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Ryan NM, Hess JA, Robertson EJ, Tricoche N, Turner C, Davis J, Petrovsky N, Ferguson M, Rinaldi WJ, Wong VM, Shimada A, Zhan B, Bottazzi ME, Makepeace BL, Gray SA, Carter D, Lustigman S, Abraham D. Adjuvanted Fusion Protein Vaccine Induces Durable Immunity to Onchocerca volvulus in Mice and Non-Human Primates. Vaccines (Basel) 2023; 11:1212. [PMID: 37515028 PMCID: PMC10385774 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines11071212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2023] [Revised: 06/23/2023] [Accepted: 06/27/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Onchocerciasis remains a debilitating neglected tropical disease. Due to the many challenges of current control methods, an effective vaccine against the causative agent Onchocerca volvulus is urgently needed. Mice and cynomolgus macaque non-human primates (NHPs) were immunized with a vaccine consisting of a fusion of two O. volvulus protein antigens, Ov-103 and Ov-RAL-2 (Ov-FUS-1), and three different adjuvants: Advax-CpG, alum, and AlT4. All vaccine formulations induced high antigen-specific IgG titers in both mice and NHPs. Challenging mice with O. volvulus L3 contained within subcutaneous diffusion chambers demonstrated that Ov-FUS-1/Advax-CpG-immunized animals developed protective immunity, durable for at least 11 weeks. Passive transfer of sera, collected at several time points, from both mice and NHPs immunized with Ov-FUS-1/Advax-CpG transferred protection to naïve mice. These results demonstrate that Ov-FUS-1 with the adjuvant Advax-CpG induces durable protective immunity against O. volvulus in mice and NHPs that is mediated by vaccine-induced humoral factors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan M Ryan
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA
| | - Jessica A Hess
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA
| | - Erica J Robertson
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA
| | - Nancy Tricoche
- Laboratory of Molecular Parasitology, Lindsey F. Kimball Research Institute, New York Blood Center, New York, NY 10065, USA
| | | | - Jenn Davis
- PAI Life Sciences Inc., Seattle, WA 98102, USA
| | | | | | | | | | - Ayako Shimada
- Division of Biostatistics, Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA
| | - Bin Zhan
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Maria Elena Bottazzi
- Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, Department of Pediatrics, National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Benjamin L Makepeace
- Institute of Infection, Veterinary & Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L3 5RF, UK
| | - Sean A Gray
- PAI Life Sciences Inc., Seattle, WA 98102, USA
| | | | - Sara Lustigman
- Laboratory of Molecular Parasitology, Lindsey F. Kimball Research Institute, New York Blood Center, New York, NY 10065, USA
| | - David Abraham
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA
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Gahlot DK, Taheri N, MacIntyre S. Diversity in Genetic Regulation of Bacterial Fimbriae Assembled by the Chaperone Usher Pathway. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 24:ijms24010161. [PMID: 36613605 PMCID: PMC9820224 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24010161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2022] [Revised: 11/09/2022] [Accepted: 11/10/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacteria express different types of hair-like proteinaceous appendages on their cell surface known as pili or fimbriae. These filamentous structures are primarily involved in the adherence of bacteria to both abiotic and biotic surfaces for biofilm formation and/or virulence of non-pathogenic and pathogenic bacteria. In pathogenic bacteria, especially Gram-negative bacteria, fimbriae play a key role in bacteria-host interactions which are critical for bacterial invasion and infection. Fimbriae assembled by the Chaperone Usher pathway (CUP) are widespread within the Enterobacteriaceae, and their expression is tightly regulated by specific environmental stimuli. Genes essential for expression of CUP fimbriae are organised in small blocks/clusters, which are often located in proximity to other virulence genes on a pathogenicity island. Since these surface appendages play a crucial role in bacterial virulence, they have potential to be harnessed in vaccine development. This review covers the regulation of expression of CUP-assembled fimbriae in Gram-negative bacteria and uses selected examples to demonstrate both dedicated and global regulatory mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dharmender K. Gahlot
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Reading, Reading RG6 6EX, UK
- Department of Molecular Biology, Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå, Sweden
- Umeå Centre for Microbial Research (UCMR), Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå, Sweden
- Correspondence: (D.K.G.); (S.M.)
| | - Nayyer Taheri
- APC Microbiome Institute, University College Cork, T12 K8AF Cork, Ireland
| | - Sheila MacIntyre
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Reading, Reading RG6 6EX, UK
- Correspondence: (D.K.G.); (S.M.)
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Lajevardi MS, Taheri T, Gholami E, Seyed N, Rafati S. Structural analysis of PpSP15 and PsSP9 sand fly salivary proteins designed with a self-cleavable linker as a live vaccine candidate against cutaneous leishmaniasis. Parasit Vectors 2022; 15:377. [PMID: 36261836 PMCID: PMC9580450 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-022-05437-x] [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] [Received: 04/06/2022] [Accepted: 08/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Leishmania parasites are deposited in the host through sand fly bites along with sand fly saliva. Therefore, salivary proteins are promising vaccine candidates for controlling leishmaniasis. Herein, two immunogenic salivary proteins, PpSP15 from Phlebotomus papatasi and PsSP9 from Phlebotomus sergenti, were selected as vaccine candidates to be delivered by live Leishmania tarentolae as vector. The stepwise in silico protocol advantaged in this study for multi-protein design in L. tarentolae is then described in detail. Methods All possible combinations of two salivary proteins, PpSP15 and PsSP9, with or without T2A peptide were designed at the mRNA and protein levels. Then, the best combination for the vaccine candidate was selected based on mRNA and protein stability along with peptide analysis. Results At the mRNA level, the most favored secondary structure was PpSP15-T2A-PsSP9. At the protein level, the refined three-dimensional models of all combinations were structurally valid; however, local quality estimation showed that the PpSp15-T2A-PsSP9 fusion had higher stability for each amino acid position, with low root-mean-square deviation (RMSD), compared with the original proteins. In silico evaluation confirmed the PpSP15-T2A-PsSP9 combination as a good Th1-polarizing candidate in terms of high IFN-γ production and low IL-10/TGF-β ratio in response to three consecutive immunizations. Potential protein expression was then confirmed by Western blotting. Conclusions The approach presented herein is among the first studies to have privileged protein homology modeling along with mRNA analysis for logical live vaccine design-coding multi-proteins. ![]()
Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13071-022-05437-x.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mahya Sadat Lajevardi
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.,Department of Medical Biotechnology, School of Medicine, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran
| | - Tahereh Taheri
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Elham Gholami
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Negar Seyed
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.
| | - Sima Rafati
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.
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Park S, Kirthika P, Jawalagatti V, Senevirathne A, Lee JH. Salmonella delivered Lawsonia intracellularis novel epitope-fusion vaccines enhance immunogenicity and confers protection against Lawsonia intracellularis in mice. Vet Microbiol 2021; 263:109264. [PMID: 34710766 DOI: 10.1016/j.vetmic.2021.109264] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2021] [Accepted: 10/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Attenuated Salmonella-mediated vaccine constructs were designed by employing selected discontinuous immunodominant epitopes of LatA, FliC, and PAL antigens of Lawsonia intracellularis to create vaccines against porcine proliferative enteropathy (PPE). Whole protein sequences were subjected to in silico prediction of dominant epitopes, the stability of fusions, and hydropathicity and to ensure that the fused epitopes were feasible for expression in a Salmonella system. Two fusion constructs, one comprising LatA epitopes and the other FliC-PAL-FliC epitopes, were built into a prokaryotic constitutive expression system and transformed into the auxotrophic Salmonella host strain JOL1800. Epitope selection eliminated the majority of less immunodominant regions of target proteins and resulted in an efficient secretion platform that induced significant protective responses. Overall, our results demonstrated that the Salmonella-mediated LI- multi-epitope vaccines elicited significant humoral and cellular immune responses. Additionally, the challenge study suggested that the vaccinated mice were protected against experimental Lawsonia intracellularis infection. Based on the outcomes of the study, Salmonella-mediated LI- multi-epitope vaccines have the potential to prevent PPE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sungwoo Park
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Jeonbuk National University, Iksan Campus, 54596, Republic of Korea
| | - Perumalraja Kirthika
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Jeonbuk National University, Iksan Campus, 54596, Republic of Korea
| | - Vijayakumar Jawalagatti
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Jeonbuk National University, Iksan Campus, 54596, Republic of Korea
| | - Amal Senevirathne
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Jeonbuk National University, Iksan Campus, 54596, Republic of Korea
| | - John Hwa Lee
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Jeonbuk National University, Iksan Campus, 54596, Republic of Korea.
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Rosenzweig JA, Hendrix EK, Chopra AK. Plague vaccines: new developments in an ongoing search. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2021; 105:4931-4941. [PMID: 34142207 PMCID: PMC8211537 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-021-11389-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2021] [Revised: 05/25/2021] [Accepted: 06/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
As the reality of pandemic threats challenges humanity, exemplified during the ongoing SARS-CoV-2 infections, the development of vaccines targeting these etiological agents of disease has become increasingly critical. Of paramount concern are novel and reemerging pathogens that could trigger such events, including the plague bacterium Yersinia pestis. Y. pestis is responsible for more human deaths than any other known pathogen and exists globally in endemic regions of the world, including the four corners region and Northern California in the USA. Recent cases have been scattered throughout the world, including China and the USA, with serious outbreaks in Madagascar during 2008, 2013-2014, and, most recently, 2017-2018. This review will focus on recent advances in plague vaccine development, a seemingly necessary endeavor, as there is no Food and Drug Administration-licensed vaccine available for human distribution in western nations, and that antibiotic-resistant strains are recovered clinically or intentionally developed. Progress and recent development involving subunit, live-attenuated, and nucleic acid-based plague vaccine candidates will be discussed in this review. KEY POINTS: • Plague vaccine development remains elusive yet critical. • DNA, animal, and live-attenuated vaccine candidates gain traction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jason A Rosenzweig
- Department of Biology, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX, 77004, USA.
| | - Emily K Hendrix
- Departmnet of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, 77555, USA
| | - Ashok K Chopra
- Departmnet of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, 77555, USA.
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Shamakhi A, Kordbacheh E. Immunoinformatic design of an epitope-based immunogen candidate against Bacillus anthracis. INFORMATICS IN MEDICINE UNLOCKED 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.imu.2021.100574] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022] Open
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Yersinia pestis Antigen F1 but Not LcrV Induced Humoral and Cellular Immune Responses in Humans Immunized with Live Plague Vaccine-Comparison of Immunoinformatic and Immunological Approaches. Vaccines (Basel) 2020; 8:vaccines8040698. [PMID: 33228200 PMCID: PMC7712656 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines8040698] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2020] [Revised: 11/01/2020] [Accepted: 11/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The recent progress in immunoinformatics provided the basis for an accelerated development of target-specific peptide vaccines as an alternative to the traditional vaccine concept. However, there is still limited information on whether the in silico predicted immunoreactive epitopes correspond to those obtained from the actual experiments. Here, humoral and cellular immune responses to two major Yersinia pestis protective antigens, F1 and LcrV, were studied in human donors immunized with the live plague vaccine (LPV) based on the attenuated Y. pestis strain EV line NIIEG. The F1 antigen provided modest specific cellular (mixed T helper 1 (Th1)/Th2 type) and humoral immune responses in vaccinees irrespective of the amount of annual vaccinations and duration of the post-vaccination period. The probing of the F1 overlapping peptide library with the F1-positive sera revealed the presence of seven linear B cell epitopes, which were all also predicted by in silico assay. The immunoinformatics study evaluated their antigenicity, toxicity, and allergenic properties. The epitope TSQDGNNH was mostly recognized by the sera from recently vaccinated donors rather than antibodies from those immunized decades ago, suggesting the usefulness of this peptide for differentiation between recent and long-term vaccinations. The in silico analysis predicted nine linear LcrV-specific B-cell epitopes; however, weak antibody and cellular immune responses prevented their experimental evaluation, indicating that LcrV is a poor marker of successful vaccination. No specific Th17 immune response to either F1 or LcrV was detected, and there were no detectable serum levels of F1-specific immunoglobulin A (IgA) in vaccinees. Overall, the general approach validated in the LPV model could be valuable for the rational design of vaccines against other neglected and novel emerging infections with high pandemic potency.
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Manish M, Verma S, Kandari D, Kulshreshtha P, Singh S, Bhatnagar R. Anthrax prevention through vaccine and post-exposure therapy. Expert Opin Biol Ther 2020; 20:1405-1425. [DOI: 10.1080/14712598.2020.1801626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Manish Manish
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering, School of Biotechnology, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
| | - Shashikala Verma
- Centre of Experimental Medicine & Surgery, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India
| | - Divya Kandari
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering, School of Biotechnology, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
| | - Parul Kulshreshtha
- Department of Zoology, Shivaji College, University of Delhi, Delhi, India
| | - Samer Singh
- Centre of Experimental Medicine & Surgery, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India
- Department of Microbial Biotechnology, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India
| | - Rakesh Bhatnagar
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering, School of Biotechnology, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
- Centre of Experimental Medicine & Surgery, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India
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