Design and characterization of an HIV-1 Tat mutant: Inactivation of viral and cellular functions but not antigenicity

The HIV-1 Integrase C-Terminal Domain Induces TAR RNA Structural Changes Promoting Tat Binding

Recent evidence indicates that the HIV-1 Integrase (IN) binds the viral genomic RNA (gRNA), playing a critical role in the morphogenesis of the viral particle and in the stability of the gRNA once in the host cell. By combining biophysical, molecular biology, and biochemical approaches, we found that the 18-residues flexible C-terminal tail of IN acts as a sensor of the peculiar apical structure of the trans-activation response element RNA (TAR), interacting with its hexaloop. We show that the binding of the whole IN C-terminal domain modifies TAR structure, exposing critical nucleotides. These modifications favour the subsequent binding of the HIV transcriptional trans-activator Tat to TAR, finally displacing IN from TAR. Based on these results, we propose that IN assists the binding of Tat to TAR RNA. This working model provides a mechanistic sketch accounting for the emerging role of IN in the early stages of proviral transcription and could help in the design of anti-HIV-1 therapeutics against this new target of the viral infectious cycle.

Mucosal Vaccination with Heterologous Viral Vectored Vaccine Targeting Subdominant SIV Accessory Antigens Strongly Inhibits Early Viral Replication

Conventional HIV T cell vaccine strategies have not been successful in containing acute peak viremia, nor in providing long-term control. We immunized rhesus macaques intramuscularly and rectally using a heterologous adenovirus vectored SIV vaccine regimen encoding normally weakly immunogenic tat, vif, rev and vpr antigens fused to the MHC class II associated invariant chain. Immunizations induced broad T cell responses in all vaccinees. Following up to 10 repeated low-dose intrarectal challenges, vaccinees suppressed early viral replication (P = 0.01) and prevented the peak viremia in 5/6 animals. Despite consistently undetectable viremia in 2 out of 6 vaccinees, all animals showed evidence of infection induced immune responses indicating that infection had taken place. Vaccinees, with and without detectable viremia better preserved their rectal CD4 + T cell population and had reduced immune hyperactivation as measured by naïve T cell depletion, Ki-67 and PD-1 expression on T cells. These results indicate that vaccination towards SIV accessory antigens vaccine can provide a level of acute control of SIV replication with a suggestion of beneficial immunological consequences in infected animals of unknown long-term significance.

In conclusion, our studies demonstrate that a vaccine encoding subdominant antigens not normally associated with virus control can exert a significant impact on acute peak viremia.

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Mucosal heterologousvirus-vectored vaccine used with MHC class II associated invariant chain linked SIV accessory antigens

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Mucosal vaccination targeting subdominant antigens delay SIV mac251 replication in rhesus macaques.

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Longterm reduction of immune hyperactivation following SIV infection of vaccinated macaques.

Mucosal immunization is used with heterologous viral vectors and a genetic adjuvant to raise responses against poorly immunogenic SIV antigens. Following repeated low-dose challenge we observed delayed establishment of chronic phase viremia and reduced immune hyperactivation 6 months after established infection. Vaccination was found to strongly reduce viremia at early, but not late time points, after detected infection and in 2 out of 6 animals infection could only observed as virus induced T cell responses. Subdominant antigen vaccines may thus be used to delay SIV mac251 infection and can enable control of chronic viremia in a minority of cases.

Identification of a highly conserved surface on Tat variants

Extracellular Tat is suspected to protect HIV-1-infected cells from cellular immunity. Seropositive patients are unable to produce neutralizing antibodies against Tat, and Tat is still secreted under antiviral treatment. In mice, the Tat OYI vaccine candidate generates neutralizing antibodies such as the mAb 7G12. A peptide called MIMOOX was designed from fragments of Tat OYI identified as the possible binding site for mAb 7G12. MIMOOX was chemically synthesized, and its structure was stabilized with a disulfide bridge. Circular dichroism spectra showed that MIMOOX had mainly β turns but no α helix as Tat OYI. MIMOOX was recognized by mAb 7G12 in ELISA only in reduced conditions. Moreover, a competitive recognition assay with mAb 7G12 between MIMOOX and Tat variants showed that MIMOOX mimics a highly conserved surface in Tat variants. Rat immunizations with MIMOOX induce antibodies recognizing Tat variants from the main HIV-1 subtypes and confirm the Tat OYI vaccine approach.

A designed Tat immunogen generates enhanced anti-Tat C-terminal antibodies

HIV-1 Tat has been identified as an attractive target for vaccine development and is currently under investigation in clinical trials as both a therapeutic and preventative vaccine for HIV-1. The Tat C-terminal region is of significant importance for its extracellular activity. In this study, we designed two recombinant Tat immunogens, Tat(B41-100N) and Tat(B41-100C), with two extended Tat C-terminal regions (41-100 aa) and compared their humoral immune response with native Tat. Interestingly, our results showed that Tat(B41-100C) elicited a higher antibody titer than Tat and Tat(B41-100N) in both mice and rabbits. The recombinant fusion protein-based epitope analysis showed that Tat(B41-100C) induced a remarkably enhanced humoral immune response against extended Tat C-terminal regions containing residues 38-100, 49-100 and 60-100. Our study demonstrates that the designed Tat(B41-100C) presents a designed immunogenicity that elicits enhanced Tat-specific antibodies especially against extended Tat C-terminal regions.

UV and X-ray structural studies of a 101-residue long Tat protein from a HIV-1 primary isolate and of its mutated, detoxified, vaccine candidate

The 101-residue long Tat protein of primary isolate 133 of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), wt-Tat(133) displays a high transactivation activity in vitro, whereas the mutant thereof, STLA-Tat(133), a vaccine candidate for HIV-1, has none. These two proteins were chemically synthesized and their biological activity was validated. Their structural properties were characterized using circular dichroism (CD), fluorescence emission, gel filtration, dynamic light scattering, and small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) techniques. SAXS studies revealed that both proteins were extended and belong to the family of intrinsically unstructured proteins. CD measurements showed that wt-Tat(133) or STLA-Tat(133) underwent limited structural rearrangements when complexed with specific fragments of antibodies. Crystallization trials have been performed on the two forms, assuming that the Tat(133) proteins might have a better propensity to fold in supersaturated conditions, and small crystals have been obtained. These results suggest that biologically active Tat protein is natively unfolded and requires only a limited gain of structure for its function.

HIV-1 Tat-based vaccines: an overview and perspectives in the field of HIV/AIDS vaccine development

The HIV epidemic continues to represent one of the major problems worldwide, particularly in the Asia and Sub-Saharan regions of the world, with social and economical devastating effects. Although antiretroviral drugs have had a dramatically beneficial impact on HIV-infected individuals that have access to treatment, it has had a negligible impact on the global epidemic. Hence, the inexorable spreading of the HIV pandemic and the increasing deaths from AIDS, especially in developing countries, underscore the urgency for an effective vaccine against HIV/AIDS. However, the generation of such a vaccine has turned out to be extremely challenging. Here we provide an overview on the rationale for the use of non-structural HIV proteins, such as the Tat protein, alone or in combination with other HIV early and late structural HIV antigens, as novel, promising preventative and therapeutic HIV/AIDS vaccine strategies.

Formulation of HIV-1 Tat and p24 antigens by PLA nanoparticles or MF59 impacts the breadth, but not the magnitude, of serum and faecal antibody responses in rabbits

Biodegradable nanoparticles coated with proteins represent a promising method for in vivo delivery of vaccines. Here we used a rabbit model to compare quantitatively and qualitatively the antibody responses induced by poly(D,L-lactide) nanoparticles (PLA) and by emulsion adjuvant MF59 using three HIV-1 antigens: p24gag, WT Tat and a mutated, detoxified form of Tat. We could show that all antigens and adjuvants lead to the induction of similar level of IgG titres in serum when injected subcutaneously. p24, but not Tat, could also induce faecal IgG in rabbits when formulated with PLA or MF59. The nature of the adjuvant had consequences on the spectrum of specificity induced, depending on the antigen: PLA adjuvant focussed the anti-p24 response to an immunodominant domain when compared to MF59. With wild-type Tat, no difference between adjuvants was observed in the spectrum of specificity induced. On the opposite, detoxified Tat coated on PLA increased the number of epitopes recognized by serum IgG compared to MF59 adjuvantation. The impact of these qualitative differences depending on the antigen/adjuvant associations will be important to take into account for further designs of vaccinal formulation using particulate adjuvants.