State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology and College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin, PR China.
College of Pharmacy, Nankai University, Tianjin, PR China.
Nat Commun. 2024 Oct 4;15(1):8601. doi: 10.1038/s41467-024-52908-z.
Over the past decade, there has been a growing interest in ferritin-based vaccines due to their enhanced antigen immunogenicity and favorable safety profiles, with several vaccine candidates targeting various pathogens advancing to phase I clinical trials. Nevertheless, challenges associated with particle heterogeneity, improper assembly and unanticipated immunogenicity due to the bulky protein adaptor have impeded further advancement. To overcome these challenges, we devise a universal ferritin-adaptor delivery platform based on structural insights derived from the natural ferritinophagy complex of the human ferritin heavy chain (FTH1) and the nuclear receptor coactivator 4 (NCOA4). The engineered ferritinophagy (Fagy)-tag peptide demonstrate significantly enhanced binding affinity to the 24-mer ferritin nanoparticle, enabling efficient antigen presentation. Subsequently, we construct a self-assembling rabies virus (RABV) vaccine candidate by noncovalently conjugating the Fagy-tagged glycoprotein domain III (G) of RABV to the ferritin nanoparticle, maintaining superior homogeneity, stability and immunogenicity. This vaccine candidate induces potent, rapid, and durable immune responses, and protects female mice against the authentic RABV challenge after single-dose administration. Furthermore, this universal, ferritin-based antigen conjugating strategy offers significant potential for developing vaccine against diverse pathogens and diseases.
在过去的十年中,由于其增强的抗原免疫原性和良好的安全性,基于铁蛋白的疫苗引起了越来越多的关注,有几种针对各种病原体的疫苗候选物已经进入 I 期临床试验。然而,与颗粒异质性、不正确的组装以及由于大蛋白接头而产生的意外免疫原性相关的挑战,阻碍了进一步的进展。为了克服这些挑战,我们基于从人铁蛋白重链(FTH1)和核受体共激活因子 4(NCOA4)的天然铁蛋白吞噬复合物中获得的结构见解,设计了一种通用的铁蛋白接头递呈平台。工程化的铁蛋白吞噬(Fagy)-标签肽与 24 -mer 铁蛋白纳米颗粒具有显著增强的结合亲和力,能够有效地呈递抗原。随后,我们通过将 RABV 的 Fagy 标记的糖蛋白结构域 III(G)非共价地缀合到铁蛋白纳米颗粒上,构建了一种自组装的狂犬病病毒(RABV)疫苗候选物,保持了优异的均一性、稳定性和免疫原性。该疫苗候选物在单次给药后可诱导强烈、快速和持久的免疫应答,并可保护雌性小鼠免受真实 RABV 挑战的侵害。此外,这种通用的基于铁蛋白的抗原偶联策略为开发针对多种病原体和疾病的疫苗提供了巨大的潜力。
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