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Moradkasani S, Maurin M, Farrokhi AS, Esmaeili S. Development, Strategies, and Challenges for Tularemia Vaccine. Curr Microbiol 2024; 81:126. [PMID: 38564047 DOI: 10.1007/s00284-024-03658-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/01/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
Francisella tularensis is a facultative intracellular bacterial pathogen that affects both humans and animals. It was developed into a biological warfare weapon as a result. In this article, the current status of tularemia vaccine development is presented. A live-attenuated vaccine that was designed over 50 years ago using the less virulent F. tularensis subspecies holarctica is the only prophylactic currently available, but it has not been approved for use in humans or animals. Other promising live, killed, and subunit vaccine candidates have recently been developed and tested in animal models. This study will investigate some possible vaccines and the challenges they face during development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Safoura Moradkasani
- National Reference Laboratory for Plague, Tularemia and Q Fever, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Akanlu, KabudarAhang, Hamadan, Iran
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatics, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Max Maurin
- CNRS, Grenoble INP, CHU Grenoble Alpes, TIMC-IMAG, Universite Grenoble Alpes, 38000, Grenoble, France
| | | | - Saber Esmaeili
- National Reference Laboratory for Plague, Tularemia and Q Fever, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Akanlu, KabudarAhang, Hamadan, Iran.
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatics, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.
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Green MS, LeDuc J, Cohen D, Franz DR. Confronting the threat of bioterrorism: realities, challenges, and defensive strategies. THE LANCET. INFECTIOUS DISEASES 2018; 19:e2-e13. [PMID: 30340981 PMCID: PMC7106434 DOI: 10.1016/s1473-3099(18)30298-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2018] [Revised: 04/25/2018] [Accepted: 05/04/2018] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Global terrorism is a rapidly growing threat to world security, and increases the risk of bioterrorism. In this Review, we discuss the potential threat of bioterrorism, agents that could be exploited, and recent developments in technologies and policy for detecting and controlling epidemics that have been initiated intentionally. The local and international response to infectious disease epidemics, such as the severe acute respiratory syndrome and west African Ebola virus epidemic, revealed serious shortcomings which bioterrorists might exploit when intentionally initiating an epidemic. Development of new vaccines and antimicrobial therapies remains a priority, including the need to expedite clinical trials using new methodologies. Better means to protect health-care workers operating in dangerous environments are also needed, particularly in areas with poor infrastructure. New and improved approaches should be developed for surveillance, early detection, response, effective isolation of patients, control of the movement of potentially infected people, and risk communication. Access to dangerous pathogens should be appropriately regulated, without reducing progress in the development of countermeasures. We conclude that preparedness for intentional outbreaks has the important added value of strengthening preparedness for natural epidemics, and vice versa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manfred S Green
- School of Public Health, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.
| | - James LeDuc
- Galveston National Laboratory, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA
| | - Daniel Cohen
- School of Public Health, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - David R Franz
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, USA
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Roberts LM, Powell DA, Frelinger JA. Adaptive Immunity to Francisella tularensis and Considerations for Vaccine Development. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2018; 8:115. [PMID: 29682484 PMCID: PMC5898179 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2018.00115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2018] [Accepted: 03/23/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Francisella tularensis is an intracellular bacterium that causes the disease tularemia. There are several subspecies of F. tularensis whose ability to cause disease varies in humans. The most virulent subspecies, tularensis, is a Tier One Select Agent and a potential bioweapon. Although considerable effort has made to generate efficacious tularemia vaccines, to date none have been licensed for use in the United States. Despite the lack of a tularemia vaccine, we have learned a great deal about the adaptive immune response the underlies protective immunity. Herein, we detail the animal models commonly used to study tularemia and their recapitulation of human disease, the field's current understanding of vaccine-mediated protection, and discuss the challenges associated with new vaccine development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lydia M Roberts
- Immunity to Pulmonary Pathogens Section, Laboratory of Bacteriology, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Hamilton, MT, United States
| | - Daniel A Powell
- Department of Immunobiology and Valley Fever Center for Excellence, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, United States
| | - Jeffrey A Frelinger
- Department of Immunobiology and Valley Fever Center for Excellence, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, United States
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Skyberg JA, Lacey CA. Hematopoietic MyD88 and IL-18 are essential for IFN-γ-dependent restriction of type A Francisella tularensis infection. J Leukoc Biol 2017; 102:1441-1450. [PMID: 28951422 DOI: 10.1189/jlb.4a0517-179r] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2017] [Revised: 08/03/2017] [Accepted: 08/29/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Francisella tularensis is a highly infectious intracellular bacterium that causes the potentially fatal disease tularemia. We used mice with conditional MyD88 deficiencies to investigate cellular and molecular mechanisms by which MyD88 restricts type A F. tularensis infection. F. tularensis-induced weight loss was predominately dependent on MyD88 signaling in nonhematopoietic cells. In contrast, MyD88 signaling in hematopoietic cells, but not in myeloid and dendritic cells, was essential for control of F. tularensis infection in tissue. Myeloid and dendritic cell MyD88 deficiency also did not markedly impair cytokine production during infection. Although the production of IL-12 or -18 was not significantly reduced in hematopoietic MyD88-deficient mice, IFN-γ production was abolished in these animals. In addition, neutralization studies revealed that control of F. tularensis infection mediated by hematopoietic MyD88 was entirely dependent on IFN-γ. Although IL-18 production was not significantly affected by MyD88 deficiency, IL-18 was essential for IFN-γ production and restricted bacterial replication in an IFN-γ-dependent manner. Caspase-1 was also found to be partially necessary for the production of IL-18 and IFN-γ and for control of F. tularensis replication. Our collective data show that the response of leukocytes to caspase-1-dependent IL-18 via MyD88 is critical, whereas MyD88 signaling in myeloid and dendritic cells is dispensable for IFN-γ-dependent control of type A F. tularensis infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jerod A Skyberg
- Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA; and .,Laboratory for Infectious Disease Research, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA
| | - Carolyn A Lacey
- Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA; and.,Laboratory for Infectious Disease Research, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA
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Novel CTL epitopes identified through a Y. pestis proteome-wide analysis in the search for vaccine candidates against plague. Vaccine 2017; 35:5995-6006. [PMID: 28606812 DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2017.05.092] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2017] [Revised: 05/10/2017] [Accepted: 05/31/2017] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
The causative agent of Plague, Yersinia pestis, is a highly virulent pathogen and a potential bioweapon. Depending on the route of infection, two prevalent occurrences of the disease are known, bubonic and pneumonic. The latter has a high fatality rate. In the absence of a licensed vaccine, intense efforts to develop a safe and efficacious vaccine have been conducted, and humoral-driven subunit vaccines containing the F1 and LcrV antigens are currently under clinical trials. It is well known that a cellular immune response might have an essential additive value to immunity and protection against Y. pestis infection. Nevertheless, very few documented epitopes eliciting a protective T-cell response have been reported. Here, we present a combined high throughput computational and experimental effort towards identification of CD8 T-cell epitopes. All 4067 proteins of Y. pestis were analyzed with state-of-the-art recently developed prediction algorithms aimed at mapping potential MHC class I binders. A compilation of the results obtained from several prediction methods revealed a total of 238,000 peptide candidates, which necessitated downstream filtering criteria. Our previously established and proven approach for enrichment of true positive CTL epitopes, which relies on mapping clusters rich in tandem or overlapping predicted MHC binders ("hotspots"), was applied, as well as considerations of predicted binding affinity. A total of 1532 peptides were tested for their ability to elicit a specific T-cell response by following the production of IFNγ from splenocytes isolated from vaccinated mice. Altogether, the screen resulted in 178 positive responders (11.8%), all novel Y. pestis CTL epitopes. These epitopes span 113 Y. pestis proteins. Substantial enrichment of membrane-associated proteins was detected for epitopes selected from hotspots of predicted MHC binders. These results considerably expand the repertoire of known CTL epitopes in Y. pestis and pave the way to attest their protective potential, and hence their contribution to a future potent subunit vaccine.
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Abstract
Francisella tularensis is the causative agent of the potentially lethal disease tularemia. Due to a low infectious dose and ease of airborne transmission, Francisella is classified as a category A biological agent. Despite the possible risk to public health, there is no safe and fully licensed vaccine. A potential vaccine candidate, an attenuated live vaccine strain, does not fulfil the criteria for general use. In this review, we will summarize existing and new candidates for live attenuated and subunit vaccines.
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Abstract
Francisella tularensis (Ft) is a gram-negative intercellular pathogen and category A biothreat agent. However, despite 15 years of strong government investment and intense research focused on the development of a US Food and Drug Administration-approved vaccine against Ft, the primary goal remains elusive. This article reviews research efforts focused on developing an Ft vaccine, as well as a number of important factors, some only recently recognized as such, which can significantly impact the development and evaluation of Ft vaccine efficacy. Finally, an assessment is provided as to whether a US Food and Drug Administration-approved Ft vaccine is likely to be forthcoming and the potential means by which this might be achieved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raju Sunagar
- Center for Immunology and Microbial Disease, Albany Medical College, Albany, NY, USA
| | - Sudeep Kumar
- Center for Immunology and Microbial Disease, Albany Medical College, Albany, NY, USA
| | - Brian J Franz
- Center for Immunology and Microbial Disease, Albany Medical College, Albany, NY, USA
| | - Edmund J Gosselin
- Center for Immunology and Microbial Disease, Albany Medical College, Albany, NY, USA
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Goodswen SJ, Kennedy PJ, Ellis JT. Discovering a vaccine against neosporosis using computers: is it feasible? Trends Parasitol 2014; 30:401-11. [PMID: 25028089 DOI: 10.1016/j.pt.2014.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2014] [Revised: 06/17/2014] [Accepted: 06/19/2014] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
A vaccine is urgently needed to prevent cattle neosporosis. This infectious disease is caused by the parasite Neospora caninum, a complex biological system with multifaceted life cycles. An in silico vaccine discovery approach attempts to transform digital abstractions of this system into adequate knowledge to predict candidates. Researchers need current information to implement such an approach, such as understanding evasion mechanisms of the immune system, type of immune response to elicit, availability of data and prediction programs, and statistical models to analyze predictions. Taken together, an in silico approach involves assembly of an intricate jigsaw of interdisciplinary and interdependent knowledge. In this review, we focus on the approach influencing vaccine development against Neospora caninum, which can be generalized to other pathogenic apicomplexans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen J Goodswen
- School of Medical and Molecular Biosciences at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), 15 Broadway, Ultimo, NSW 2007, Australia
| | - Paul J Kennedy
- School of Software, Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology and the Centre for Quantum Computation and Intelligent Systems at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), 15 Broadway, Ultimo, NSW 2007, Australia
| | - John T Ellis
- School of Medical and Molecular Biosciences at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), 15 Broadway, Ultimo, NSW 2007, Australia.
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