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Pyrski M, Mieloch AA, Plewiński A, Basińska-Barczak A, Gryciuk A, Bociąg P, Murias M, Rybka JD, Pniewski T. Parenteral-Oral Immunization with Plant-Derived HBcAg as a Potential Therapeutic Vaccine against Chronic Hepatitis B. Vaccines (Basel) 2019; 7:E211. [PMID: 31835350 PMCID: PMC6963566 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines7040211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2019] [Revised: 12/02/2019] [Accepted: 12/06/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is the cause of severe liver damage, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma for over 240 million people worldwide. Nowadays, several types of treatment are being investigated, including immunotherapy using hepatitis B core antigen (HBcAg) assembled into highly immunogenic capsid-like particles (CLPs). Immunogenicity of plant-produced and purified HBcAg, administered parenterally or intranasally, was previously reported. In this study, a novel parenteral-oral vaccination scheme is proposed using plant-derived HBcAg preparations. The antigen for injection was obtained via transient expression in Nicotiana benthamiana. HBcAg-producing transgenic lettuce was lyophilized and used as an orally delivered booster. The intracellular location of plant-produced HBcAg CLPs implies additional protection in the digestive tract during oral immunization. BALB/c mice were intramuscularly primed with 10 µg of the purified antigen and orally boosted twice with 5 or 200 ng of HBcAg. A long-lasting and significant systemic response after boosting with 200 ng HBcAg was induced, with anti-HBc titer of 25,000. Concomitantly, an insignificant mucosal response was observed, with an S-IgA titer of only 500. The profile of IgG isotypes indicates a predominant Th1 type of immune response, supplemented by Th2, after injection-oral vaccination. The results demonstrate that a low dose of parenteral-oral immunization with plant-derived HBcAg can elicit a specific and efficient response. This study presents a potential new pathway of CHB treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcin Pyrski
- Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479 Poznań, Poland; (M.P.); (A.B.-B.); (A.G.); (P.B.)
| | - Adam Aron Mieloch
- Center for Advanced Technology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Uniwersytetu Poznańskiego 10, 61-614 Poznań, Poland; (A.A.M.); (A.P.)
- Faculty of Chemistry, Adam Mickiewicz University, Uniwersytetu Poznańskiego 8, 61-614 Poznań, Poland
| | - Adam Plewiński
- Center for Advanced Technology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Uniwersytetu Poznańskiego 10, 61-614 Poznań, Poland; (A.A.M.); (A.P.)
| | - Aneta Basińska-Barczak
- Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479 Poznań, Poland; (M.P.); (A.B.-B.); (A.G.); (P.B.)
| | - Aleksandra Gryciuk
- Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479 Poznań, Poland; (M.P.); (A.B.-B.); (A.G.); (P.B.)
| | - Piotr Bociąg
- Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479 Poznań, Poland; (M.P.); (A.B.-B.); (A.G.); (P.B.)
| | - Marek Murias
- Department of Toxicology, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Dojazd 30, 60-631 Poznań, Poland;
| | - Jakub Dalibor Rybka
- Center for Advanced Technology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Uniwersytetu Poznańskiego 10, 61-614 Poznań, Poland; (A.A.M.); (A.P.)
| | - Tomasz Pniewski
- Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479 Poznań, Poland; (M.P.); (A.B.-B.); (A.G.); (P.B.)
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Pyrski M, Rugowska A, Wierzbiński KR, Kasprzyk A, Bogusiewicz M, Bociąg P, Samardakiewicz S, Czyż M, Kurpisz M, Pniewski T. HBcAg produced in transgenic tobacco triggers Th1 and Th2 response when intramuscularly delivered. Vaccine 2017; 35:5714-5721. [PMID: 28917537 DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2017.07.082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2017] [Revised: 07/18/2017] [Accepted: 07/19/2017] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Hepatitis B core Antigen (HBcAg) assembled into Capsid-Like Particles (CLPs) is investigated as a therapeutic vaccine in treatment of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) and in diagnostic tests or as a carrier for various epitopes. While the expression of HBcAg has been thoroughly clarified in E. coli and yeast, it has also been investigated in other expression systems. Stably transformed tobacco expressed HBcAg at a level of 110-250µg/g fresh weight, therefore in view of its large leaf biomass it offers a production platform comparable with transient expression systems regarding the final yield of HBcAg. Several extraction and purification methods were tested and finally the antigen was purified up to 43% using sucrose density gradient centrifugation. The purified HBcAg retained its antigenicity, as confirmed by ELISA and western blot, while maintaining its CLP-structure as observed in TEM. In mice HBcAg intramuscularly delivered at 2×10µg triggered a significant response (serum anti-HBc titre around 150,000), being statistically equivalent to that induced by the reference antigen. Among anti-HBc IgG isotypes, IgG2a and then IgG1 were increasing during immune response. However IgG2b and IgG3 were also induced, especially in mice immunised with the plant-derived antigen. Analysis of the isotype profile indicates mainly Th1 polarisation, but completed with Th2 response. Obtained results indicate a considerable potential of plant-derived HBcAg as a therapeutic vaccine, since a mixed immune response with a stronger Th1 component is particularly required for treatment of CHB.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcin Pyrski
- Department of Biotechnology, Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479 Poznań, Poland
| | - Anna Rugowska
- Department of Reproductive Biology and Stem Cells, Institute of Human Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 32, 60-479 Poznań, Poland
| | - Kamil Robert Wierzbiński
- Department of Reproductive Biology and Stem Cells, Institute of Human Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 32, 60-479 Poznań, Poland
| | - Anna Kasprzyk
- Department of Biotechnology, Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479 Poznań, Poland
| | - Maria Bogusiewicz
- Department of Biotechnology, Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479 Poznań, Poland
| | - Piotr Bociąg
- Department of Biotechnology, Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479 Poznań, Poland
| | - Sławomir Samardakiewicz
- Laboratory of Electron and Confocal Microscopy, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Umultowska 89, 61-614 Poznań, Poland
| | - Marcin Czyż
- Department of Biotechnology, Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479 Poznań, Poland
| | - Maciej Kurpisz
- Department of Reproductive Biology and Stem Cells, Institute of Human Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 32, 60-479 Poznań, Poland
| | - Tomasz Pniewski
- Department of Biotechnology, Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479 Poznań, Poland.
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Pniewski T, Czyż M, Wyrwa K, Bociąg P, Krajewski P, Kapusta J. Micropropagation of transgenic lettuce containing HBsAg as a method of mass-scale production of standardised plant material for biofarming purposes. Plant Cell Rep 2017; 36:49-60. [PMID: 27655251 PMCID: PMC5206250 DOI: 10.1007/s00299-016-2056-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2016] [Accepted: 09/07/2016] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
KEY MESSAGE Micropropagation protocol of transgenic lettuce bearing S-, M- and L-HBsAg was developed for increased production of uniformised material for oral vaccine preparation. Effective manufacturing of plant-based biopharmaceuticals, including oral vaccines, depends on sufficient content of a protein of interest in the initial material and its efficient conversion into an administrable formulation. However, stable production of plants with a uniformised antigen content is equally important for reproducible processing. This can be provided by micropropagation techniques. Here, we present a protocol for micropropagation of transgenic lettuce lines bearing HBV surface antigens: S-, M- and L-HBsAg. These were multiplied through axillary buds to avoid the risk of somaclonal variation. Micropropagation effectiveness reached 3.5-5.7 per passage, which implies potential production of up to 6600 plant clones within a maximum 5 months. Multiplication and rooting rates were statistically homogenous for most transgenic and control plants. For most lines, more than 90 % of clones obtained via in vitro micropropagation had HBsAg content as high as reference plants directly developed from seeds. Clones were also several times more uniform in HBsAg expression. Variation coefficients of HBsAg content did not exceed 10 % for approximately 40-85 % of clones, or reached a maximum 20 % for 90 % of all clones. Tissue culture did not affect total and leaf biomass yields. Seed production for clones was decreased insignificantly and did not impact progeny condition. Micropropagation facilitates a substantial increase in the production of lettuce plants with high and considerably equalised HBsAg contents. This, together with the previously reported optimisation of plant tissue processing and its long-term stability, constitutes a successive step in manufacturing of a standardised anti-HBV oral vaccine of reliable efficacy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomasz Pniewski
- Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479, Poznań, Poland.
| | - Marcin Czyż
- Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479, Poznań, Poland
| | - Katarzyna Wyrwa
- Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479, Poznań, Poland
| | - Piotr Bociąg
- Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479, Poznań, Poland
| | - Paweł Krajewski
- Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479, Poznań, Poland
| | - Józef Kapusta
- Institute of Biotechnology and Antibiotics, Starościńska 5, 05-216, Warsaw, Poland
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Pniewski T, Kapusta J, Bociąg P, Kostrzak A, Fedorowicz-Strońska O, Czyż M, Gdula M, Krajewski P, Wolko B, Płucienniczak A. Plant expression, lyophilisation and storage of HBV medium and large surface antigens for a prototype oral vaccine formulation. Plant Cell Rep 2012; 31:585-95. [PMID: 22246107 PMCID: PMC3277690 DOI: 10.1007/s00299-011-1223-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2011] [Revised: 12/21/2011] [Accepted: 12/23/2011] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
Current immunisation programmes against hepatitis B virus (HBV) increasingly often involve novel tri-component vaccines containing-together with the small (S-HBsAg)-also medium and large surface antigens of HBV (M- and L-HBsAg). Plants producing all HBsAg proteins can be a source of components for a potential oral 'triple' anti-HBV vaccine. The objective of the presented research was to study the potential of M/L-HBsAg expression in leaf tissue and conditions of its processing for a prototype oral vaccine. Tobacco and lettuce carrying M- or L-HBsAg genes and resistant to the herbicide glufosinate were engineered and integration of the transgenes was verified by PCR and Southern hybridizations. M- and L-HBsAg expression was confirmed by Western blot and assayed by ELISA at the level of micrograms per g of fresh weight. The antigens displayed a common S domain and characteristic domains preS2 and preS1 and were assembled into virus-like particles (VLPs). Leaf tissues containing M- and L-HBsAg were lyophilised to produce a starting material of an orally administered vaccine formula. The antigens were distinctly sensitive to freeze-drying conditions and storage temperature, in the aspect of stability of S and preS domains and formation of multimeric particles. Efficiency of lyophilisation and storage depended also on the initial antigen content in plant tissue, yet M-HBsAg appeared to be approximately 1.5-2 times more stable than L-HBsAg. The results of the study provide indications concerning the preparation of two other constituents, next to S-HBsAg, for a plant-derived prototype oral tri-component vaccine against hepatitis B.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomasz Pniewski
- Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479 Poznan, Poland.
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Pniewski T, Kapusta J, Bociąg P, Wojciechowicz J, Kostrzak A, Gdula M, Fedorowicz-Strońska O, Wójcik P, Otta H, Samardakiewicz S, Wolko B, Płucienniczak A. Low-dose oral immunization with lyophilized tissue of herbicide-resistant lettuce expressing hepatitis B surface antigen for prototype plant-derived vaccine tablet formulation. J Appl Genet 2011; 52:125-36. [PMID: 21107787 PMCID: PMC3088802 DOI: 10.1007/s13353-010-0001-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2010] [Revised: 10/11/2010] [Accepted: 10/12/2010] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Efficient immunization against hepatitis B virus (HBV) and other pathogens with plant-based oral vaccines requires appropriate plant expressors and the optimization of vaccine compositions and administration protocols. Previous immunization studies were mainly based on a combination of the injection of a small surface antigen of HBV (S-HBsAg) and the feeding with raw tissue containing the antigen, supplemented with an adjuvant, and coming from plants conferring resistance to kanamycin. The objective of this study was to develop a prototype oral vaccine formula suitable for human immunization. Herbicide-resistant lettuce was engineered, stably expressing through progeny generation micrograms of S-HBsAg per g of fresh weight and formed into virus-like particles (VLPs). Lyophilized tissue containing a relatively low, 100-ng VLP-assembled antigen dose, administered only orally to mice with a long, 60-day interval between prime and boost immunizations and without exogenous adjuvant, elicited mucosal and systemic humoral anti-HBs responses at the nominally protective level. Lyophilized tissue was converted into tablets, which preserved S-HBsAg content for at least one year of room temperature storage. The results of the study provide indications on immunization methodology using a durable, efficacious, and convenient plant-derived prototype oral vaccine against hepatitis B.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomasz Pniewski
- Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479, Poznań, Poland.
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