A SARS-CoV-2 spike ferritin nanoparticle vaccine protects hamsters against Alpha and Beta virus variant challenge

The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOC) requires adequate coverage of vaccine protection. We evaluated whether a SARS-CoV-2 spike ferritin nanoparticle vaccine (SpFN), adjuvanted with the Army Liposomal Formulation QS21 (ALFQ), conferred protection against the Alpha (B.1.1.7), and Beta (B.1.351) VOCs in Syrian golden hamsters. SpFN-ALFQ was administered as either single or double-vaccination (0 and 4 week) regimens, using a high (10 μg) or low (0.2 μg) dose. Animals were intranasally challenged at week 11. Binding antibody responses were comparable between high- and low-dose groups. Neutralizing antibody titers were equivalent against WA1, B.1.1.7, and B.1.351 variants following two high dose vaccinations. Dose-dependent SpFN-ALFQ vaccination protected against SARS-CoV-2-induced disease and viral replication following intranasal B.1.1.7 or B.1.351 challenge, as evidenced by reduced weight loss, lung pathology, and lung and nasal turbinate viral burden. These data support the development of SpFN-ALFQ as a broadly protective, next-generation SARS-CoV-2 vaccine.

A SARS-CoV-2 spike ferritin nanoparticle vaccine protects against heterologous challenge with B.1.1.7 and B.1.351 virus variants in Syrian golden hamsters

The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOC) requires adequate coverage of vaccine protection. We evaluated whether a spike ferritin nanoparticle vaccine (SpFN), adjuvanted with the Army Liposomal Formulation QS21 (ALFQ), conferred protection against the B.1.1.7 and B.1.351 VOCs in Syrian golden hamsters. SpFN-ALFQ was administered as either single or double-vaccination (0 and 4 week) regimens, using a high (10 μg) or low (0.2 μg) immunogen dose. Animals were intranasally challenged at week 11. Binding antibody responses were comparable between high- and low-dose groups. Neutralizing antibody titers were equivalent against WA1, B.1.1.7, and B.1.351 variants following two high dose two vaccinations. SpFN-ALFQ vaccination protected against SARS-CoV-2-induced disease and viral replication following intranasal B.1.1.7 or B.1.351 challenge, as evidenced by reduced weight loss, lung pathology, and lung and nasal turbinate viral burden. These data support the development of SpFN-ALFQ as a broadly protective, next-generation SARS-CoV-2 vaccine.

SARS-CoV-2 infection drives endothelial dysfunction indirectly through hypoxia and increased pro-inflammatory cytokine production

In the Covid-19 patients, vascular thrombosis is observed in the heart, lung, and other organs, leading to multiorgan morbidity and mortality. We obtained heart and lung tissues from autopsies of the patients who died from Covid-19 or unrelated causes as a control. We found that endothelial cells of the hearts and lungs were in dysfunctional state during Covid-19. Cardiac and pulmonary endothelial cells in the Covid-19 group showed decreased level of thrombomodulin, an anticoagulant, and increased level of von Willebrand factor, a procoagulant, compared to non-Covid-19 control. Endothelial cells in the Covid-19 autopsy hearts and lungs also exhibited reduced ICAM-1, VCAM-1, and E-selectin expression. Most of the hearts from the Covid-19 autopsies tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 genome, while all the lungs tested positive. Human coronary artery endothelial cell (HCAEC) in vitro culture was not infected by SARS-CoV-2, showing no dysfunctional phenotype. In the HCAEC culture and in vivo mouse experiments, hypoxia and pro-inflammatory cytokine treatment caused endothelial cell dysfunction including thrombomodulin downregulation similar to what we observed in Covid-19 autopsy tissues. Collectively, endothelial cell dysfunction associated with thrombus formation in Covid-19 is not caused by direct infection with SARS-CoV-2, but it can be induced by pathogenic microenvironments such as hypoxia and increased pro-inflammatory cytokine milieu.

Repression of the HSV-1 latency-associated transcript (LAT) promoter by the early growth response (EGR) proteins: involvement of a binding site immediately downstream of the TATA box

During herpes simplex virus (HSV) latency, in neurons of the nervous system, a single family of viral transcripts (the Latency-Associated Transcripts or LATs) are synthesized. Within the LAT promoter region, we have identified a consensus sequence for the EGR proteins in an unusual position immediately downstream of the TATA box. The early growth response (EGR) proteins are rapidly induced in cells by stimuli which also induce HSV to reactivate from latency. In order to determine if EGR proteins play any role in control of LAT transcription, we have analyzed the interactions between EGR proteins and the LAT promoter. Gel retardation and DNase I protection assays demonstrated that EGR1 zinc finger protein bound specifically to the LAT promoter region EGR consensus sequence. To determine if EGR proteins could modulate transcription through the LAT promoter, cotransfection assays were performed using chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) reporter constructs driven by either the wild-type LAT promoter or a LAT promoter with a mutated EGR binding site. Contransfection of the wild-type LAT promoter construct with EGR expression plasmids resulted in inhibition of the basal level of CAT activity with EGR-2 but not EGR-1 or 3. However, normal levels of CAT activity were observed in cotransfections using the mutant LAT promoter CAT construct suggesting that repression was mediated by the binding of EGR-2 proteins to the LAT promoter. Furthermore, data from combination binding assays using EGR1 and TATA binding protein (TBP) in vitro support the hypothesis that binding of EGR proteins to the LAT promoter prevents binding of TBP and thus suppresses transcription. These results may provide a link between stress responses in neurons of the CNS which activate the EGR family of proteins and HSV reactivation from latency due to the same stress response.