Vaccines
Abstract
There is an unmet need for monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) for prevention or as adjunctive treatment of herpes simplex virus (HSV) disease. Most vaccine and mAb efforts focus on neutralizing antibodies, but for HSV this strategy has proven ineffective. Preclinical studies with a candidate HSV vaccine strain, ΔgD-2, demonstrated that non-neutralizing antibodies that activate Fc-gamma receptors (FcɣRs) to mediate antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) provide active and passive protection against HSV-1 and HSV-2. We hypothesized that this vaccine provides a tool to identify and characterize protective mAbs. We isolated HSV-specific mAbs from germinal center and memory B cells and bone marrow plasmacytes of ΔgD-2 vaccinated mice and evaluated these mAbs for binding, neutralizing and FcɣR-activating activity and for protective efficacy in mice. The most potent protective mAb, BMPC-23, was not neutralizing but activated murine FcɣRIV, a biomarker of ADCC. The cryo-EM structure of the Fab-glycoprotein B (gB) assembly identified domain IV of gB as the epitope. A single dose of BMPC-23 administered 24 hours before or after viral challenge provided significant protection when configured as mouse IgG2c and protected mice expressing human FcɣRIII when engineered as a human IgG1. These results highlight the importance of FcɣR-activating antibodies in protecting against HSV.
Authors
Masayuki Kuraoka, Clare Burn Aschner, Ian W. Windsor, Aakash Mahant Mahant, Scott J. Garforth, Susan Luozheng Kong, Jacqueline M. Achkar, Steven C. Almo, Garnett Kelsoe, Betsy C. Herold
Abstract
The emergence of the novel henipavirus, Langya virus, received global attention earlier this month after the virus sickened over three dozen people in China. There is heightened concern henipaviruses as respiratory pathogens could spark another pandemic, most notably the deadly Nipah virus (NiV). NiV causes near annual outbreaks in Bangladesh and India and induces a highly fatal respiratory disease and encephalitis in humans. No licensed countermeasures against this pathogen exist. An ideal NiV vaccine would confer both fast-acting and long-lived protection. Recently, we reported the generation of a recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus (rVSV)-based vaccine expressing the NiV glycoprotein (rVSV-ΔG-NiVBG) that protected 100% of nonhuman primates from NiV-associated lethality within a week. Here, to evaluate the durability of rVSV-ΔG-NiVBG, we vaccinated African green monkeys (AGMs) one year prior to challenge with a uniformly lethal dose of NiV. The rVSV-ΔG-NiVBG vaccine induced stable and robust humoral responses, whereas cellular responses were modest. All immunized AGMs (whether receiving a single dose or prime-boosted) survived with no detectable clinical signs or NiV replication. Transcriptomic analyses indicated adaptive immune signatures correlated with vaccine-mediated protection. While vaccines for certain respiratory infections (e.g., COVID-19) have yet to provide durable protection, our results suggest rVSV-ΔG-NiVBG elicits long-lasting immunity.
Authors
Courtney Woolsey, Viktoriya Borisevich, Alyssa C. Fears, Krystle N. Agans, Daniel J. Deer, Abhishek N. Prasad, Rachel O'Toole, Stephanie L. Foster, Natalie S. Dobias, Joan B. Geisbert, Karla A. Fenton, Robert W. Cross, Thomas Geisbert
Abstract
The SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) glycoprotein is synthesized as large precursor protein and must be activated by proteolytic cleavage into S1 and S2. A recombinant modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA) expressing native, full-length S protein (MVA-SARS-2-S) is currently under investigation as candidate vaccine in phase I clinical studies. Initial results from immunogenicity monitoring revealed induction of S-specific antibodies binding to S2, but low-level antibody responses to the S1 domain. Follow-up investigations of native S antigen synthesis in MVA-SARS-2-S infected cells revealed limited levels of S1 protein on the cell surface. In contrast, we found superior S1 cell surface presentation upon infection with a recombinant MVA expressing a stabilized version of SARS-CoV-2 S protein with an inactivated S1/2 cleavage site and K986→P and V987→P mutations (MVA-SARS-2-ST). When comparing immunogenicity of MVA vector vaccines, mice vaccinated with MVA-SARS-2-ST mounted substantial levels of S broadly reactive antibodies that effectively neutralized different SARS-CoV-2 variants. Importantly, intramuscular MVA-SARS-2-ST immunization of hamsters and mice resulted in potent immune responses upon challenge infection and protected from disease and severe lung pathology. Our results suggest that MVA-SARS-2-ST represents an improved clinical candidate vaccine and that the presence of plasma membrane-bound S1 is highly beneficial to induce protective antibody levels.
Authors
Christian Meyer zu Natrup, Alina Tscherne, Christine Dahlke, Malgorzata Ciurkiewicz, Dai-Lun Shin, Anahita Fathi, Cornelius Rohde, Georgia Kalodimou, Sandro Halwe, Leonard Limpinsel, Jan H. Schwarz, Martha Klug, Meral Esen, Nicole Schneiderhan-Marra, Alex Dulovic, Alexandra Kupke, Katrin Brosinski, Sabrina Clever, Lisa-Marie Schünemann, Georg Beythien, Federico Armando, Leonie Mayer, Leonie M. Weskamm, Sylvia Jany, Astrid Freudenstein, Tamara Tuchel, Wolfgang Baumgärtner, Peter Kremsner, Rolf Fendel, Marylyn M. Addo, Stephan Becker, Gerd Sutter, Asisa Volz
Abstract
BACKGROUND. Heterologous effects of vaccines are mediated by ‘trained immunity’ whereby myeloid cells are metabolically and epigenetically reprogrammed resulting in heightened responses to subsequent insults. Adenovirus vaccine vector has been reported to induce trained immunity in mice. Therefore, we sought to determine if the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine (AZD1222), which uses an adenoviral vector, could induce trained immunity in vivo in humans. METHODS. Ten healthy volunteers donated blood on the day before receiving the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine and on day 14, 56 and 90 post vaccination. Monocytes were purified from PBMC; cell phenotype was determined by flow cytometry, expression of metabolic enzymes were quantified by RT-qPCR and production of cytokines and chemokine in response to stimulation ex vivo were analyzed by multiplex ELISA. RESULTS. Monocyte frequency and count were increased in peripheral blood up to 3 months post vaccination compared with their own pre-vaccine control. Expression of HLA-DR, CD40 and CD80 was enhanced on monocytes for up to 3 months following vaccination. Moreover, monocytes had increased expression of glycolysis-associated enzymes 2 months post vaccination. Upon stimulation ex vivo with unrelated antigens, monocytes produced increased IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, CXCL1, and MIP-1α, and decreased TNF, compared with pre-vaccine controls. Resting monocytes produced more IFN-γ, IL-18, and MCP-1 up to 3 months post vaccination compared with pre-vaccine controls. CONCLUSION. These data provide evidence for the induction of trained immunity following a single dose of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine. FUNDING. This work was funded by The Health Research Board (EIA-2019-010) and Science Foundation Ireland Strategic Partnership Programme (Proposal ID 20/SPP/3685).
Authors
Dearbhla M. Murphy, Donal J. Cox, Sarah A. Connolly, Eamon P Breen, Aenea A.I. Brugman, James J. Phelan, Joseph Keane, Sharee A. Basdeo
Abstract
Adoptive cell therapy (ACT) with tumor-specific memory T cells has shown increasing efficacy in regressing solid tumors. However, tumor antigen heterogeneity represents a longitudinal challenge for durable clinical responses due to the therapeutic selective pressure for immune escape variants. Here, we demonstrate that delivery of class I histone deacetylase inhibitor, MS-275, promotes sustained tumor regression by synergizing with ACT in a coordinated manner to enhance cellular apoptosis. We find that MS-275 alters the tumor inflammatory landscape to support antitumor immunoactivation through the recruitment and maturation of cross-presenting CD103+ and CD8+ dendritic cells and depletion of regulatory T cells. Activated endogenous CD8+ T cell responses against non-target tumor antigens was critically required for the prevention of tumor recurrence. Importantly, MS-275 alters the immunodominance hierarchy by directing epitope spreading towards endogenous retroviral tumor-associated antigen, p15E. Our data suggest that MS-275 multi-mechanistically improves epitope spreading to promote long-term clearance of solid tumors.
Authors
Andrew Nguyen, Louisa Ho, Richard Hogg, Lan Chen, Scott R. Walsh, Yonghong Wan
Abstract
BACKGROUND. Long-term prognosis of WHO grade II low-grade glioma (LGG) is poor secondary to risk of recurrence and malignant transformation into high-grade glioma. Given the relatively intact immune system of patients with LGG and the slow tumor growth rate, vaccines are an attractive treatment strategy. METHODS. We conducted a pilot study to evaluate the safety and immunological effects of vaccination with GBM6-AD, lysate of an allogeneic glioblastoma stem cell line, with poly-ICLC in patients with LGG. Patients were randomized to receive the vaccines before surgery (Arm 1) or not (Arm 2) and all patients received adjuvant vaccine. Co-primary outcomes were to evaluate the safety and immune response in the tumor. RESULTS. A total of 17 eligible patients were enrolled – nine into Arm 1 and eight into Arm 2. This regimen was well-tolerated with no regimen-limiting toxicity. Neoadjuvant vaccination induced upregulation of type-1 cytokines and chemokines, and increased activated CD8+ T-cells in peripheral blood. Single-cell RNA/TCR-sequencing detected CD8+ T-cell clones that expanded with effector phenotype and migrated into tumor microenvironment (TME) in response to neoadjuvant vaccination. Mass cytometric analyses detected increased tissue resident-like CD8+ T-cells with effector memory phenotype in TME following the neoadjuvant vaccination. CONCLUSION. The current regimen induces effector CD8+ T-cell response in peripheral blood and enables vaccine-reactive CD8+ T-cells to migrate into TME. Further refinements of the regimen may have to be integrated into future strategies. TRIAL REGISTRATION. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02549833. FUNDING. NIH (1R35NS105068, 1R21CA233856), Dabbiere Foundation, Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, and Daiichi Sankyo Foundation of Life Science.
Authors
Hirokazu Ogino, Jennie W. Taylor, Takahide Nejo, David Gibson, Payal B. Watchmaker, Kaori Okada, Atsuro Saijo, Meghan R. Tedesco, Anny Shai, Cynthia M. Wong, Jane E. Rabbitt, Michael R. Olin, Christopher L. Moertel, Yasuhiko Nishioka, Andres M. Salazar, Annette M. Molinaro, Joanna J. Phillips, Nicholas A. Butowski, Jennifer L. Clarke, Nancy Ann Oberheim Bush, Shawn L. Hervey-Jumper, Philip Theodosopoulos, Susan M. Chang, Mitchel S. Berger, Hideho Okada
Abstract
Although Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccines have shown efficacy against SARS-CoV-2, it is unknown if coronavirus vaccines can also protect against other coronaviruses that may infect humans in the future. Here, we show that coronavirus vaccines elicit cross-protective immune responses against heterologous coronaviruses. In particular, we show that a Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 1 (SARS-CoV-1) vaccine developed in 2004 and known to protect against SARS-CoV-1, confers robust heterologous protection against SARS-CoV-2 in mice. Similarly, prior coronavirus infections conferred heterologous protection against distinct coronaviruses. Cross-reactive immunity was also reported in Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients and humans who received SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, and transfer of plasma from these individuals into mice improved protection against coronavirus challenges. These findings provide the first demonstration that coronavirus vaccines (and prior coronavirus infections) can confer broad protection against heterologous coronaviruses, providing a rationale for universal coronavirus vaccines.
Authors
Tanushree Dangi, Nicole Palacio, Sarah Sanchez, Mincheol Park, Jake Class, Lavanya Visvabharathy, Thomas Ciucci, Igor J. Koralnik, Justin M. Richner, Pablo Penaloza-MacMaster
Abstract
Nucleoside-modified mRNA vaccines have gained global attention because of COVID-19. We evaluated a similar vaccine approach for preventing a chronic latent genital infection rather than an acute respiratory infection. We used animal models to compare an HSV-2 trivalent nucleoside-modified mRNA vaccine with the same antigens prepared as proteins with an emphasis on antigen-specific memory B cell responses and immune correlates of protection. In guinea pigs, serum neutralizing antibody titers were higher at one month and declined far less by eight months in mRNA- than protein-immunized animals. Both vaccines protected against death and genital lesions when infected one month after immunization; however, protection was more durable in the mRNA than protein group when infected after eight months, an interval representing >15% of the animal’s lifespan. Serum and vaginal neutralizing antibody titers correlated with protection against infection as measured by genital lesions and vaginal virus titers two days post infection. In mice, the mRNA vaccine generated more antigen-specific memory B cells than the protein vaccine at early times post immunization that persisted for up to one year. High neutralizing titers and robust B cell immune memory likely explain the more durable protection by the HSV-2 mRNA vaccine.
Authors
Sita Awasthi, James J. Knox, Angela Desmond, Mohamad-Gabriel Alameh, Brian T. Gaudette, John M. Lubinski, Alexis Naughton, Lauren M. Hook, Kevin P. Egan, Ying K. Tam, Norbert Pardi, David Allman, Eline T. Luning Prak, Michael P. Cancro, Drew Weissman, Gary H. Cohen, Harvey M. Friedman
Abstract
The mRNA-1273 vaccine is effective against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and was granted emergency use authorization by the Food and Drug Administration . Clinical studies, however, cannot provide the controlled response to infection and complex immunological insight that are only possible with preclinical studies. Hamsters are the only model that reliably exhibit severe SARS-CoV-2 disease similar to hospitalized patients, making them pertinent for vaccine evaluation. We demonstrate that prime or prime-boost administration of mRNA-1273 in hamsters elicited robust neutralizing antibodies, ameliorated weight loss, suppressed SARS-CoV-2 replication in the airways, and better protected against disease at the highest prime-boost dose. Unlike in mice and non-human primates, low level virus replication in mRNA-1273 vaccinated hamsters coincided with an anamnestic response. Single-cell RNA sequencing of lung tissue permitted high resolution analysis which is not possible in vaccinated humans. mRNA-1273 prevented inflammatory cell infiltration and the reduction of lymphocyte proportions, but enabled antiviral responses conducive to lung homeostasis. Surprisingly, infection triggered transcriptome programs in some types of immune cells from vaccinated hamsters that were shared, albeit attenuated, with mock-vaccinated hamsters. Our results support the use of mRNA-1273 in a two-dose schedule and provide insight into the potential responses within the lungs of vaccinated humans who are exposed to SARS-CoV-2.
Authors
Michelle Meyer, Yuan Wang, Darin Edwards, Gregory R. Smith, Aliza B. Rubenstein, Palaniappan Ramanathan, Chad E. Mire, Colette Pietzsch, Xi Chen, Yongchao Ge, Wan Sze Cheng, Carole Henry, Angela Woods, LingZhi Ma, Guillaume B.E. Stewart-Jones, Kevin W. Bock, Mahnaz Minai, Bianca M. Nagata, Sivakumar Periasamy, Pei-Yong Shi, Barney S. Graham, Ian N. Moore, Irene Ramos, Olga G. Troyanskaya, Elena Zaslavsky, Andrea Carfi, Stuart C. Sealfon, Alexander Bukreyev
Abstract
Therapeutic vaccines that augment T cell responses to tumor antigens have been limited by poor potency in clinical trials. In contrast, the transfer of T cells modified with foreign transgenes frequently induces potent endogenous T cell responses to epitopes in the transgene product, and these responses are undesirable, because they lead to rejection of the transferred T cells. We sought to harness gene-modified T cells as a vaccine platform and developed cancer vaccines composed of autologous T cells modified with tumor antigens and additional adjuvant signals (Tvax). T cells expressing model antigens and a broad range of tumor neoantigens induced robust and durable T cell responses through cross-presentation of antigens by host DCs. Providing Tvax with signals such as CD80, CD137L, IFN-β, IL-12, GM-CSF, and FLT3L enhanced T cell priming. Coexpression of IL-12 and GM-CSF induced the strongest CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses through complimentary effects on the recruitment and activation of DCs, mediated by autocrine IL-12 receptor signaling in the Tvax. Therapeutic vaccination with Tvax and adjuvants showed antitumor activity in subcutaneous and metastatic preclinical mouse models. Human T cells modified with neoantigens readily activated specific T cells derived from patients, providing a path for clinical translation of this therapeutic platform in cancer.
Authors
Joshua R. Veatch, Naina Singhi, Shivani Srivastava, Julia L. Szeto, Brenda Jesernig, Sylvia M. Stull, Matthew Fitzgibbon, Megha Sarvothama, Sushma Yechan-Gunja, Scott E. James, Stanley R. Riddell
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ISSN: 0021-9738 (print), 1558-8238 (online)