ltB-ureB融合基因原核表达系统的构建及其产物免疫性和佐剂活性的鉴定

构建ltB-ureB融合基因原核表达系统并对其表达产物的免疫性和佐剂活性进行鉴定.采用PCR和T-A克隆法从幽门螺杆菌(Helicobacter pylori,Hp)临床菌株Y06和大肠杆菌44851株DNA中获得了ureB和ltB全长基因扩增片段及其克隆,并构建了ltB-ureB融合基因及其原核表达系统pET32a-ltB-ureB-E.coli BL21DE3.在E.coli BL21DE3宿主菌中用不同浓度的IPTG诱导表达,并用Hp全菌抗体的Western blot、ELISA以及GM1ELISA分别证实了目的重组蛋白(rLTB-UreB)的免疫性和佐剂活性.与报道的相关序列比较,所克隆的ureB和ltB核苷酸序列同源性分别为96.88%～97.82%和99.12%～99.71%,氨基酸序列同源性为99.65%～99.82%和97.58%～99.19%.0.1～1.0 mmol/L的IPTG均能有效地诱导目的重组蛋白rLTB-UreB的表达,该蛋白主要以包涵体形式存在,其产量约为细菌总蛋白的35%.Western blot结果证实rLTB-UreB不仅能与商品化的Hp全菌抗体结合,免疫家兔后也能产生特异性抗体,表明rLTB-UreB有良好的免疫反应性及抗原性.GM1-ELISA结果显示rLTB-UreB能与牛GM1结合,表明rLTB-UreB有佐剂活性.以兔抗rLTB-UreB为一抗,发现所检测的109株Hp临床分离菌株均表达UreB;以rLTB-UreB为包被抗原,发现所检测的125例Hp感染者血清中均存在UreB抗体;表明UreB广泛存在于不同的Hp菌株中,并有很强的抗原性,也提示rLTB-UreB确有自然表达UreB的抗原特异性.本文成功地构建了LTB-UreB融合基因原核高效表达系统,所表达的LTB-UreB融合蛋白有良好的免疫性和佐剂活性,为Hp基因工程疫苗的产业化奠定了坚实的基础.     

Discovery of NKT cells and development of NKT cell-targeted anti-tumor immunotherapy

Natural Killer T (NKT) cells are unique lymphocytes characterized by their expression of a single invariant antigen receptor encoded by Vα14Jα18 in mice and Vα24Jα18 in humans, which recognizes glycolipid antigens in association with the monomorphic CD1d molecule. NKT cells mediate adjuvant activity to activate both CD8T cells to kill MHC-positive tumor cells and NK cells to eliminate MHC-negative tumor at the same time in patients, resulting in the complete eradication of tumors without relapse. Therefore, the NKT cell-targeted therapy can be applied to any type of tumor and also to anyone individual, regardless of HLA type.Phase IIa clinical trials on advanced lung cancers and head and neck tumors have been completed and showed significantly prolonged median survival times with only the primary treatment. Another potential treatment option for the future is to use induced pluripotent stem cell (iPS)-derived NKT cells, which induced adjuvant effects on anti-tumor responses, inhibiting in vivo tumor growth in a mouse model.     

纳米铝佐剂吸附HBsAg及其免疫学效应的研究

纳米材料用作疫苗佐剂,已受到极大重视[1～4].Kreuter等[5]于1981年首次将纳米材料应用于疫苗佐剂.但直到20世纪90年代初,纳米生物学领域才有了长足进步[6].铝佐剂包括Al(OH)3和AlPO4两种,而Al(OH)3是目前唯一被FDA认证的人用佐剂.本文自制纳米铝佐剂,通过物理吸附HBsAg,以常规铝佐剂为对照,研究Balb/c小鼠和豚鼠对两种佐剂疫苗的体液免疫应答和细胞免疫应答.1实验部分1.1材料、仪器和实验动物HBsAg纯抗原、OPD、辣根过氧化物酶标记的羊抗Balb/c小鼠IgG、ConA、RPMI1640、小牛血清、3H-TdR、氢氧化铝佐剂商业品(2mg/mL);纳米…     

Development of an imaged capillary isoelectric focusing method for characterizing the surface charge of mRNA lipid nanoparticle vaccines

Lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) have been employed for drug delivery in small molecules, siRNA, mRNA, and pDNA for both therapeutics and vaccines. Characterization of LNPs is challenging because they are heterogeneous mixtures of large complex particles. Many tools for particle size characterization, such as dynamic and static light scattering, have been applied as well as morphology analysis using electron microscopy. CE has been applied for the characterization of many different large particles such as liposomes, polymer, and viruses. However, there have been limited efforts to characterize the surface charge of LNPs and CIEF has not been explored for this type of particle. Typically, LNPs for delivery of oligonucleotides contain at least four different lipids, with at least one being an ionizable cationic lipid. Here, we describe the development of an imaged capillary isoelectric focusing method used to measure the surface charge (i.e., pI) of an LNP‐based mRNA vaccine. This method is capable of distinguishing the pI of LNPs manufactured with one or more different ionizable lipids for the purpose of confirming LNP identity in a manufacturing setting. Additionally, the method is quantitative and stability‐indicating making it suitable for both process and formulation development.     

A Self‐Delivery Chimeric Peptide for Photodynamic Therapy Amplified Immunotherapy

In this paper, a self‐delivery chimeric peptide PpIX‐PEG₈‐KVPRNQDWL is designed for photodynamic therapy (PDT) amplified immunotherapy against malignant melanoma. After self‐assembly into nanoparticles (designated as PPMA), this self‐delivery system shows high drug loading rate, good dispersion, and stability as well as an excellent capability in producing reactive oxygen species (ROS). After cellular uptake, the ROS generated under light irradiation could induce the apoptosis and/or necrosis of tumor cells, which would subsequently stimulate the anti‐tumor immune response. On the other hand, the melanoma specific antigen (KVPRNQDWL) peptide could also activate the specific cytotoxic T cells for anti‐tumor immunity. Compared to immunotherapy alone, the combined photodynamic immunotherapy exhibits significantly enhanced inhibition of melanoma growth. Both in vitro and in vivo investigations confirm that PDT of PPMA has a positive effect on anti‐tumor immune response. This self‐delivery system demonstrates a great potential of this PDT amplified immunotherapy strategy for advanced or metastatic tumor treatment.     

Sixteen capillary electrophoresis applications for viral vaccine analysis

A broad range of CE applications from our organization is reviewed to give a flavor of the use of CE within the field of vaccine analyses. Applicability of CE for viral vaccine characterization, and release and stability testing of seasonal influenza virosomal vaccines, universal subunit influenza vaccines, Sabin inactivated polio vaccines (sIPV), and adenovirus vector vaccines were demonstrated. Diverse CZE, CE-SDS, CGE, and cIEF methods were developed, validated, and applied for virus, protein, posttranslational modifications, DNA, and excipient concentration determinations, as well as for the integrity and composition verifications, and identity testing (e.g., CZE for intact virus particles, CE-SDS application for hemagglutinin quantification and influenza strain identification, chloride or bromide determination in process samples). Results were supported by other methods such as RP-HPLC, dynamic light scattering (DLS), and zeta potential measurements. Overall, 16 CE methods are presented that were developed and applied, comprising six adenovirus methods, five viral protein methods, and methods for antibodies determination of glycans, host cell-DNA, excipient chloride, and process impurity bromide. These methods were applied to support in-process control, release, stability, process- and product characterization and development, and critical reagent testing. Thirteen methods were validated. Intact virus particles were analyzed at concentrations as low as 0.8 pmol/L. Overall, CE took viral vaccine testing beyond what was previously possible, improved process and product understanding, and, in total, safety, efficacy, and quality.     

A Bioinformatics approach to designing a Zika virus vaccine

The Zika virus infections have reached epidemic proportions in the Latin American countries causing severe birth defects and neurological disorders. While several organizations have begun research into design of prophylactic vaccines and therapeutic drugs, computer assisted methods with adequate data resources can be expected to assist in these measures to reduce lead times through bioinformatics approaches. Using 60 sequences of the Zika virus envelope protein available in the GenBank database, our analysis with numerical characterization techniques and several web based bioinformatics servers identified four peptide stretches on the Zika virus envelope protein that are well conserved and surface exposed and are predicted to have reasonable epitope binding efficiency. These peptides can be expected to form the basis for a nascent peptide vaccine which, enhanced by incorporation of suitable adjuvants, can elicit immune response against the Zika virus infections.     

DNA纳米机器:梦想照进现实

可进体内治病救人的纳米机器人一直是人们梦寐以求的未来科技和医疗手段.最近,国家纳米科学中心的丁宝全、聂广军等在这个方向取得了重要的突破,成功开发了基于DNA纳米机器的癌症免疫治疗疫苗.他们首先利用DNA折纸术构筑了一个可精确负载抗原和佐剂的管状结构,通过皮下注射递送至淋巴结,经由内吞在树突细胞内涵体内发生pH响应性的锁链打开,暴露抗原和佐剂,从而激活树突细胞,产生抗原特异性的T细胞,有效杀伤肿瘤细胞.该疫苗不仅可以有效抑制肿瘤的生长和复发,还诱导特异性记忆效应,可持续产生特异性的保护.这提供了一个精准递送分子药物的平台,让人看到成功发展纳米机器人的曙光,有望给医学和医疗保健带来重要变革.     

Enhancing the immune response and tumor suppression effect of antitumor vaccines adjuvanted with non-nucleotide small molecule STING agonist

Vaccine adjuvants have been widely used to enhance the immunogenicity of the antigens and elicit long-lasting immune response. However, only few vaccine adjuvants have been approved by the FDA for human use so far. Therefore, there is still an urgent need to develop novel adjuvants for the potential applications in clinical trials. Herein, non-nucleotide small molecule STING agonist di ABZI was employed to construct glycopeptide antigen based vaccines for the first time. Immunological evaluation indicated di ABZI not only enhanced the production of antibodies and T cell immune responses, but also inhibited tumor growth in tumor-bearing mice in glycopeptide-based subunit vaccines. These results indicated that di-ABZI demonstrates a high potential as adjuvant for the development of cancer vaccines.