Immunogenicity of peptide-based vaccine composed of epitopes from Echinococcus granulosus rEg.P29.

Echinococcus granulosus is one of the main causes of economic loss in the livestock industry because of its food-borne transmission. Cutting off the transmission route is a valid prevention method, and vaccines are the most effective means of controlling and eliminating infectious diseases. However, no human-related vaccine has been yet marketed. As a genetic engineering vaccine, recombinant protein P29 of E. granulosus (rEg.P29) could provide protection against deadly challenges. In this study, we generated peptide vaccines (rEg.P29 , rEg.P29 , and rEg.P29 ) based on rEg.P29 and an immunized model was established by subcutaneous immunization. Further evaluation showed that peptide vaccine immunization in mice induced T helper type 1 (Th1)-mediated cellular immune responses, leading to high levels of rEg.P29 or rEg.P29 -specific antibodies. In addition, rEg.P29 immunization can induce a higher antibody and cytokine production level than single-epitope vaccines, and immune memory is also longer. Collectively, these results suggest that rEg.P29 has the potential to be developed as an efficient subunit vaccine for use in areas where E. granulosus is endemic.