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Lainšček D, Fink T, Forstnerič V, Hafner-Bratkovič I, Orehek S, Strmšek Ž, Manček-Keber M, Pečan P, Esih H, Malenšek Š, Aupič J, Dekleva P, Plaper T, Vidmar S, Kadunc L, Benčina M, Omersa N, Anderluh G, Pojer F, Lau K, Hacker D, Correia BE, Peterhoff D, Wagner R, Bergant V, Herrmann A, Pichlmair A, Jerala R. A Nanoscaffolded Spike-RBD Vaccine Provides Protection against SARS-CoV-2 with Minimal Anti-Scaffold Response. Vaccines (Basel) 2021; 9:vaccines9050431. [PMID: 33925446 PMCID: PMC8146944 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines9050431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2021] [Revised: 04/22/2021] [Accepted: 04/25/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The response of the adaptive immune system is augmented by multimeric presentation of a specific antigen, resembling viral particles. Several vaccines have been designed based on natural or designed protein scaffolds, which exhibited a potent adaptive immune response to antigens; however, antibodies are also generated against the scaffold, which may impair subsequent vaccination. In order to compare polypeptide scaffolds of different size and oligomerization state with respect to their efficiency, including anti-scaffold immunity, we compared several strategies of presentation of the RBD domain of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, an antigen aiming to generate neutralizing antibodies. A comparison of several genetic fusions of RBD to different nanoscaffolding domains (foldon, ferritin, lumazine synthase, and β-annulus peptide) delivered as DNA plasmids demonstrated a strongly augmented immune response, with high titers of neutralizing antibodies and a robust T-cell response in mice. Antibody titers and virus neutralization were most potently enhanced by fusion to the small β-annulus peptide scaffold, which itself triggered a minimal response in contrast to larger scaffolds. The β-annulus fused RBD protein increased residence in lymph nodes and triggered the most potent viral neutralization in immunization by a recombinant protein. Results of the study support the use of a nanoscaffolding platform using the β-annulus peptide for vaccine design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Duško Lainšček
- EN-FIST, Centre of Excellence, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (D.L.); (I.H.-B.); (M.M.-K.); (M.B.)
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
| | - Tina Fink
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
| | - Vida Forstnerič
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
| | - Iva Hafner-Bratkovič
- EN-FIST, Centre of Excellence, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (D.L.); (I.H.-B.); (M.M.-K.); (M.B.)
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
| | - Sara Orehek
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
- Graduate School of Biomedicine, University of Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Žiga Strmšek
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
- Graduate School of Biomedicine, University of Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Mateja Manček-Keber
- EN-FIST, Centre of Excellence, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (D.L.); (I.H.-B.); (M.M.-K.); (M.B.)
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
| | - Peter Pečan
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
- Graduate School of Biomedicine, University of Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Hana Esih
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
- Graduate School of Biomedicine, University of Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Špela Malenšek
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
- Graduate School of Biomedicine, University of Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Jana Aupič
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
| | - Petra Dekleva
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
- Graduate School of Biomedicine, University of Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Tjaša Plaper
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
- Graduate School of Biomedicine, University of Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Sara Vidmar
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
- Graduate School of Biomedicine, University of Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Lucija Kadunc
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
| | - Mojca Benčina
- EN-FIST, Centre of Excellence, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (D.L.); (I.H.-B.); (M.M.-K.); (M.B.)
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
| | - Neža Omersa
- Department of Molecular Biology and Nanobiotechnology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (N.O.); (G.A.)
| | - Gregor Anderluh
- Department of Molecular Biology and Nanobiotechnology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (N.O.); (G.A.)
| | - Florence Pojer
- Protein Production and Structure Core Facility PTPSP- EPFL SV PTECH PTPSP, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland; (F.P.); (K.L.); (D.H.); (B.E.C.)
| | - Kelvin Lau
- Protein Production and Structure Core Facility PTPSP- EPFL SV PTECH PTPSP, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland; (F.P.); (K.L.); (D.H.); (B.E.C.)
| | - David Hacker
- Protein Production and Structure Core Facility PTPSP- EPFL SV PTECH PTPSP, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland; (F.P.); (K.L.); (D.H.); (B.E.C.)
| | - Bruno E. Correia
- Protein Production and Structure Core Facility PTPSP- EPFL SV PTECH PTPSP, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland; (F.P.); (K.L.); (D.H.); (B.E.C.)
| | - David Peterhoff
- Molecular Microbiology (Virology), Institute of Medical Microbiology and Hygiene, University of Regensburg, 93053 Regensburg, Germany; (D.P.); (R.W.)
| | - Ralf Wagner
- Molecular Microbiology (Virology), Institute of Medical Microbiology and Hygiene, University of Regensburg, 93053 Regensburg, Germany; (D.P.); (R.W.)
- Institute of Clinical Microbiology and Hygiene, University Hospital Regensburg, 93053 Regensburg, Germany
| | - Valter Bergant
- Immunopathology of Virus Infections Laboratory, Institute of Virology, Technical University of Munich, 81675 Munich, Germany; (V.B.); (A.H.); (A.P.)
| | - Alexander Herrmann
- Immunopathology of Virus Infections Laboratory, Institute of Virology, Technical University of Munich, 81675 Munich, Germany; (V.B.); (A.H.); (A.P.)
| | - Andreas Pichlmair
- Immunopathology of Virus Infections Laboratory, Institute of Virology, Technical University of Munich, 81675 Munich, Germany; (V.B.); (A.H.); (A.P.)
- German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Munich Partner Site, 38124 Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Roman Jerala
- EN-FIST, Centre of Excellence, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (D.L.); (I.H.-B.); (M.M.-K.); (M.B.)
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia; (T.F.); (V.F.); (S.O.); (Ž.S.); (P.P.); (H.E.); (Š.M.); (J.A.); (P.D.); (T.P.); (S.V.); (L.K.)
- Correspondence:
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In Silico Prediction of Human Leukocytes Antigen (HLA) Class II Binding Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) Peptides in Botswana. Viruses 2020; 12:v12070731. [PMID: 32640609 PMCID: PMC7412261 DOI: 10.3390/v12070731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2020] [Accepted: 07/03/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is the primary cause of liver-related malignancies worldwide, and there is no effective cure for chronic HBV infection (CHB) currently. Strong immunological responses induced by T cells are associated with HBV clearance during acute infection; however, the repertoire of epitopes (epi) presented by major histocompatibility complexes (MHCs) to elicit these responses in various African populations is not well understood. In silico approaches were used to map and investigate 15-mers HBV peptides restricted to 9 HLA class II alleles with high population coverage in Botswana. Sequences from 44 HBV genotype A and 48 genotype D surface genes (PreS/S) from Botswana were used. Of the 1819 epi bindings predicted, 20.2% were strong binders (SB), and none of the putative epi bind to all the 9 alleles suggesting that multi-epitope, genotype-based, population-based vaccines will be more effective against HBV infections as opposed to previously proposed broad potency epitope-vaccines which were assumed to work for all alleles. In total, there were 297 unique epi predicted from the 3 proteins and amongst, S regions had the highest number of epi (n = 186). Epitope-densities (Depi) between genotypes A and D were similar. A number of mutations that hindered HLA-peptide binding were observed. We also identified antigenic and genotype-specific peptides with characteristics that are well suited for the development of sensitive diagnostic kits. This study identified candidate peptides that can be used for developing multi-epitope vaccines and highly sensitive diagnostic kits against HBV infection in an African population. Our results suggest that viral variability may hinder HBV peptide-MHC binding, required to initiate a cascade of immunological responses against infection.
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Lee J, Arun Kumar S, Jhan YY, Bishop CJ. Engineering DNA vaccines against infectious diseases. Acta Biomater 2018; 80:31-47. [PMID: 30172933 PMCID: PMC7105045 DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2018.08.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 107] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2018] [Revised: 08/14/2018] [Accepted: 08/23/2018] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Engineering vaccine-based therapeutics for infectious diseases is highly challenging, as trial formulations are often found to be nonspecific, ineffective, thermally or hydrolytically unstable, and/or toxic. Vaccines have greatly improved the therapeutic landscape for treating infectious diseases and have significantly reduced the threat by therapeutic and preventative approaches. Furthermore, the advent of recombinant technologies has greatly facilitated growth within the vaccine realm by mitigating risks such as virulence reversion despite making the production processes more cumbersome. In addition, seroconversion can also be enhanced by recombinant technology through kinetic and nonkinetic approaches, which are discussed herein. Recombinant technologies have greatly improved both amino acid-based vaccines and DNA-based vaccines. A plateau of interest has been reached between 2001 and 2010 for the scientific community with regard to DNA vaccine endeavors. The decrease in interest may likely be attributed to difficulties in improving immunogenic properties associated with DNA vaccines, although there has been research demonstrating improvement and optimization to this end. Despite improvement, to the extent of our knowledge, there are currently no regulatory body-approved DNA vaccines for human use (four vaccines approved for animal use). This article discusses engineering DNA vaccines against infectious diseases while discussing advantages and disadvantages of each, with an emphasis on applications of these DNA vaccines. Statement of Significance This review paper summarizes the state of the engineered/recombinant DNA vaccine field, with a scope entailing “Engineering DNA vaccines against infectious diseases”. We endeavor to emphasize recent advances, recapitulating the current state of the field. In addition to discussing DNA therapeutics that have already been clinically translated, this review also examines current research developments, and the challenges thwarting further progression. Our review covers: recombinant DNA-based subunit vaccines; internalization and processing; enhancing immune protection via adjuvants; manufacturing and engineering DNA; the safety, stability and delivery of DNA vaccines or plasmids; controlling gene expression using plasmid engineering and gene circuits; overcoming immunogenic issues; and commercial successes. We hope that this review will inspire further research in DNA vaccine development.
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Haçarız O, Sayers GP. Genererating a core cluster of Fasciola hepatica virulence and immunomodulation-related genes using a comparative in silico approach. Res Vet Sci 2018; 117:271-276. [DOI: 10.1016/j.rvsc.2017.12.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2017] [Revised: 12/20/2017] [Accepted: 12/27/2017] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
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Yadav HK, Dibi M, Mohammad A, Srouji AE. Nanovaccines formulation and applications-a review. J Drug Deliv Sci Technol 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jddst.2018.01.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
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Dalmo RA. DNA vaccines for fish: Review and perspectives on correlates of protection. JOURNAL OF FISH DISEASES 2018; 41:1-9. [PMID: 29064091 DOI: 10.1111/jfd.12727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2017] [Revised: 08/18/2017] [Accepted: 08/21/2017] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
Recently in 2016, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) recommended granting a marketing authorization in the EU for "Clynav," a DNA vaccine against salmon pancreas disease (salmonid alphavirus-3). Generally, DNA vaccines induce both early and late immune responses in fish that may be protective against disease. Several transcriptomic approaches have been performed to map immunome profiles following DNA vaccination, but the precise immune mechanism(s) that is responsible for protection is not known, although reasonable suggestions have been made. The current review includes an overview on main transcriptomic findings from microarray experiments after DNA vaccination against VHSV, IHNV, HIRRV and IPNV-with considerations of what can be considered as correlates of protection (CoP) or merely a surrogate of protection. Identification and use of correlates of protection (COPs) may be a strategic tool for accelerated and targeted vaccine design, testing and licensure. General rules on what can be considered as CoPs can be extracted from past knowledge on protective immune responses following vaccination that induced protection. Lastly, there will be an overview on non-viral molecular adjuvants that have been exploited to obtain higher vaccine potencies and efficacies.
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Affiliation(s)
- R A Dalmo
- Faculty of Biosciences, Fisheries & Economics, Norwegian College of Fishery Science, University of Tromsø, Tromsø, Norway
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Polyclonal Antibody Production for Membrane Proteins via Genetic Immunization. Sci Rep 2016; 6:21925. [PMID: 26908053 PMCID: PMC4764931 DOI: 10.1038/srep21925] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2015] [Accepted: 02/02/2016] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Antibodies are essential for structural determinations and functional studies of membrane proteins, but antibody generation is limited by the availability of properly-folded and purified antigen. We describe the first application of genetic immunization to a structurally diverse set of membrane proteins to show that immunization of mice with DNA alone produced antibodies against 71% (n = 17) of the bacterial and viral targets. Antibody production correlated with prior reports of target immunogenicity in host organisms, underscoring the efficiency of this DNA-gold micronanoplex approach. To generate each antigen for antibody characterization, we also developed a simple in vitro membrane protein expression and capture method. Antibody specificity was demonstrated upon identifying, for the first time, membrane-directed heterologous expression of the native sequences of the FopA and FTT1525 virulence determinants from the select agent Francisella tularensis SCHU S4. These approaches will accelerate future structural and functional investigations of therapeutically-relevant membrane proteins.
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Abstract
DNA plasmids can be used to induce a protective (or therapeutic) immune response by delivering genes encoding vaccine antigens. That naked DNA (without the refinement of coat proteins or host evasion systems) can cross from outside the cell into the nucleus and be expressed is particularly remarkable given the sophistication of the immune system in preventing infection by pathogens. As a result of the ease, low cost, and speed of custom gene synthesis, DNA vaccines dangle a tantalizing prospect of the next wave of vaccine technology, promising individual designer vaccines for cancer or mass vaccines with a rapid response time to emerging pandemics. There is considerable enthusiasm for the use of DNA vaccination as an approach, but this enthusiasm should be tempered by the successive failures in clinical trials to induce a potent immune response. The technology is evolving with the development of improved delivery systems that increase expression levels, particularly electroporation and the incorporation of genetically encoded adjuvants. This review will introduce some key concepts in the use of DNA plasmids as vaccines, including how the DNA enters the cell and is expressed, how it induces an immune response, and a summary of clinical trials with DNA vaccines. The review also explores the advances being made in vector design, delivery, formulation, and adjuvants to try to realize the promise of this technology for new vaccines. If the immunogenicity and expression barriers can be cracked, then DNA vaccines may offer a step change in mass vaccination.
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Abstract
In the two decades since their initial discovery, DNA vaccines technologies have come a long way. Unfortunately, when applied to human subjects inadequate immunogenicity is still the biggest challenge for practical DNA vaccine use. Many different strategies have been tested in preclinical models to address this problem, including novel plasmid vectors and codon optimization to enhance antigen expression, new gene transfection systems or electroporation to increase delivery efficiency, protein or live virus vector boosting regimens to maximise immune stimulation, and formulation of DNA vaccines with traditional or molecular adjuvants. Better understanding of the mechanisms of action of DNA vaccines has also enabled better use of the intrinsic host response to DNA to improve vaccine immunogenicity. This review summarizes recent advances in DNA vaccine technologies and related intracellular events and how these might impact on future directions of DNA vaccine development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Li
- a Vaxine Pty Ltd, Bedford Park , Adelaide , Australia.,b Department of Diabetes and Endocrinology , Flinders University, Flinders Medical Centre , Adelaide , SA , Australia
| | - Nikolai Petrovsky
- a Vaxine Pty Ltd, Bedford Park , Adelaide , Australia.,b Department of Diabetes and Endocrinology , Flinders University, Flinders Medical Centre , Adelaide , SA , Australia
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Haçarız O, Akgün M, Kavak P, Yüksel B, Sağıroğlu MŞ. Comparative transcriptome profiling approach to glean virulence and immunomodulation-related genes of Fasciola hepatica. BMC Genomics 2015; 16:366. [PMID: 25956885 PMCID: PMC4429430 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-015-1539-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2015] [Accepted: 04/15/2015] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Fasciola hepatica causes chronic liver disease, fasciolosis, leading to significant losses in the livestock economy and concerns for human health in many countries. The identification of F. hepatica genes involved in the parasite's virulence through modulation of host immune system is utmost important to comprehend evasion mechanisms of the parasite and develop more effective strategies against fasciolosis. In this study, to identify the parasite's putative virulence genes which are associated with host immunomodulation, we explored whole transcriptome of an adult F. hepatica using current transcriptome profiling approaches integrated with detailed in silico analyses. In brief, the comparison of the parasite transcripts with the specialised public databases containing sequence data of non-parasitic organisms (Dugesiidae species and Caenorhabditis elegans) or of numerous pathogens and investigation of the sequences in terms of nucleotide evolution (directional selection) and cytokine signaling relation were conducted. RESULTS NGS of the whole transcriptome resulted in 19,534,766 sequence reads, yielding a total of 40,260 transcripts (N₅₀ = 522 bp). A number of the parasite transcripts (n = 1,671) were predicted to be virulence-related on the basis of the exclusive homology with the pathogen-associated data, positive selection or relationship with cytokine signaling. Of these, a group of the virulence-related genes (n = 62), not previously described, were found likely to be associated with immunomodulation based on in silico functional categorisation, showing significant sequence similarities with various immune receptors (i.e. MHC I class, TGF-β receptor, toll/interleukin-1 receptor, T-cell receptor, TNF receptor, and IL-18 receptor accessory protein), cytokines (i.e. TGF-β, interleukin-4/interleukin-13 and TNF-α), cluster of differentiations (e.g. CD48 and CD147) or molecules associated with other immunomodulatory mechanisms (such as regulation of macrophage activation). Some of the genes (n = 5) appeared to be under positive selection (Ka/Ks > 1), imitating proteins associated with cytokine signaling (through sequence homologies with thrombospondin type 1, toll/interleukin-1 receptor, TGF-β receptor and CD147). CONCLUSIONS With a comparative transcriptome profiling approach, we have identified a number of potential immunomodulator genes of F. hepatica (n = 62), which are firstly described here, could be employed for the development of better strategies (including RNAi) in the battle against both zoonotically and economically important disease, fasciolosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Orçun Haçarız
- TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Institute, P.O. Box 21, 41470, Gebze, Kocaeli, Turkey.
| | - Mete Akgün
- TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center, Information Technologies Institute, Gebze, Kocaeli, Turkey.
| | - Pınar Kavak
- TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center, Information Technologies Institute, Gebze, Kocaeli, Turkey.
| | - Bayram Yüksel
- TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Institute, P.O. Box 21, 41470, Gebze, Kocaeli, Turkey.
| | - Mahmut Şamil Sağıroğlu
- TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center, Information Technologies Institute, Gebze, Kocaeli, Turkey.
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He Y. Ontology-supported research on vaccine efficacy, safety and integrative biological networks. Expert Rev Vaccines 2014; 13:825-41. [PMID: 24909153 DOI: 10.1586/14760584.2014.923762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
While vaccine efficacy and safety research has dramatically progressed with the methods of in silico prediction and data mining, many challenges still exist. A formal ontology is a human- and computer-interpretable set of terms and relations that represent entities in a specific domain and how these terms relate to each other. Several community-based ontologies (including Vaccine Ontology, Ontology of Adverse Events and Ontology of Vaccine Adverse Events) have been developed to support vaccine and adverse event representation, classification, data integration, literature mining of host-vaccine interaction networks, and analysis of vaccine adverse events. The author further proposes minimal vaccine information standards and their ontology representations, ontology-based linked open vaccine data and meta-analysis, an integrative One Network ('OneNet') Theory of Life, and ontology-based approaches to study and apply the OneNet theory. In the Big Data era, these proposed strategies provide a novel framework for advanced data integration and analysis of fundamental biological networks including vaccine immune mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yongqun He
- Unit for Laboratory Animal Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
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De Groot AS, De Groot P, He Y. ICoVax 2013: the 3rd ISV Pre-conference Computational Vaccinology Workshop. BMC Bioinformatics 2014; 15 Suppl 4:I1. [PMID: 25104130 PMCID: PMC4094997 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2105-15-s4-i1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Following last year's computational vaccinology workshop in Shanghai, China, the third ISV Pre-conference Computational Vaccinology Workshop (ICoVax 2013) was held in Barcelona, Spain. ICoVax 2013 provided an international platform for the attendees to showcase their research and discuss problems and solutions in the development and application of computational vaccinology and vaccine informatics tools. The first of the three full-length papers presented at ICoVax discussed the discovery of viral "camouflage" through cross-conservation of T-cell epitopes using a tool called JanusMatrix. This important paper reports that viruses may camouflage their presence in the human body by incorporating sequences in their proteins that are highly cross-conserved at the T-cell receptor surface with human genome proteins, a discovery that has wide ranging implications for the development of vaccines against viruses that use the camouflage method. The other papers described a database for storing experimentally verified data on DNA vaccines and compared therapeutic targets of western drugs to Chinese herbal medicines for cardiovascular diseases. The short poster presentations covered various uses of informatics tools for processing the DNA and microRNA of pathogens to improve vaccine coverage, efficacy and development. A live (on-line) demonstration of the vaccine design toolkit, iVax, presented by Frances Terry of EpiVax, illustrated how computational vaccinology could be used in the design of next generation vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne S De Groot
- EpiVax, Inc., Providence, RI, USA; and Institute for Immunology and Informatics, University of Rhode Island, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Phoebe De Groot
- EpiVax, Inc., Providence, RI, USA; and Institute for Immunology and Informatics, University of Rhode Island, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Yongqun He
- Unit for Laboratory Animal Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, and Center for Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
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He Y, Racz R, Sayers S, Lin Y, Todd T, Hur J, Li X, Patel M, Zhao B, Chung M, Ostrow J, Sylora A, Dungarani P, Ulysse G, Kochhar K, Vidri B, Strait K, Jourdian GW, Xiang Z. Updates on the web-based VIOLIN vaccine database and analysis system. Nucleic Acids Res 2013; 42:D1124-32. [PMID: 24259431 PMCID: PMC3964998 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkt1133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The integrative Vaccine Investigation and Online Information Network (VIOLIN) vaccine research database and analysis system (http://www.violinet.org) curates, stores, analyses and integrates various vaccine-associated research data. Since its first publication in NAR in 2008, significant updates have been made. Starting from 211 vaccines annotated at the end of 2007, VIOLIN now includes over 3240 vaccines for 192 infectious diseases and eight noninfectious diseases (e.g. cancers and allergies). Under the umbrella of VIOLIN, >10 relatively independent programs are developed. For example, Protegen stores over 800 protective antigens experimentally proven valid for vaccine development. VirmugenDB annotated over 200 'virmugens', a term coined by us to represent those virulence factor genes that can be mutated to generate successful live attenuated vaccines. Specific patterns were identified from the genes collected in Protegen and VirmugenDB. VIOLIN also includes Vaxign, the first web-based vaccine candidate prediction program based on reverse vaccinology. VIOLIN collects and analyzes different vaccine components including vaccine adjuvants (Vaxjo) and DNA vaccine plasmids (DNAVaxDB). VIOLIN includes licensed human vaccines (Huvax) and veterinary vaccines (Vevax). The Vaccine Ontology is applied to standardize and integrate various data in VIOLIN. VIOLIN also hosts the Ontology of Vaccine Adverse Events (OVAE) that logically represents adverse events associated with licensed human vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yongqun He
- Unit for Laboratory Animal Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA, Center for Computational Medicine and Biology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA, Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA, College of Pharmacy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA, Division of Comparative Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA, Department of Neurology, University of Michigan, 48109, Ann Arbor, MI, USA, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA, Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA and Department of Biological Chemistry, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
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