title: Protective lactogenic immunity conferred by an edible peptide vaccine to bovine rotavirus produced in transgenic plants.
abstract: Vaccines produced in transgenic plants constitute a promising alternative to conventional immunogens, presenting the possibility of stimulating secretory and systemic immunity against enteric pathogens when administered orally. Protection against enteric pathogens affecting newborn animals requires, in most cases, the stimulation of lactogenic immunity. Here, the group presents the development of an experimental immunogen based on expression of an immunorelevant peptide, eBRV4, of the VP4 protein of bovine rotavirus (BRV), which has been described as harbouring at least one neutralizing epitope as well as being responsible for the adsorption of the virus to epithelial cells. The eBRV4 epitope was efficiently expressed in transgenic alfalfa as a translational fusion protein with the highly stable reporter enzyme beta-glucuronidase (betaGUS), which served as a carrier, stabilized the synthesized peptide and facilitated screening for the higher expression levels in plants. Correlation of expression of the eBRV4 epitope in plants with those presenting the highest betaGUS activities was confirmed by a Western blot assay specific for the BRV peptide. The eBRV4 epitope expressed in plants was effective in inducing an anti-rotavirus antibody response in adult female mice when administered either intraperitoneally or orally and, more importantly, suckling mice born from immunized female mice were protected against oral challenge with virulent rotavirus. These results demonstrate the feasibility of inducing lactogenic immunity against an enteric pathogen using an edible vaccine produced in transgenic plants.
authors.affiliation: Consejo Nacional e Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Argentina.|Instituto de Virología, CICV, INTA-Castelar, CC77, Morón 1708, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Andrés
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wigdorovitz
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Virología, CICV, INTA-Castelar, CC77, Morón 1708, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Marina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mozgovoj
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Virología, CICV, INTA-Castelar, CC77, Morón 1708, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: María J Dus
authors.initials: MJD
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Virología, CICV, INTA-Castelar, CC77, Morón 1708, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Viviana
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Parreño
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Genética 'E. A. Favret', CICA, INTA-Castelar, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gómez
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Biotecnología and Centro de Investigación en Sanidad Animal, INIA, Valdeolmos, 28140 Madrid, Spain.|Consejo Nacional e Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Argentina.
authors.forename: Daniel M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Pérez-Filgueira
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Virología, CICV, INTA-Castelar, CC77, Morón 1708, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Karina G
authors.initials: KG
authors.lastname: Trono
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Genética 'E. A. Favret', CICA, INTA-Castelar, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Raúl D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Ríos
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Genética 'E. A. Favret', CICA, INTA-Castelar, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Pascual M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Franzone
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Virología, CICV, INTA-Castelar, CC77, Morón 1708, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fernández
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Virología, CICV, INTA-Castelar, CC77, Morón 1708, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Consuelo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Carrillo
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, VIDO, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, S7N 5E3.
authors.forename: Lorne A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Babiuk
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Biotecnología and Centro de Investigación en Sanidad Animal, INIA, Valdeolmos, 28140 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: José M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Escribano
authors.affiliation: Consejo Nacional e Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Argentina.|Instituto de Virología, CICV, INTA-Castelar, CC77, Morón 1708, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Manuel V
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Borca
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D036022:Capsid Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D002417:Cattle; D005966:Glucuronidase / Q000235:genetics; D000455:Medicago sativa / Q000235:genetics / Q000821:virology; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified / Q000821:virology*; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000276:immunology; D012401:Rotavirus / Q000276:immunology*; D012400:Rotavirus Infections / Q000276:immunology*; D014765:Viral Vaccines / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D036022:Capsid Proteins; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; C060339:VP4 protein, Rotavirus; D014765:Viral Vaccines; D005966:Glucuronidase