Conjugation of β-glucan markedly increase the immunogencity of meningococcal group Y polysaccharide conjugate vaccine.
Meningococcal disease is a fatal illness of sudden onset caused by Neisseria meningitides. Meningococcal capsular polysaccharide (CPS) is a major virulence factor that generally does not induce immunological memory. Conjugation with a carrier protein can significantly increase the immunogenicity of CPS and induce immunological memory. However, it is highly desired to optimize the CPS-specific immunogenicity of the conjugate vaccine. Although adjuvant has been widely used to improve the immunogenicity of antigens, co-administration and conjugation of adjuvant with the conjugate vaccine has rarely been investigated. As a stimulator of humoral and cellular immunity, β-glucan can activate macrophages and trigger intracellular processes to secrete cytokines initiating inflammatory reactions. In the present study, a conjugate vaccine (CPS-TT) was generated by conjugation of tetanus toxoid (TT) with meningococcal group Y CPS. CPS-TT was further conjugated with β-glucan to generate CPS-TT-G. Immunization with CPS-TT-G led to an 8.2-fold increase in the CPS-specific IgG titers as compared with CPS-TT. Presumably, conjugation of β-glucan ensured the two components to simultaneously reach the antigen presenting cells and stimulate the immune response. In contrast, co-administration of β-glucan suppressed the CPS-specific immunogenicity of CPS-TT. Thus, conjugation of β-glucan is an effective strategy to markedly improve the CPS-specific immunogenicity of the conjugate vaccine.
School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of South China, Hengyang 421001, Hunan Province, China; National Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
Weilin
W
Qiao
National Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
Shaoyang
S
Ji
School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of South China, Hengyang 421001, Hunan Province, China.
Yubao
Y
Zhao
National Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China. Electronic address: thu@ipe.ac.cn.
Tao
T
Hu
D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood*; D000938:Antigen-Presenting Cells / Q000276:immunology; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology; D016667:Bacterial Capsules / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000097:blood; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D022401:Meningococcal Vaccines / Q000276:immunology*; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology*; D013745:Tetanus Toxoid / Q000276:immunology; D018074:Vaccines, Conjugate / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D047071:beta-Glucans / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000276:immunology*
D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D022401:Meningococcal Vaccines; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial; D013745:Tetanus Toxoid; D018074:Vaccines, Conjugate; D047071:beta-Glucans
Adjuvant; Conjugate vaccine; Meningococcal polysaccharide; β-Glucan