School of Laboratory Medicine and Biotechnology, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
Dermatology Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2023 Nov 20;17(11):e0011770. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0011770. eCollection 2023 Nov.
Zika virus can infect the fetus through the placental barrier, causing ZIKV congenital syndrome and even miscarriage, which can cause great harm to pregnant women and infants. Currently, there is no vaccine and drug available to combat the Zika virus. In this study, we designed a fusion protein named EDIII-Fc, including the EDIII region of Zika E protein and human IgG Fc fragment, and obtained 293T cells that stably secreted EDIII-Fc protein using the lentiviral expression system. Mice were immunized with the EDIII-Fc protein, and it was observed that viral replication was significantly inhibited in the immunized mice compared to non-immunized mice. In rhesus macaques, we found that EDIII-Fc effectively induce the secretion of neutralizing antibodies and T cell immunity. These experimental data provide valid data for further use of Zika virus E protein to prepare an effective, safe, affordable Zika vaccine.
寨卡病毒可通过胎盘屏障感染胎儿，导致寨卡病毒先天性综合征甚至流产，对孕妇和婴儿造成极大危害。目前尚无针对寨卡病毒的疫苗和药物。本研究设计了一种融合蛋白，命名为 EDIII-Fc，包含寨卡 E 蛋白的 EDIII 区和人 IgG Fc 片段，利用慢病毒表达系统获得了稳定分泌 EDIII-Fc 蛋白的 293T 细胞。用 EDIII-Fc 蛋白免疫小鼠，结果发现免疫小鼠的病毒复制明显低于未免疫小鼠。在恒河猴中，我们发现 EDIII-Fc 能有效诱导中和抗体和 T 细胞免疫的产生。这些实验数据为进一步利用寨卡病毒 E 蛋白制备有效、安全、经济实惠的寨卡疫苗提供了有效数据。
