1
|
Majumder S, Das S, Li P, Yang N, Dellario H, Sui H, Guan Z, Sun W. Pneumonic Plague Protection Induced by a Monophosphoryl Lipid A Decorated Yersinia Outer-Membrane-Vesicle Vaccine. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2024; 20:e2307066. [PMID: 38009518 PMCID: PMC11009084 DOI: 10.1002/smll.202307066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2023] [Revised: 10/19/2023] [Indexed: 11/29/2023]
Abstract
A new Yersinia pseudotuberculosis mutant strain, YptbS46, carrying the lpxE insertion and pmrF-J deletion is constructed and shown to exclusively produce monophosphoryl lipid A (MPLA) having adjuvant properties. Outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) isolated from YptbS46 harboring an lcrV expression plasmid, pSMV13, are designated OMV46-LcrV, which contained MPLA and high amounts of LcrV (Low Calcium response V) and displayed low activation of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4). Intramuscular prime-boost immunization with 30 µg of of OMV46-LcrV exhibited substantially reduced reactogenicity than the parent OMV44-LcrV and conferred complete protection to mice against a high-dose of respiratory Y. pestis challenge. OMV46-LcrV immunization induced robust adaptive responses in both lung mucosal and systemic compartments and orchestrated innate immunity in the lung, which are correlated with rapid bacterial clearance and unremarkable lung damage during Y. pestis challenge. Additionally, OMV46-LcrV immunization conferred long-term protection. Moreover, immunization with reduced doses of OMV46-LcrV exhibited further lower reactogenicity and still provided great protection against pneumonic plague. The studies strongly demonstrate the feasibility of OMV46-LcrV as a new type of plague vaccine candidate.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Saugata Majumder
- Department of Immunology and Microbial Disease, Albany Medical College, Albany, NY, 12208, USA
| | - Shreya Das
- Department of Immunology and Microbial Disease, Albany Medical College, Albany, NY, 12208, USA
| | - Peng Li
- Department of Immunology and Microbial Disease, Albany Medical College, Albany, NY, 12208, USA
| | - Nicole Yang
- Department of Immunology and Microbial Disease, Albany Medical College, Albany, NY, 12208, USA
| | - Hazel Dellario
- Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, Albany, NY, 12237, USA
| | - Haixin Sui
- Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, Albany, NY, 12237, USA
| | - Ziqiang Guan
- Department of Biochemistry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Wei Sun
- Department of Immunology and Microbial Disease, Albany Medical College, Albany, NY, 12208, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Guo X, Xin Y, Tong Z, Cao S, Zhang Y, Wu G, Chen H, Wang T, Song Y, Zhang Q, Yang R, Du Z. A novel sORF gene mutant strain of Yersinia pestis vaccine EV76 offers enhanced safety and improved protection against plague. PLoS Pathog 2024; 20:e1012129. [PMID: 38547321 PMCID: PMC11020802 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1012129] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2023] [Revised: 04/16/2024] [Accepted: 03/15/2024] [Indexed: 04/18/2024] Open
Abstract
We recently identified two virulence-associated small open reading frames (sORF) of Yersinia pestis, named yp1 and yp2, and null mutants of each individual genes were highly attenuated in virulence. Plague vaccine strain EV76 is known for strong reactogenicity, making it not suitable for use in humans. To improve the immune safety of EV76, three mutant strains of EV76, Δyp1, Δyp2, and Δyp1&yp2 were constructed and their virulence attenuation, immunogenicity, and protective efficacy in mice were evaluated. All mutant strains were attenuated by the subcutaneous (s.c.) route and exhibited more rapid clearance in tissues than the parental strain EV76. Under iron overload conditions, only the mice infected with EV76Δyp1 survived, accompanied by less draining lymph nodes damage than those infected by EV76. Analysis of cytokines secreted by splenocytes of immunized mice found that EV76Δyp2 induced higher secretion of multiple cytokines including TNF-α, IL-2, and IL-12p70 than EV76. On day 42, EV76Δyp2 or EV76Δyp1&yp2 immunized mice exhibited similar protective efficacy as EV76 when exposed to Y. pestis 201, both via s.c. or intranasal (i.n.) routes of administration. Moreover, when exposed to 200-400 LD50 Y. pestis strain 201Δcaf1 (non-encapsulated Y. pestis), EV76Δyp2 or EV76Δyp1&yp2 are able to afford about 50% protection to i.n. challenges, significantly better than the protection afforded by EV76. On 120 day, mice immunized with EV76Δyp2 or EV76Δyp1&yp2 cleared the i.n. challenge of Y. pestis 201-lux as quickly as those immunized with EV76, demonstrating 90-100% protection. Our results demonstrated that deletion of the yp2 gene is an effective strategy to attenuate virulence of Y. pestis EV76 while improving immunogenicity. Furthermore, EV76Δyp2 is a promising candidate for conferring protection against the pneumonic and bubonic forms of plague.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xiao Guo
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Youquan Xin
- Key Laboratory for Plague Prevention and Control of Qinghai Province, Qinghai Institute for Endemic Disease Prevention and Control, Xining, China
| | - Zehui Tong
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University Hefei, China
| | - Shiyang Cao
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Yuan Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Gengshan Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Hongyan Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Tong Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Yajun Song
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Qingwen Zhang
- Key Laboratory for Plague Prevention and Control of Qinghai Province, Qinghai Institute for Endemic Disease Prevention and Control, Xining, China
| | - Ruifu Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China
| | - Zongmin Du
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University Hefei, China
- Key Laboratory for Plague Prevention and Control of Qinghai Province, Qinghai Institute for Endemic Disease Prevention and Control, Xining, China
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Kilgore PB, Sha J, Hendrix EK, Neil BH, Lawrence WS, Peel JE, Hittle L, Woolston J, Sulakvelidze A, Schwartz JA, Chopra AK. A Bacteriophage Cocktail Targeting Yersinia pestis Provides Strong Post-Exposure Protection in a Rat Pneumonic Plague Model. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.01.17.576055. [PMID: 38293171 PMCID: PMC10827167 DOI: 10.1101/2024.01.17.576055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2024]
Abstract
Yersinia pestis , one of the deadliest bacterial pathogens ever known, is responsible for three plague pandemics and several epidemics, with over 200 million deaths during recorded history. Due to high genomic plasticity, Y. pestis is amenable to genetic mutations as well as genetic engineering that can lead to the emergence or intentional development of pan-drug resistant strains. The dissemination of such Y. pestis strains could be catastrophic, with public health consequences far more daunting than those caused by the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop novel, safe, and effective treatment approaches for managing Y. pestis infections. This includes infections by antigenically distinct strains for which vaccines, none FDA approved yet, may not be effective, and those that cannot be controlled by approved antibiotics. Lytic bacteriophages provide one such alternative approach. In this study, we examined post-exposure efficacy of a bacteriophage cocktail, YPP-401, to combat pneumonic plague caused by Y. pestis CO92. YPP-401 is a four-phage preparation with a 100% lytic activity against a panel of 68 genetically diverse Y. pestis strains. Using a pneumonic plague aerosol challenge model in gender-balanced Brown Norway rats, YPP-401 demonstrated ∼88% protection when delivered 18 hours post-exposure for each of two administration routes (i.e., intraperitoneal and intranasal) in a dose-dependent manner. Our studies suggest that YPP-401 could provide an innovative, safe, and effective approach for managing Y. pestis infections, including those caused by naturally occurring or intentionally developed strains that cannot be managed by vaccines in development and antibiotics.
Collapse
|
4
|
Majumder S, Das S, Li P, Yang N, Dellario H, Sui H, Guan Z, Sun W. Pneumonic plague protection induced by a monophosphoryl lipid A decorated Yersinia outer-membrane-vesicle vaccine. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.08.17.553697. [PMID: 37645871 PMCID: PMC10462118 DOI: 10.1101/2023.08.17.553697] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/31/2023]
Abstract
A newly constructed Yersinia pseudotuberculosis mutant (YptbS46) carrying the lpxE insertion and pmrF-J deletion exclusively synthesized an adjuvant form of lipid A, monophosphoryl lipid A (MPLA). Outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) isolated from YptbS46 harboring an lcrV expression plasmid, pSMV13, were designated OMV 46 -LcrV, which contained MPLA and high amounts of LcrV and displayed low activation of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4). Similar to the previous OMV 44 -LcrV, intramuscular prime-boost immunization with 30 µg of OMV 46 -LcrV exhibited substantially reduced reactogenicity and conferred complete protection to mice against a high-dose of respiratory Y. pestis challenge. OMV 46 -LcrV immunization induced robust adaptive responses in both lung mucosal and systemic compartments and orchestrated innate immunity in the lung, which were correlated with rapid bacterial clearance and unremarkable lung damage during Y. pestis challenge. Additionally, OMV 46 -LcrV immunization conferred long-term protection. Moreover, immunization with reduced doses of OMV 46 -LcrV exhibited further lower reactogenicity and still provided great protection against pneumonic plague. Our studies strongly demonstrate the feasibility of OMV 46 -LcrV as a new type of plague vaccine candidate.
Collapse
|
5
|
Kon E, Levy Y, Elia U, Cohen H, Hazan-Halevy I, Aftalion M, Ezra A, Bar-Haim E, Naidu GS, Diesendruck Y, Rotem S, Ad-El N, Goldsmith M, Mamroud E, Peer D, Cohen O. A single-dose F1-based mRNA-LNP vaccine provides protection against the lethal plague bacterium. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eadg1036. [PMID: 36888708 PMCID: PMC9995031 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adg1036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2022] [Accepted: 02/08/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
Messenger RNA (mRNA) lipid nanoparticle (LNP) vaccines have emerged as an effective vaccination strategy. Although currently applied toward viral pathogens, data concerning the platform's effectiveness against bacterial pathogens are limited. Here, we developed an effective mRNA-LNP vaccine against a lethal bacterial pathogen by optimizing mRNA payload guanine and cytosine content and antigen design. We designed a nucleoside-modified mRNA-LNP vaccine based on the bacterial F1 capsule antigen, a major protective component of Yersinia pestis, the etiological agent of plague. Plague is a rapidly deteriorating contagious disease that has killed millions of people during the history of humankind. Now, the disease is treated effectively with antibiotics; however, in the case of a multiple-antibiotic-resistant strain outbreak, alternative countermeasures are required. Our mRNA-LNP vaccine elicited humoral and cellular immunological responses in C57BL/6 mice and conferred rapid, full protection against lethal Y. pestis infection after a single dose. These data open avenues for urgently needed effective antibacterial vaccines.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Edo Kon
- Laboratory of Precision NanoMedicine, Shmunis School for Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Department of Materials Sciences and Engineering, Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Cancer Biology Research Center, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Yinon Levy
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona 76100, Israel
| | - Uri Elia
- Laboratory of Precision NanoMedicine, Shmunis School for Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Department of Materials Sciences and Engineering, Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Cancer Biology Research Center, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona 76100, Israel
| | - Hila Cohen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona 76100, Israel
| | - Inbal Hazan-Halevy
- Laboratory of Precision NanoMedicine, Shmunis School for Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Department of Materials Sciences and Engineering, Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Cancer Biology Research Center, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Moshe Aftalion
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona 76100, Israel
| | - Assaf Ezra
- Laboratory of Precision NanoMedicine, Shmunis School for Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Department of Materials Sciences and Engineering, Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Cancer Biology Research Center, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Erez Bar-Haim
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona 76100, Israel
| | - Gonna Somu Naidu
- Laboratory of Precision NanoMedicine, Shmunis School for Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Department of Materials Sciences and Engineering, Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Cancer Biology Research Center, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Yael Diesendruck
- Laboratory of Precision NanoMedicine, Shmunis School for Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Department of Materials Sciences and Engineering, Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Cancer Biology Research Center, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Shahar Rotem
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona 76100, Israel
| | - Nitay Ad-El
- Laboratory of Precision NanoMedicine, Shmunis School for Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Department of Materials Sciences and Engineering, Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Cancer Biology Research Center, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Meir Goldsmith
- Laboratory of Precision NanoMedicine, Shmunis School for Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Department of Materials Sciences and Engineering, Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Cancer Biology Research Center, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Emanuelle Mamroud
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona 76100, Israel
| | - Dan Peer
- Laboratory of Precision NanoMedicine, Shmunis School for Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Department of Materials Sciences and Engineering, Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
- Cancer Biology Research Center, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Ofer Cohen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona 76100, Israel
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Juhas M. Emerging and Zoonotic Diseases. BRIEF LESSONS IN MICROBIOLOGY 2023:111-122. [DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-29544-7_9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/02/2023]
|
7
|
Galloway DR, Nguyen NX, Li J, Houston N, Gregersen G, Williamson ED, Falkenberg FW, Herron JN, Hale JS. The magnitude of the germinal center B cell and T follicular helper cell response predicts long-lasting antibody titers to plague vaccination. Front Immunol 2022; 13:1017385. [PMID: 36389793 PMCID: PMC9650111 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.1017385] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2022] [Accepted: 10/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
The development of a safe and effective vaccine against Yersinia pestis, the causative organism for plague disease, remains an important global health priority. Studies have demonstrated effective immune-based protection against plague challenge that is induced by plague antigen subunit vaccination in an aqueous alhydrogel formulation; however, whether these candidate vaccines in this formulation and presentation, induce long-lasting immunological memory in the form of durable cellular and antibody recall responses has not been fully demonstrated. In this study, we analyzed germinal center T follicular helper and germinal center B cell responses following F1V and F1 + V plague subunit immunization of mice with vaccines formulated in various adjuvants. Our data demonstrate that recombinant plague protein immunization formulated with IL-2/GM-CSF cytokines bound to alhydrogel adjuvant drive an increase in the magnitude of the germinal center T follicular helper and germinal center B cell responses following primary immunization, compared to vaccines formulated with Alhydrogel adjuvant alone. In contrast, plague protein subunit immunization combined with CpG ODN bound to alhydrogel increased the magnitude and duration of the germinal center Tfh and B cell responses following booster immunization. Importantly, enhanced germinal center Tfh and B cell responses correlated with long-lasting and high F1V-specific antibody titers and more robust antibody recall responses to F1V re-exposure. These findings indicate that vaccine formulations that drive enhancement of the germinal center Tfh and B cell responses are critical for inducing durable plague-specific humoral immunity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Darrell R. Galloway
- Department of Molecular Pharmaceutics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, United States
- *Correspondence: J. Scott Hale, ; Darrell R. Galloway,
| | - Nguyen X. Nguyen
- Department of Pathology, Division of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, United States
| | - Jiahui Li
- Department of Molecular Pharmaceutics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, United States
| | - Nicholas Houston
- Department of Molecular Pharmaceutics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, United States
| | - Gage Gregersen
- Department of Molecular Pharmaceutics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, United States
| | - E. Diane Williamson
- Chemical Biological Radiological Division, Defense Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) Porton Down, Salisbury, United Kingdom
| | | | - James N. Herron
- Department of Molecular Pharmaceutics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, United States
| | - J. Scott Hale
- Department of Pathology, Division of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, United States
- *Correspondence: J. Scott Hale, ; Darrell R. Galloway,
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Biselli R, Nisini R, Lista F, Autore A, Lastilla M, De Lorenzo G, Peragallo MS, Stroffolini T, D’Amelio R. A Historical Review of Military Medical Strategies for Fighting Infectious Diseases: From Battlefields to Global Health. Biomedicines 2022; 10:2050. [PMID: 36009598 PMCID: PMC9405556 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines10082050] [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: 07/27/2022] [Revised: 08/12/2022] [Accepted: 08/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The environmental conditions generated by war and characterized by poverty, undernutrition, stress, difficult access to safe water and food as well as lack of environmental and personal hygiene favor the spread of many infectious diseases. Epidemic typhus, plague, malaria, cholera, typhoid fever, hepatitis, tetanus, and smallpox have nearly constantly accompanied wars, frequently deeply conditioning the outcome of battles/wars more than weapons and military strategy. At the end of the nineteenth century, with the birth of bacteriology, military medical researchers in Germany, the United Kingdom, and France were active in discovering the etiological agents of some diseases and in developing preventive vaccines. Emil von Behring, Ronald Ross and Charles Laveran, who were or served as military physicians, won the first, the second, and the seventh Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for discovering passive anti-diphtheria/tetanus immunotherapy and for identifying mosquito Anopheline as a malaria vector and plasmodium as its etiological agent, respectively. Meanwhile, Major Walter Reed in the United States of America discovered the mosquito vector of yellow fever, thus paving the way for its prevention by vector control. In this work, the military relevance of some vaccine-preventable and non-vaccine-preventable infectious diseases, as well as of biological weapons, and the military contributions to their control will be described. Currently, the civil-military medical collaboration is getting closer and becoming interdependent, from research and development for the prevention of infectious diseases to disasters and emergencies management, as recently demonstrated in Ebola and Zika outbreaks and the COVID-19 pandemic, even with the high biocontainment aeromedical evacuation, in a sort of global health diplomacy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Roberto Biselli
- Ispettorato Generale della Sanità Militare, Stato Maggiore della Difesa, Via S. Stefano Rotondo 4, 00184 Roma, Italy
| | - Roberto Nisini
- Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Roma, Italy
| | - Florigio Lista
- Dipartimento Scientifico, Policlinico Militare, Comando Logistico dell’Esercito, Via S. Stefano Rotondo 4, 00184 Roma, Italy
| | - Alberto Autore
- Osservatorio Epidemiologico della Difesa, Ispettorato Generale della Sanità Militare, Stato Maggiore della Difesa, Via S. Stefano Rotondo 4, 00184 Roma, Italy
| | - Marco Lastilla
- Istituto di Medicina Aerospaziale, Comando Logistico dell’Aeronautica Militare, Viale Piero Gobetti 2, 00185 Roma, Italy
| | - Giuseppe De Lorenzo
- Comando Generale dell’Arma dei Carabinieri, Dipartimento per l’Organizzazione Sanitaria e Veterinaria, Viale Romania 45, 00197 Roma, Italy
| | - Mario Stefano Peragallo
- Centro Studi e Ricerche di Sanità e Veterinaria, Comando Logistico dell’Esercito, Via S. Stefano Rotondo 4, 00184 Roma, Italy
| | - Tommaso Stroffolini
- Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive e Tropicali, Policlinico Umberto I, 00161 Roma, Italy
| | - Raffaele D’Amelio
- Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Molecolare, Sapienza Università di Roma, Via di Grottarossa 1035-1039, 00189 Roma, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Protection Induced by Oral Vaccination with a Recombinant Yersinia pseudotuberculosis Delivering Yersinia pestis LcrV and F1 Antigens in Mice and Rats against Pneumonic Plague. Infect Immun 2022; 90:e0016522. [PMID: 35900096 PMCID: PMC9387218 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00165-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
A newly attenuated Yersinia pseudotuberculosis strain (designated Yptb1) with triple mutation Δasd ΔyopK ΔyopJ and chromosomal insertion of the Y. pestis caf1R-caf1M-caf1A-caf1 operon was constructed as a live vaccine platform. Yptb1 tailored with an Asd+ plasmid (pYA5199) (designated Yptb1[pYA5199]) simultaneously delivers Y. pestis LcrV and F1. The attenuated Yptb1(pYA5199) localized in the Peyer's patches, lung, spleen, and liver for a few weeks after oral immunization without causing any disease symptoms in immunized rodents. An oral prime-boost Yptb1(pYA5199) immunization stimulated potent antibody responses to LcrV, F1, and Y. pestis whole-cell lysate (YPL) in Swiss Webster mice and Brown Norway rats. The prime-boost Yptb1(pYA5199) immunization induced higher antigen-specific humoral and cellular immune responses in mice than a single immunization did, and it provided complete short-term and long-term protection against a high dose of intranasal Y. pestis challenge in mice. Moreover, the prime-boost immunization afforded substantial protection for Brown Norway rats against an aerosolized Y. pestis challenge. Our study highlights that Yptb1(pYA5199) has high potential as an oral vaccine candidate against pneumonic plague.
Collapse
|
10
|
Charles T, Moss DL, Bhat P, Moore PW, Kummer NA, Bhattacharya A, Landry SJ, Mettu RR. CD4+ T-Cell Epitope Prediction by Combined Analysis of Antigen Conformational Flexibility and Peptide-MHCII Binding Affinity. Biochemistry 2022; 61:1585-1599. [PMID: 35834502 PMCID: PMC9352311 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.2c00237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
![]()
Antigen processing in the class II MHC pathway depends
on conventional
proteolytic enzymes, potentially acting on antigens in native-like
conformational states. CD4+ epitope dominance arises from a competition
among antigen folding, proteolysis, and MHCII binding. Protease-sensitive
sites, linear antibody epitopes, and CD4+ T-cell epitopes were mapped
in plague vaccine candidate F1-V to evaluate the various contributions
to CD4+ epitope dominance. Using X-ray crystal structures, antigen
processing likelihood (APL) predicts CD4+ epitopes with significant
accuracy for F1-V without considering peptide-MHCII binding affinity.
We also show that APL achieves excellent performance over two benchmark
antigen sets. The profiles of conformational flexibility derived from
the X-ray crystal structures of the F1-V proteins, Caf1 and LcrV,
were similar to the biochemical profiles of linear antibody epitope
reactivity and protease sensitivity, suggesting that the role of structure
in proteolysis was captured by the analysis of the crystal structures.
The patterns of CD4+ T-cell epitope dominance in C57BL/6, CBA, and
BALB/c mice were compared to epitope predictions based on APL, MHCII
binding, or both. For a sample of 13 diverse antigens, the accuracy
of epitope prediction by the combination of APL and I-Ab-MHCII-peptide affinity reached 36%. When MHCII allele specificity
was also diverse, such as in human immunity, prediction of dominant
epitopes by APL alone reached 42% when using a stringent scoring threshold.
Because dominant CD4+ epitopes tend to occur in conformationally stable
antigen domains, crystal structures typically are available for analysis
by APL, and thus, the requirement for a crystal structure is not a
severe limitation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tysheena Charles
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana 70112, United States
| | - Daniel L Moss
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana 70112, United States
| | - Pawan Bhat
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana 70112, United States
| | - Peyton W Moore
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana 70112, United States
| | - Nicholas A Kummer
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana 70112, United States
| | - Avik Bhattacharya
- Department of Computer Science, Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana 70118, United States
| | - Samuel J Landry
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana 70112, United States
| | - Ramgopal R Mettu
- Department of Computer Science, Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana 70118, United States
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Recent Trends in Protective Textiles against Biological Threats: A Focus on Biological Warfare Agents. Polymers (Basel) 2022; 14:polym14081599. [PMID: 35458353 PMCID: PMC9026340 DOI: 10.3390/polym14081599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2022] [Revised: 04/08/2022] [Accepted: 04/11/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The rising threats to worldwide security (affecting the military, first responders, and civilians) urge us to develop efficient and versatile technological solutions to protect human beings. Soldiers, medical personnel, firefighters, and law enforcement officers should be adequately protected, so that their exposure to biological warfare agents (BWAs) is minimized, and infectious microorganisms cannot be spread so easily. Current bioprotective military garments include multilayered fabrics integrating activated carbon as a sorptive agent and a separate filtrating layer for passive protection. However, secondary contaminants emerge following their accumulation within the carbon filler. The clothing becomes too heavy and warm to wear, not breathable even, preventing the wearer from working for extended hours. Hence, a strong need exists to select and/or create selectively permeable layered fibrous structures with bioactive agents that offer an efficient filtering capability and biocidal skills, ensuring lightweightness, comfort, and multifunctionality. This review aims to showcase the main possibilities and trends of bioprotective textiles, focusing on metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), inorganic nanoparticles (e.g., ZnO-based), and organic players such as chitosan (CS)-based small-scale particles and plant-derived compounds as bioactive agents. The textile itself should be further evaluated as the foundation for the barrier effect and in terms of comfort. The outputs of a thorough, standardized characterization should dictate the best elements for each approach.
Collapse
|
12
|
Peptidoglycan-Free Bacterial Ghosts Confer Enhanced Protection against Yersinia pestis Infection. Vaccines (Basel) 2021; 10:vaccines10010051. [PMID: 35062712 PMCID: PMC8777944 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines10010051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2021] [Revised: 12/22/2021] [Accepted: 12/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
To develop a modern plague vaccine, we used hypo-endotoxic Yersinia pestis bacterial ghosts (BGs) with combinations of genes encoding the bacteriophage ɸX174 lysis-mediating protein E and/or holin-endolysin systems from λ or L-413C phages. Expression of the protein E gene resulted in the BGs that retained the shape of the original bacterium. Co-expression of this gene with genes coding for holin-endolysin system of the phage L-413C caused formation of structures resembling collapsed sacs. Such structures, which have lost their rigidity, were also formed as a result of the expression of only the L-413C holin-endolysin genes. A similar holin-endolysin system from phage λ containing mutated holin gene S and intact genes R-Rz coding for the endolysins caused generation of mixtures of BGs that had (i) practically preserved and (ii) completely lost their original rigidity. The addition of protein E to the work of this system shifted the equilibrium in the mixture towards the collapsed sacs. The collapse of the structure of BGs can be explained by endolysis of peptidoglycan sacculi. Immunizations of laboratory animals with the variants of BGs followed by infection with a wild-type Y. pestis strain showed that bacterial envelopes protected only cavies. BGs with maximally hydrolyzed peptidoglycan had a greater protectivity compared to BGs with a preserved peptidoglycan skeleton.
Collapse
|
13
|
Combinatorial Viral Vector-Based and Live Attenuated Vaccines without an Adjuvant to Generate Broader Immune Responses to Effectively Combat Pneumonic Plague. mBio 2021; 12:e0322321. [PMID: 34872353 PMCID: PMC8649767 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.03223-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Mice immunized with a combination of an adenovirus vector (Ad5-YFV) and live-attenuated (LMA)-based vaccines were evaluated for protective efficacy against pneumonic plague. While the Ad5-YFV vaccine harbors a fusion cassette of three genes encoding YscF, F1, and LcrV, LMA represents a mutant of parental Yersinia pestis CO92 deleted for genes encoding Lpp, MsbB, and Ail. Ad5-YFV and LMA were either administered simultaneously (1-dose regimen) or 21 days apart in various orders and route of administration combinations (2-dose regimen). The 2-dose regimen induced robust immune responses to provide full protection to animals against parental CO92 and its isogenic F1 deletion mutant (CAF−) challenges during both short- and long-term studies. Mice intranasally (i.n.) immunized with Ad5-YFV first followed by LMA (i.n. or intramuscularly [i.m.]) had higher T- and B-cell proliferative responses and LcrV antibody titers than those in mice vaccinated with LMA (i.n. or i.m.) first ahead of Ad5-YFV (i.n.) during the long-term study. Specifically, the needle- and adjuvant-free vaccine combination (i.n.) is ideal for use in plague regions of endemicity. Conversely, with a 1-dose regimen, mice vaccinated with Ad5-YFV i.n. and LMA by the i.m. route provided complete protection to animals against CO92 and its CAF− mutant challenges and elicited Th1/Th2, as well as Th17 responses, making it suitable for emergency vaccination during a plague outbreak or bioterrorist attack. This is a first study in which a viral vector-based and live-attenuated vaccines were effectively used in combination, representing adjuvant- and/or needle-free immunization, with each vaccine triggering a distinct cellular immune response.
Collapse
|