and pROM4/peptide) and three control groups (PBS, pEGFP-C1 and pSAG1). Mice were then immunized intramuscularly four times. After immunization, IgG and cytokine productions were determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. The survival time of mice was evaluated after challenge with tachyzoites of T. gondii RH strain. Additionally, the number of cysts in the brain was determined after intragastric challenge with cysts of T. gondii PRU strain. Results Mice vaccinated with different immunization regimens (peptide, pROM4 and pROM4/peptide) elicited specific humoral and cellular responses, with high levels of IgG, IgG2a, and interferon (IFN)-γ. Moreover, IgG, IgG2a and IFN-γ levels were highest in the pROM4/peptide group. Immunized mice, especially those in the pROM4/peptide group, had prolonged survival times after challenge with tachyzoites and reduced numbers of brain cysts after infection compared with negative controls. Conclusion A DNA prime-peptide boost regimen based on ROM4 elicited the highest level of humoral and cellular immune responses among immunization regimens, and may be a promising approach to increase the efficacy of DNA immunization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yali Han
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Aihua Zhou
- Department of Pediatrics, Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong University, Shandong University School of Medicine, 250021, Jinan, Shandong Province, People's Republic of China
| | - Gang Lu
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Guanghui Zhao
- Qilu Hospital of shandong University, Qingdao, 266035, Shandong Province, People's Republic of China
| | - Lin Wang
- Department of Ji Nan Children's Hospital, 250022, Jinan, Shandong Province, People's Republic of China
| | - Jingjing Guo
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Pengxia Song
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Jian Zhou
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Huaiyu Zhou
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Hua Cong
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Shenyi He
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China.
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Song P, He S, Zhou A, Lv G, Guo J, Zhou J, Han Y, Zhou H, Hao Z, Cong H. Vaccination with toxofilin DNA in combination with an alum-monophosphoryl lipid A mixed adjuvant induces significant protective immunity against Toxoplasma gondii. BMC Infect Dis 2017; 17:19. [PMID: 28056837 PMCID: PMC5217305 DOI: 10.1186/s12879-016-2147-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2016] [Accepted: 12/21/2016] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND A widely prevalent disease, toxoplasmosis poses serious health threats to both humans and animals; therefore, development of an ideal DNA vaccine against Toxoplasma gondii is needed eagerly. The purpose of the present study is to assess the protective efficacy of a DNA vaccine encoding the T. gondii toxofilin gene (pEGFP-toxofilin). In addition, toxofilin DNA vaccine combined with the individual adjuvants, alum or monophosphoryl lipid A (MPLA), or a mixture of alum-MPLA adjuvant were screened for their ability to enhance antibody responses. METHODS Using bioinformatics, we analyzed the gene and amino acid sequences of the toxofilin protein, recognizing and identifying several potential linear B and T helper (Th)-1 cell epitopes. BALB/c mice were immunized three times with either toxofilin DNA vaccine alone or in combination with the adjuvants such as alum, MPLA or an alum-MPLA mixture. The systemic immune response was evaluated by cytokine, the percentage of CD4 (+) and CD8 (+) T cells and specific antibody measurement. Two weeks after the last immunization, protective efficacy was evaluated by challenging intraperitoneally with 1 × 104 tachyzoites of T. gondii or intragastrically with 20 cysts of T. gondii PRU strain. RESULTS All experimentally immunized mice developed strong humoral and cellular immune responses compared with the control groups. Moreover, by comparison with the non-adjuvant toxofilin DNA vaccine group, adding alum adjuvant to toxofilin DNA vaccine resulted in an increase in humoral response and a skewed Th2 response. However, the MPLA adjuvant with toxofilin DNA vaccine induced significantly enhanced humoral and Th1-biased immune responses. Importantly, the co-administration of alum-MPLA adjuvant in combination with the toxofilin DNA vaccine shifted the Th2 immune response to a Th1 response compared with the alum-toxofilin group, and elicited the strongest humoral and Th1 responses among all the groups. At the same time, a longer survival time and less cyst amounts against T. gondii infection were also observed in the alum-MPLA-toxofilin group in comparison with single or no adjuvant groups. CONCLUSIONS Toxoplasma gondii toxofilin is a promising vaccine candidate that warrants further development. Co-administration of the alum-MPLA adjuvant mixture with DNA vaccine could effectively enhance immunogenicity and strongly skew the cellular immune response towards a Th1 phenotype.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pengxia Song
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Shenyi He
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China.
| | - Aihua Zhou
- Department of Pediatrics, Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong University, Shandong University School of Medicine, 250021, Jinan, Shandong Province, People's Republic of China
| | - Gang Lv
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Jingjing Guo
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Jian Zhou
- Shandong University School of Medicine, 250021, Jinan, Shandong Province, People's Republic of China
| | - Yali Han
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Huaiyu Zhou
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhen Hao
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
| | - Hua Cong
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250012, People's Republic of China
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MAZAHERI N, DALIMI A, PIRESTANI M, JAMEIE F, MOHEBALI M, ROKNI MB. Construction and Identification of a Recombinant Plasmid Encoding Echinococcus granulosus Oncosphere Antigen (EG95). IRANIAN JOURNAL OF PARASITOLOGY 2017; 12:490-497. [PMID: 29317873 PMCID: PMC5756298] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Cystic echinococcosis (CE), as a zoonotic disease cause to health threat and economic losses. Despite implemented control programs, few countries have been able to decrease or eliminate this infection. Vaccination of the intermediate host offers an additional strategy to control the parasite transmission and EG95 antigen is considered more than the others in the vaccine issue. According to the high protection induced by the EG95 recombinant vaccine, this study was designed to construct recombinant plasmid formulation of EG95 antigen. METHODS In 2015, the Echinococcus granulosus eggs were recovered from an infected dog in Parasitological laboratory of Tarbiat Modares University in Tehran, Iran. Following hatching, the oncospheres of E. granulosus were activated to increase the presence of the desired mRNA. The extracted mRNA was transcribed to the cDNA which used as template in RTPCR. Then the EG95 gene cloned into pET28a vector and the recombinant plasmids expression was investigated in prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. RESULTS The recombinant plasmid encoding EG95 antigen was successfully constructed and identified by PCR, restriction enzyme digestion and sequencing. In vitro expression of the EG95 antigen was confirmed in prokaryotic and eukaryotic systems by SDS-PAGE and western blotting analysis. CONCLUSION Because of potential advantages of DNA vaccines, including ability to induce long-term immune responses, low production cost and stability in different temperatures, this study carried out to construct the EG95 gene into a vector. This recombinant vector can be evaluated in further studies as a DNA vaccine may provide new prospects for the development of a vaccine against cystic hydatid disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nahideh MAZAHERI
- Dept. of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Abdolhossein DALIMI
- Dept. of Parasitology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran,Correspondence Emails:,
| | - Majid PIRESTANI
- Dept. of Parasitology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
| | - Farnoosh JAMEIE
- Dept. of Parasitology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
| | - Mehdi MOHEBALI
- Dept. of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran,Center for Research of Endemic Parasites of Iran (CREPI), Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Mohamad Bagher ROKNI
- Dept. of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran,Center for Research of Endemic Parasites of Iran (CREPI), Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran,Correspondence Emails:,
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Zhou J, Wang L, Lu G, Zhou A, Zhu M, Li Q, Wang Z, Arken M, Wang A, He S. Epitope analysis and protection by a ROP19 DNA vaccine against Toxoplasma gondii. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2016; 23:17. [PMID: 27055564 PMCID: PMC4824872 DOI: 10.1051/parasite/2016017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2016] [Accepted: 03/16/2016] [Indexed: 11/14/2022]
Abstract
We used bioinformatics approaches to identify B-cell and T-cell epitopes on the ROP19 protein of Toxoplasma gondii. Then, we constructed plasmids with ROP19 (pEGFP-C1-ROP19) and injected them into BALB/c mice to test the immunoprotection induced by this vaccine candidate. The results showed that immunization with pEGFP-C1-ROP19 induced effective cellular and humoral immune responses in mice; specifically, high serum levels of T. gondii-specific IgG and increased interferon-gamma production by splenocytes. Furthermore, the mice vaccinated with pROP19 had significantly fewer brain cysts (583 ± 160) than the mice injected with phosphate-buffered saline (1350 ± 243) or with the control plasmid, pEGFP-C1 (1300 ± 167). Compared with PBS-treated mice, those immunized with pROP19 had only 43% of the number of brain cysts. These results suggest that the DNA vaccine encoding ROP19 induced a significant immune response and provided protection against a challenge with T. gondii strain PRU cysts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Zhou
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine,250012 Jinan, Shandong Province, PR China
| | - Lin Wang
- Department of Ji Nan Children's Hospital, 250022 Jinan, Shandong Province, PR China
| | - Gang Lu
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine,250012 Jinan, Shandong Province, PR China
| | - Aihua Zhou
- Department of Pediatrics, Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong University, Shandong University School of Medicine, 250021 Jinan, Shandong Province, PR China
| | - Meiyan Zhu
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine,250012 Jinan, Shandong Province, PR China
| | - Qihang Li
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine,250012 Jinan, Shandong Province, PR China
| | - Zhilin Wang
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine,250012 Jinan, Shandong Province, PR China
| | - Miradel Arken
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine,250012 Jinan, Shandong Province, PR China
| | - Ao Wang
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine,250012 Jinan, Shandong Province, PR China
| | - Shenyi He
- Department of Parasitology, Shandong University School of Medicine,250012 Jinan, Shandong Province, PR China
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Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite presenting as a zoonotic infection distributed worldwide. In HIV-positive individuals, it causes severe opportunistic infections, which is of major public health concern as it results in physical and psychological disabilities. In healthy immunocompetent individuals, it causes asymptomatic chronic persistent infections, but in immunosuppressed patients, there is reactivation of the parasite if the CD4 counts fall below 200 cells/μl. The seroprevalence rates are variable in different geographic areas. The tissue cyst or oocyst is the infective form which enters by ingestion of contaminated meat and transform into tachyzoites and disseminate into blood stream. In immunocompetent persons due to cell-mediated immunity the parasite is transformed into tissue cyst resulting in life long chronic infection. In HIV-infected people opportunistic infection by T. gondii occurs due to depletion of CD4 cells, decreased production of cytokines and interferon gamma and impaired cytotoxic T-lymphocyte activity resulting in reactivation of latent infection. The diagnosis can be done by clinical, serological, radiological, histological or molecular methods, or by the combination of these. There is various treatment regimen including acute treatment, maintenance therapy should be given as the current anti T. gondii therapy cannot eradicate tissue cysts. In HIV patients, CD4 counts <100; cotrimoxazole, alternately dapsone + pyrimethamine can be given for 6 months. Hence, early diagnosis of T. gondii antibodies is important in all HIV-positive individuals to prevent complications of cerebral toxoplasmosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anuradha Basavaraju
- Department of Microbiology, Mamata Medical College, Khammam, Telangana, India
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29
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Zhang NZ, Wang M, Xu Y, Petersen E, Zhu XQ. Recent advances in developing vaccines against Toxoplasma gondii: an update. Expert Rev Vaccines 2015; 14:1609-21. [PMID: 26467840 DOI: 10.1586/14760584.2015.1098539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii, a significant public health risk, is able to infect almost all warm-blooded animals including humans, and it results in economic losses in production animals. In the last three years, a large number of vaccination experiments have been performed to control T. gondii infection, with the target of limiting the acute infection and reducing or eliminating tissue cysts in the intermediate hosts. In this paper, we summarize the latest results of the veterinary vaccines against T. gondii infection since 2013. Immunization with live-attenuated whole organisms of non-reverting mutants has been shown to induce remarkably potent immune responses associated with control of acute and chronic toxoplasmosis. The non-cyst-forming mutants are promising new tools for the development of veterinary vaccines against T. gondii infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nian-Zhang Zhang
- a State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute , Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences , Lanzhou , PR China
| | - Meng Wang
- a State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute , Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences , Lanzhou , PR China
| | - Ying Xu
- a State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute , Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences , Lanzhou , PR China.,b Key Laboratory of Animal Epidemiology and Zoonosis, Ministry of Agriculture, National Animal Protozoa Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine , China Agricultural University , Beijing , PR China
| | - Eskild Petersen
- c Department of Infectious Diseases, Clinical Institute, Faculty of Health Sciences , Aarhus University , Aarhus , Denmark
| | - Xing-Quan Zhu
- a State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute , Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences , Lanzhou , PR China
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Sánchez VR, Fenoy IM, Picchio MS, Soto AS, Arcon N, Goldman A, Martin V. Homologous prime-boost strategy with TgPI-1 improves the immune response and protects highly susceptible mice against chronic Toxoplasma gondii infection. Acta Trop 2015. [PMID: 26200784 DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2015.07.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
Subunit-based vaccines are safer than live or attenuated pathogen vaccines, although they are generally weak immunogens. Thus, proper combination of immunization strategies and adjuvants are needed to increase their efficacy. We have previously protected C3H/HeN mice from Toxoplasma gondii infection by immunization with the serine protease inhibitor-1 (TgPI-1) in combination with alum. In this work, we explore an original vaccination protocol that combines administration of recombinant TgPI-1 by intradermal and intranasal routes in order to enhance protection in the highly susceptible C57BL/6 strain. Mice primed intradermally with rTgPI-1 plus alum and boosted intranasally with rTgPI-1 plus CpG-ODN elicited a strong specific Th1/Th2 humoral response, along with a mucosal immune response characterized by specific-IgA in intestinal lavages. A positive cellular response of mesentheric lymph node cells and Th1/Th2 cytokine secretion in the ileon were also detected. When immunized mice were challenged with the cystogenic Me49 T. gondii strain, they displayed up to 62% reduction in brain parasite burden. Moreover, adoptive transfer of mesenteric lymph node cells from vaccinated to naïve mice induced significant protection against infection. These results demonstrate that this strategy that combines the administration of TgPI-1 by two different routes, intradermal priming and intranasal boost, improves protective immunity against T. gondii chronic infection in highly susceptible mice.
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Lu G, Wang L, Zhou A, Han Y, Guo J, Song P, Zhou H, Cong H, Zhao Q, He S. Epitope analysis, expression and protection of SAG5A vaccine against Toxoplasma gondii. Acta Trop 2015; 146:66-72. [PMID: 25792417 DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2015.03.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2014] [Revised: 03/06/2015] [Accepted: 03/09/2015] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Bioinformatics approaches were used to identify B-cell epitopes and T-cell epitopes on SAG5A protein. Compared to SAG1, SAG5A with good B-cell epitopes and T-cell epitopes had a potentiality to become a more successful vaccine against Toxoplasma gondii. Thereafter, SAG5A DNA vaccine was constructed successfully and was injected into mice with peptide to evaluate the immunoprotection. Compared to the control groups, the vaccine (DNA/peptide) could induce more effective cellular and humoral immune responses in immunized mice. Furthermore, a significant reduction of brain cyst was detected in the mice vaccinated with peptide (732±160), pSAG5A (815±197), or pSAG5A/peptide (436±174) compared by the mice injected by PBS (1260±241) or pEGFP-C1 (1350±268). The number of cysts in brains was 35% reduced in the mice immunized with DNA/peptide than in the control mice treated by PBS. The results indicated that the DNA vaccine encoding SAG5A significantly induced immune responses and enhanced protection against cysts of PRU strain, especially with the help of peptide.
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Abdizadeh R, Maraghi S, Ghadiri AA, Tavalla M, Shojaee S. Cloning and Expression of Major Surface Antigen 1 Gene of Toxoplasma gondii RH Strain Using the Expression Vector pVAX1 in Chinese Hamster Ovary Cells. Jundishapur J Microbiol 2015; 8:e22570. [PMID: 25861441 PMCID: PMC4386078 DOI: 10.5812/jjm.22570] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2014] [Revised: 09/30/2014] [Accepted: 10/29/2014] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Toxoplasmosis is an opportunistic protozoan infection with a high prevalence in a broad range of hosts infecting up to one-third of the world human population. Toxoplasmosis leads to serious medical problems in immunocompromised individuals and fetuses and also induces abortion and mortality in domestic animals. Therefore, there is a huge demand for the development of an effective vaccine. Surface Antigen 1 (SAG1) is one of the important immunodominant surface antigens of Toxoplasma gondii, which interacts with host cells and primarily involved in adhesion, invasion and stimulation of host immune response. Surface antigen 1 is considered as the leading candidate for development of an effective vaccine against toxoplasmosis. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to clone the major surface antigen1 gene (SAG1) from the genotype 1 of T. gondii, RH strain into the eukaryotic expression vector pVAX1 in order to use for a DNA vaccine. Materials and Methods: Genomic DNA was extracted from tachyzoite of the parasite using the QIAamp DNA mini kit. After designing the specific primers, SAG1 gene was amplified by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). The purified PCR products were then cloned into a pPrime plasmid vector. The aforementioned product was subcloned into the pVAX1 eukaryotic expression vector. The recombinant pVAX1-SAG1 was then transfected into Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO) cells and expression of SAG1 antigen was evaluated using Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR), Immunofluorescence Assay (IFA) and Western Blotting (WB). Results: The cloning and subcloning products (pPrime-SAG1 and pVAX1-SAG1 plasmid vectors) of SAG1 gene were verified and confirmed by enzyme digestion and sequencing. A 30 kDa recombinant protein was expressed in CHO cells as shown by IFA and WB methods. Conclusions: The pVAX1 expression vector and CHO cells are a suitable system for high-level recombinant protein production for SAG1 gene from T. gondii parasites and are promising approaches for antigen preparation in vaccine development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rahman Abdizadeh
- Cell and Molecular Research Center, School of Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, IR Iran
- Department of Medical Parasitology, School of Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, IR Iran
| | - Sharif Maraghi
- Department of Medical Parasitology, School of Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, IR Iran
- Institute of Health Research, Thalassemia and Hemoglobinopathy Research Center, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, IR Iran
| | - Ata A. Ghadiri
- Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, IR Iran
- Corresponding author: Ata A. Ghadiri, Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, IR Iran. Tel: +98-6133330144, Fax: +98-6133330145, E-mail:
| | - Mehdi Tavalla
- Department of Medical Parasitology, School of Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, IR Iran
| | - Saeedeh Shojaee
- Department of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences Tehran, IR Iran
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Enhancement of protective efficacy through adenoviral vectored vaccine priming and protein boosting strategy encoding triosephosphate isomerase (SjTPI) against Schistosoma japonicum in mice. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0120792. [PMID: 25793406 PMCID: PMC4368607 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0120792] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2014] [Accepted: 01/26/2015] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Schistosomiasis japonica is a zoonotic parasitic disease; developing transmission blocking veterinary vaccines are urgently needed for the prevention and control of schistosomiasis in China. Heterologous prime-boost strategy, a novel vaccination approach, is more effective in enhancing vaccine efficacy against multiple pathogens. In the present study, we established a novel heterologous prime-boost vaccination strategy, the rAdV-SjTPI.opt intramuscular priming and rSjTPI subcutaneous boosting strategy, and evaluated its protective efficacy against Schistosoma japonicum in mice. Methodology/Principal Findings Adenoviral vectored vaccine (rAdV-SjTPI.opt) and recombinant protein vaccine (rSjTPI) were prepared and used in different combinations as vaccines in a mouse model. The specific immune responses and protective efficacies were evaluated. Furthermore, the longevity of protective efficacy was also determined. Results showed that the rAdV-SjTPI.opt priming-rSjTPI boosting strategy elicited higher levels of specific IgG responses and broad-spectrum specific cellular immune responses. The protective efficacy could reach up to nearly 70% and 50% of protection could be observed at 10 weeks after the last immunization in mice. Conclusions/Significance The rAdV-SjTPI.opt intramuscular priming-rSjTPI subcutaneous boosting vaccination strategy is a novel, highly efficient, and stable approach to developing vaccines against Schistosoma japonicum infections in China.
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Lim SSY, Othman RY. Recent advances in Toxoplasma gondii immunotherapeutics. THE KOREAN JOURNAL OF PARASITOLOGY 2014; 52:581-93. [PMID: 25548409 PMCID: PMC4277020 DOI: 10.3347/kjp.2014.52.6.581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2014] [Revised: 08/21/2014] [Accepted: 08/22/2014] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Toxoplasmosis is an opportunistic infection caused by the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii. T. gondii is widespread globally and causes severe diseases in individuals with impaired immune defences as well as congenitally infected infants. The high prevalence rate in some parts of the world such as South America and Africa, coupled with the current drug treatments that trigger hypersensitivity reactions, makes the development of immunotherapeutics intervention a highly important research priority. Immunotherapeutics strategies could either be a vaccine which would confer a pre-emptive immunity to infection, or passive immunization in cases of disease recrudescence or recurrent clinical diseases. As the severity of clinical manifestations is often greater in developing nations, the development of well-tolerated and safe immunotherapeutics becomes not only a scientific pursuit, but a humanitarian enterprise. In the last few years, much progress has been made in vaccine research with new antigens, novel adjuvants, and innovative vaccine delivery such as nanoparticles and antigen encapsulations. A literature search over the past 5 years showed that most experimental studies were focused on DNA vaccination at 52%, followed by protein vaccination which formed 36% of the studies, live attenuated vaccinations at 9%, and heterologous vaccination at 3%; while there were few on passive immunization. Recent progress in studies on vaccination, passive immunization, as well as insights gained from these immunotherapeutics is highlighted in this review.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sherene Swee-Yin Lim
- Genetics and Molecular Biology Department, Institute of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya, 50603, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Rofina Yasmin Othman
- Genetics and Molecular Biology Department, Institute of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya, 50603, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. ; Centre for Research in Biotechnology for Agriculture, University of Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
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Hassan IA, Wang S, Xu L, Yan R, Song X, Li X. DNA vaccination with a gene encoding Toxoplasma gondii Deoxyribose Phosphate Aldolase (TgDPA) induces partial protective immunity against lethal challenge in mice. Parasit Vectors 2014; 7:431. [PMID: 25201636 PMCID: PMC4164750 DOI: 10.1186/1756-3305-7-431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2014] [Accepted: 09/03/2014] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular parasite that causes a pathological status known as toxoplasmosis, which has a huge impact on human and animal health. Currently, the main control strategy depends on the usage of drugs that target the acute stage of the infection, however, drawbacks were encountered while applying this method; therefore, development of an alternative effective method would be important progress. Deoxyribose Phosphate Aldolase (TgDPA) plays an important role supporting cell invasion and providing energy for the parasite. Methods TgDPA was expressed in Escherichia coli and the purified recombinant protein was used to immunize rats. The antibodies obtained were used to verify in vitro expression of TgDPA. The vector pVAX1 was utilized to formulate a DNA vaccine designated as pTgDPA, which was used to evaluate the immunological changes and the level of protection against challenge with the virulent RH strain of T. gondii. Results DNA vaccine, TgDPA revealed that it can induce a strong humoral as well as cellular mediated response in mice. These responses were a contribution of TH1, TH2 and TH17 type of responses. Following challenge, mice immunized with TgDPA showed longer survival rates than did those in control groups. Conclusions Further investigation regarding TgDPA is required to shed more light on its immunogenicity and its possible selection as a vaccine candidate.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Xiangrui Li
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210095, People's Republic of China.
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