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Daniell H, Nair SK, Esmaeili N, Wakade G, Shahid N, Ganesan PK, Islam MR, Shepley-McTaggart A, Feng S, Gary EN, Ali AR, Nuth M, Cruz SN, Graham-Wooten J, Streatfield SJ, Montoya-Lopez R, Kaznica P, Mawson M, Green BJ, Ricciardi R, Milone M, Harty RN, Wang P, Weiner DB, Margulies KB, Collman RG. Debulking SARS-CoV-2 in saliva using angiotensin converting enzyme 2 in chewing gum to decrease oral virus transmission and infection. Mol Ther 2022; 30:1966-1978. [PMID: 34774754 PMCID: PMC8580552 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2021.11.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.5] [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: 11/01/2021] [Revised: 11/03/2021] [Accepted: 11/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
To advance a novel concept of debulking virus in the oral cavity, the primary site of viral replication, virus-trapping proteins CTB-ACE2 were expressed in chloroplasts and clinical-grade plant material was developed to meet FDA requirements. Chewing gum (2 g) containing plant cells expressed CTB-ACE2 up to 17.2 mg ACE2/g dry weight (11.7% leaf protein), have physical characteristics and taste/flavor like conventional gums, and no protein was lost during gum compression. CTB-ACE2 gum efficiently (>95%) inhibited entry of lentivirus spike or VSV-spike pseudovirus into Vero/CHO cells when quantified by luciferase or red fluorescence. Incubation of CTB-ACE2 microparticles reduced SARS-CoV-2 virus count in COVID-19 swab/saliva samples by >95% when evaluated by microbubbles (femtomolar concentration) or qPCR, demonstrating both virus trapping and blocking of cellular entry. COVID-19 saliva samples showed low or undetectable ACE2 activity when compared with healthy individuals (2,582 versus 50,126 ΔRFU; 27 versus 225 enzyme units), confirming greater susceptibility of infected patients for viral entry. CTB-ACE2 activity was completely inhibited by pre-incubation with SARS-CoV-2 receptor-binding domain, offering an explanation for reduced saliva ACE2 activity among COVID-19 patients. Chewing gum with virus-trapping proteins offers a general affordable strategy to protect patients from most oral virus re-infections through debulking or minimizing transmission to others.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henry Daniell
- Department of Basic and Translational Sciences, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
| | - Smruti K Nair
- Department of Basic and Translational Sciences, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Nardana Esmaeili
- Department of Basic and Translational Sciences, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Geetanjali Wakade
- Department of Basic and Translational Sciences, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Naila Shahid
- Department of Basic and Translational Sciences, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Prem Kumar Ganesan
- Department of Basic and Translational Sciences, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Md Reyazul Islam
- Department of Basic and Translational Sciences, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Ariel Shepley-McTaggart
- Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Sheng Feng
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Ebony N Gary
- The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Ali R Ali
- The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Manunya Nuth
- Department of Basic and Translational Sciences, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Selene Nunez Cruz
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Jevon Graham-Wooten
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | | | | | - Paul Kaznica
- Fraunhofer USA, Center Mid-Atlantic, Newark, DE 19711, USA
| | | | - Brian J Green
- Fraunhofer USA, Center Mid-Atlantic, Newark, DE 19711, USA
| | - Robert Ricciardi
- Department of Basic and Translational Sciences, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Michael Milone
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Ronald N Harty
- Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Ping Wang
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - David B Weiner
- The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Kenneth B Margulies
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Ronald G Collman
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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