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Stuible M, Schrag JD, Sheff J, Zoubchenok D, Lord-Dufour S, Cass B, L'Abbé D, Pelletier A, Rossotti MA, Tanha J, Gervais C, Maurice R, El Bakkouri M, Acchione M, Durocher Y. Influence of variant-specific mutations, temperature and pH on conformations of a large set of SARS-CoV-2 spike trimer vaccine antigen candidates. Sci Rep 2023; 13:16498. [PMID: 37779126 PMCID: PMC10543594 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-43661-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2023] [Accepted: 09/27/2023] [Indexed: 10/03/2023] Open
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2 subunit vaccines continue to be the focus of intense clinical development worldwide. Protein antigens in these vaccines most commonly consist of the spike ectodomain fused to a heterologous trimerization sequence, designed to mimic the compact, prefusion conformation of the spike on the virus surface. Since 2020, we have produced dozens of such constructs in CHO cells, consisting of spike variants with different mutations fused to different trimerization sequences. This set of constructs displayed notable conformational heterogeneity, with two distinct trimer species consistently detected by analytical size exclusion chromatography. A recent report showed that spike ectodomain fusion constructs can adopt an alternative trimer conformation consisting of loosely associated ectodomain protomers. Here, we applied multiple biophysical and immunological techniques to demonstrate that this alternative conformation is formed to a significant extent by several SARS-CoV-2 variant spike proteins. We have also examined the influence of temperature and pH, which can induce inter-conversion of the two forms. The substantial structural differences between these trimer types may impact their performance as vaccine antigens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew Stuible
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Joseph D Schrag
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Joey Sheff
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Daria Zoubchenok
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Simon Lord-Dufour
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Brian Cass
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Denis L'Abbé
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Alex Pelletier
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Martin A Rossotti
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Jamshid Tanha
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Christian Gervais
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Roger Maurice
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Majida El Bakkouri
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Mauro Acchione
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Yves Durocher
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada.
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Alpuche-Lazcano SP, Stuible M, Akache B, Tran A, Kelly J, Hrapovic S, Robotham A, Haqqani A, Star A, Renner TM, Blouin J, Maltais JS, Cass B, Cui K, Cho JY, Wang X, Zoubchenok D, Dudani R, Duque D, McCluskie MJ, Durocher Y. Preclinical evaluation of manufacturable SARS-CoV-2 spike virus-like particles produced in Chinese Hamster Ovary cells. Commun Med (Lond) 2023; 3:116. [PMID: 37612423 PMCID: PMC10447459 DOI: 10.1038/s43856-023-00340-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2023] [Accepted: 07/25/2023] [Indexed: 08/25/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, novel vaccines need to be developed that are readily manufacturable and provide clinical efficacy against emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants. Virus-like particles (VLPs) presenting the spike antigen at their surface offer remarkable benefits over other vaccine antigen formats; however, current SARS-CoV-2 VLP vaccines candidates in clinical development suffer from challenges including low volumetric productivity, poor spike antigen density, expression platform-driven divergent protein glycosylation and complex upstream/downstream processing requirements. Despite their extensive use for therapeutic protein manufacturing and proven ability to produce enveloped VLPs, Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO) cells are rarely used for the commercial production of VLP-based vaccines. METHODS Using CHO cells, we aimed to produce VLPs displaying the full-length SARS-CoV-2 spike. Affinity chromatography was used to capture VLPs released in the culture medium from engineered CHO cells expressing spike. The structure, protein content, and glycosylation of spikes in VLPs were characterized by several biochemical and biophysical methods. In vivo, the generation of neutralizing antibodies and protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection was tested in mouse and hamster models. RESULTS We demonstrate that spike overexpression in CHO cells is sufficient by itself to generate high VLP titers. These VLPs are evocative of the native virus but with at least three-fold higher spike density. In vivo, purified VLPs elicit strong humoral and cellular immunity at nanogram dose levels which grant protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection. CONCLUSIONS Our results show that CHO cells are amenable to efficient manufacturing of high titers of a potently immunogenic spike protein-based VLP vaccine antigen.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergio P Alpuche-Lazcano
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Matthew Stuible
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Bassel Akache
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Anh Tran
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - John Kelly
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 100 Sussex Dr, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Sabahudin Hrapovic
- Aquatic and Crop Resources Development Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Anna Robotham
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 100 Sussex Dr, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Arsalan Haqqani
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 100 Sussex Dr, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Alexandra Star
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 100 Sussex Dr, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Tyler M Renner
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Julie Blouin
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Jean-Sébastien Maltais
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Brian Cass
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Kai Cui
- Nanotechnology Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 11421 Saskatchewan Drive, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M9, Canada
| | - Jae-Young Cho
- Nanotechnology Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 11421 Saskatchewan Drive, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M9, Canada
| | - Xinyu Wang
- Nanotechnology Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 11421 Saskatchewan Drive, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M9, Canada
| | - Daria Zoubchenok
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Renu Dudani
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Diana Duque
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Michael J McCluskie
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Yves Durocher
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada.
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Prévost J, Tolbert WD, Medjahed H, Sherburn RT, Madani N, Zoubchenok D, Gendron-Lepage G, Gaffney AE, Grenier MC, Kirk S, Vergara N, Han C, Mann BT, Chénine AL, Ahmed A, Chaiken I, Kirchhoff F, Hahn BH, Haim H, Abrams CF, Smith AB, Sodroski J, Pazgier M, Finzi A. The HIV-1 Env gp120 Inner Domain Shapes the Phe43 Cavity and the CD4 Binding Site. mBio 2020; 11:e00280-20. [PMID: 32457241 PMCID: PMC7251204 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.00280-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2020] [Accepted: 04/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The HIV-1 envelope glycoproteins (Env) undergo conformational changes upon interaction of the gp120 exterior glycoprotein with the CD4 receptor. The gp120 inner domain topological layers facilitate the transition of Env to the CD4-bound conformation. CD4 engages gp120 by introducing its phenylalanine 43 (Phe43) in a cavity ("the Phe43 cavity") located at the interface between the inner and outer gp120 domains. Small CD4-mimetic compounds (CD4mc) can bind within the Phe43 cavity and trigger conformational changes similar to those induced by CD4. Crystal structures of CD4mc in complex with a modified CRF01_AE gp120 core revealed the importance of these gp120 inner domain layers in stabilizing the Phe43 cavity and shaping the CD4 binding site. Our studies reveal a complex interplay between the gp120 inner domain and the Phe43 cavity and generate useful information for the development of more-potent CD4mc.IMPORTANCE The Phe43 cavity of HIV-1 envelope glycoproteins (Env) is an attractive druggable target. New promising compounds, including small CD4 mimetics (CD4mc), were shown to insert deeply into this cavity. Here, we identify a new network of residues that helps to shape this highly conserved CD4 binding pocket and characterize the structural determinants responsible for Env sensitivity to small CD4 mimetics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jérémie Prévost
- Centre de Recherche du CHUM, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Département de Microbiologie, Infectiologie et Immunologie, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - William D Tolbert
- Infectious Diseases Division, Department of Medicine of Uniformed Services, University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | | | - Rebekah T Sherburn
- Infectious Diseases Division, Department of Medicine of Uniformed Services, University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Navid Madani
- Department of Cancer Immunology and Virology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Department of Microbiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Daria Zoubchenok
- Centre de Recherche du CHUM, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Département de Microbiologie, Infectiologie et Immunologie, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | | | - Althea E Gaffney
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Melissa C Grenier
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Sharon Kirk
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Natasha Vergara
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Changze Han
- Department of Microbiology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
| | - Brendan T Mann
- U.S. Military HIV Research Program, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
- Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of the Military Medicine, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Agnès L Chénine
- U.S. Military HIV Research Program, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
- Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of the Military Medicine, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Adel Ahmed
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Irwin Chaiken
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Frank Kirchhoff
- Institute of Molecular Virology, Ulm University Medical Center, Ulm, Germany
| | - Beatrice H Hahn
- Departments of Medicine and Microbiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Hillel Haim
- Department of Microbiology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
| | - Cameron F Abrams
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Amos B Smith
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Joseph Sodroski
- Department of Cancer Immunology and Virology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Department of Microbiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Marzena Pazgier
- Infectious Diseases Division, Department of Medicine of Uniformed Services, University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Andrés Finzi
- Centre de Recherche du CHUM, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Département de Microbiologie, Infectiologie et Immunologie, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
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Richard J, Veillette M, Ding S, Zoubchenok D, Alsahafi N, Coutu M, Brassard N, Park J, Courter JR, Melillo B, Smith AB, Shaw GM, Hahn BH, Sodroski J, Kaufmann DE, Finzi A. Small CD4 Mimetics Prevent HIV-1 Uninfected Bystander CD4 + T Cell Killing Mediated by Antibody-dependent Cell-mediated Cytotoxicity. EBioMedicine 2015; 3:122-134. [PMID: 26870823 PMCID: PMC4739418 DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2015.12.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2015] [Revised: 12/07/2015] [Accepted: 12/08/2015] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection causes a progressive depletion of CD4 + T cells. Despite its importance for HIV-1 pathogenesis, the precise mechanisms underlying CD4 + T-cell depletion remain incompletely understood. Here we make the surprising observation that antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) mediates the death of uninfected bystander CD4 + T cells in cultures of HIV-1-infected cells. While HIV-1-infected cells are protected from ADCC by the action of the viral Vpu and Nef proteins, uninfected bystander CD4 + T cells bind gp120 shed from productively infected cells and are efficiently recognized by ADCC-mediating antibodies. Thus, gp120 shedding represents a viral mechanism to divert ADCC responses towards uninfected bystander CD4 + T cells. Importantly, CD4-mimetic molecules redirect ADCC responses from uninfected bystander cells to HIV-1-infected cells; therefore, CD4-mimetic compounds might have therapeutic utility in new strategies aimed at specifically eliminating HIV-1-infected cells. Gp120 shed from productively-infected cells binds to bystander CD4 + T cells. Gp120-coated bystander cells are highly sensitivity to ADCC responses mediated by CD4-induced antibodies. Small-molecule CD4-mimetics redirect CD4-induced antibodies to HIV-1-infected cells.
The hallmark of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection is the progressive depletion of CD4 + T cells. Using cultures of HIV-1-infected cells, we observed that a part of the machinery that the virus uses to infect cells (gp120) binds to uninfected cells. Antibodies elicited during the course of the infection against the gp120 can recognize uninfected cells and redirect an immune response to them that results in their elimination. Importantly, this phenomenon can be blocked with a small CD4-mimetic compound that abrogates the binding of gp120 to uninfected cells and redirects the immune system to infected cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Richard
- Centre de Recherche du CHUM, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada; Department of Microbiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada
| | - Maxime Veillette
- Centre de Recherche du CHUM, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada; Department of Microbiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada
| | - Shilei Ding
- Centre de Recherche du CHUM, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada; Department of Microbiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada
| | - Daria Zoubchenok
- Centre de Recherche du CHUM, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada; Department of Microbiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada
| | - Nirmin Alsahafi
- Centre de Recherche du CHUM, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Mathieu Coutu
- Centre de Recherche du CHUM, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada; Department of Microbiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada
| | | | - Jongwoo Park
- Department of Chemistry, School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6323, USA
| | - Joel R Courter
- Department of Chemistry, School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6323, USA
| | - Bruno Melillo
- Department of Chemistry, School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6323, USA
| | - Amos B Smith
- Department of Chemistry, School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6323, USA
| | - George M Shaw
- Departments of Medicine and Microbiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - Beatrice H Hahn
- Departments of Medicine and Microbiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - Joseph Sodroski
- Department of Cancer Immunology and AIDS, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Department of Microbiology and Immunobiology, Division of AIDS, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Daniel E Kaufmann
- Centre de Recherche du CHUM, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada; Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02139-3583, USA; Department of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC H3C 3T5, Canada; Center for HIV/AIDS Vaccine Immunology and Immunogen Discovery, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Andrés Finzi
- Centre de Recherche du CHUM, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada; Department of Microbiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 2B4, Canada.
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