title: A tetravalent dengue nanoparticle stimulates antibody production in mice.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Dengue is a major public health problem worldwide, especially in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Infection with a single Dengue virus (DENV) serotype causes a mild, self-limiting febrile illness called dengue fever. However, a subset of patients experiencing secondary infection with a different serotype progresses to the severe form of the disease, dengue hemorrhagic fever/dengue shock syndrome. Currently, there are no licensed vaccines or antiviral drugs to prevent or treat dengue infections. Biodegradable nanoparticles coated with proteins represent a promising method for in vivo delivery of vaccines.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Here, we used a murine model to evaluate the IgG production after administration of inactivated DENV corresponding to all four serotypes adsorbed to bovine serum albumin nanoparticles. This formulation induced a production of anti-DENV IgG antibodies (p < 0.001). However, plaque reduction neutralization assays with the four DENV serotypes revealed that these antibodies have no neutralizing activity in the dilutions tested.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results show that while the nanoparticle system induces humoral responses against DENV, further investigation with different DENV antigens will be required to improve immunogenicity, epitope specicity, and functional activity to make this platform a viable option for DENV vaccines.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biomedical Science, Federal University of Alfenas, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
authors.forename: Elisângela F
authors.initials: EF
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.forename: Mariana
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Orsi
authors.forename: Angela L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Andrade
authors.forename: Rosana Z
authors.initials: RZ
authors.lastname: Domingues
authors.forename: Breno M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.forename: Helena R C
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: de Araújo
authors.forename: Paulo F P
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: Pimenta
authors.forename: Michael S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Diamond
authors.forename: Eliseu S O
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Rocha
authors.forename: Erna G
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: Kroon
authors.forename: Luiz C C
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Malaquias
authors.forename: Luiz  F L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Coelho
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D003716:Dengue Virus / Q000254:growth & development / Q000276:immunology*; D051379:Mice; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D053758:Nanoparticles; D009500:Neutralization Tests; D010948:Viral Plaque Assay
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral