DNA疫苗的质粒型细胞因子佐剂

细胞因子是机体产生的一系列免疫效应和免疫调节蛋白。在近几年,质粒型细胞因子作为能增强DNA疫苗免疫应答的佐剂已引起了研究者广泛的关注。本文就细胞因子的生物学机制、T细胞分化和利用质粒型细胞因子佐剂优化DNA疫苗等方面的进展进行了讨论。     

增强DNA疫苗免疫应答的新进展

DNA疫苗为编码抗原蛋白的真核表达载体,注入体内后在原位表达所编码的抗原并诱导免疫应答,在预防感染、治疗自身免疫性疾病、过敏性疾病和肿瘤等疫病中有着很好的应用前景。但与灭活疫苗相比,其免疫效价还比较低。有多种策略能够增强或调节DNA疫苗诱导的免疫应答,其中,作为外源基因载体的质粒的组成及插入的有关基因均可直接或间接地影响免疫反应的效果,在构建DNA疫苗质粒时,加入细胞因子、融合信号、泛素等基因以及ISS序列,另外还可以通过设计一些对抗原提成细胞有影响的分子共注射,以及加入转移分子,都可以明显增强DNA疫苗的免疫效果,从而有利于研制更有效的DNA疫苗。     

乙肝病毒RNA复制子疫苗与DNA疫苗对小鼠免疫效率的比较

为建立并获取更有效的乙肝疫苗,本实验通过将所构建的HBV RNA复制子疫苗和DNA疫苗分别免疫小鼠,检测细胞免疫与体液免疫的效果.结果表明,以pSFV为基础构建的疫苗载体免疫小鼠后采集的血清中抗体效价不随免疫剂量的增加而提高,在较低剂量免疫的时候,RNA复制子疫苗所产生的抗体效价优于DNA疫苗.并且RNA复制子疫苗在以较低剂量免疫后脾细胞CTL活性高于DNA疫苗.本研究证明HBV RNA疫苗比DNA疫苗表达效果更好,安全性更高,更具有应用前景.     

DNA疫苗佐剂研究进展

DNA疫苗在免疫应答中能诱导机体产生持久的体液免疫和细胞免疫,然而DNA疫苗刺激机体免疫应答能力往往比常规疫苗引起的免疫反应弱。最近研究表明:使用DNA疫苗佐剂如细胞因子、CpGODN、补体C3d等有助于提高DNA疫苗的免疫效价。就DNA疫苗佐剂的研究进展做一综述。     

乙型肝炎病毒DNA疫苗的研究进展

预防与控制乙型肝炎发病的乙型肝炎病毒(HBV)疫苗,是有重大的社会和经济意义。HBV的持续感染可引起慢性肝脏疾患,并逐步发展为肝硬化和肝细胞癌(HCC)。目前的乙肝重组亚单位疫苗可以使90％的接种产生保护性抗体;但是对慢性HBV携带,由于其机体对HBsAg蛋白产生耐受,不能产生体液和细胞免疫,因此它只能作为一种预防性的疫苗。DNA疫苗(基因疫苗)是一种新的疫苗技术,通过向体内递送编码抗原的细菌质粒,刺激产生特异的体液和细胞免疫反应。在小鼠和其他的肝炎病毒感染动物模型中,HBV DNA疫苗可以特异性地引起体液和细胞免疫,清除HBV转基因动物血循环中的HBsAg颗粒和HBV DNA。如果加入各种免疫调节细胞因子的基因,可以进一步提高HBV DNA疫苗的免疫效果,因此它不仅可作为预防性疫苗,也可作为治疗型疫苗。     

核酸疫苗--一种新型疫苗

核酸疫苗是指将含有编码某种抗原蛋白基因序列的质粒载体作为疫苗,直接导入动物细胞内,从而通过宿主细胞的转录系统合成抗原蛋白,诱导宿主产生对该抗原蛋白的免疫应答,达到免疫的目的.核酸疫苗又称为基因疫苗或裸DNA疫苗,这种免疫称为核酸免疫、基因免疫、DNA介导的免疫以及遗传免疫等.     

DNA疫苗免疫佐剂的研究进展

DNA疫苗是最近几年从基因治疗研究领域发展起来的一种新型疫苗,它能诱导机体产生持久的体液免疫和细胞免疫应答,能够抗病毒,细菌和寄生虫的感染,对自身免疫性疾病和过敏性疾病有一定的疗效作用。但与传统的灭活疫苗相比,其免疫效价还比较低,最近的研究表明：联合使用DNA疫苗和疫苗佐剂如细胞因子,协同刺激分子等有助于提高DNA疫苗的免疫效价,这一发现有利于研制更有效的DNA疫苗,本文就通过使用免疫佐剂提高DNA免疫效价的最新进展做一综述。     

乙型脑炎病毒DNA初免-蛋白加强策略在小鼠模型上的免疫效应评价

为了评价基因Ⅰ型乙型脑炎病毒prM-E DNA疫苗与prM和EⅢ融合抗原亚单位疫苗采用DNA初免-蛋白加强免疫策略对小鼠的免疫效果,本研究将prM-E融合基因插入到pVAX1真核表达载体中,构建重组表达载体prM-E-pVAX1作为DNA疫苗进行初免,利用原核表达系统获得的prM和EⅢ融合抗原作为亚单位疫苗进行加强免疫。将32只4−6周龄雌性BALB/c小鼠随机分成4组,设置prM-E-pVAX1 DNA疫苗组、DNA初免-蛋白加强免疫组、prM和EⅢ融合抗原亚单位疫苗组及pVAX1载体对照组,通过ELISA检测血清中特异性抗体水平;通过噬斑减少中和试验滴定中和抗体滴度;通过细胞因子表达丰度和淋巴细胞增殖试验分析不同疫苗免疫组诱导产生的细胞免疫反应。结果表明,用DNA初免-蛋白加强策略免疫的小鼠诱导产生的中和抗体滴度略高于prM和EⅢ融合抗原亚单位疫苗免疫组,显著高于prM-E-pVAX1 DNA疫苗免疫组。DNA初免-蛋白加强策略在小鼠模型中诱导产生了有效的Th1/Th2型免疫反应,特别是显著诱导了Th1型细胞免疫反应。本研究为预防流行性乙型脑炎提供了新的免疫策略和理论参考依据。     

重组细胞因子在病毒疫苗中的应用进展

细胞因子(cytokine)是由多种细胞分泌能够调节细胞生长和分化、具有免疫功能并与炎症反应密切相关的分泌型蛋白,可作为免疫佐剂用以增强病毒疫苗的疗效。近年来,随着一些细胞因子(IL-2、TNF-α、IFN-γ、IL-4、IL-10等)相继被被克隆成功,重组细胞因子在抗病毒疫苗中的作用愈加重要。运用原核、真核或病毒等载体,通过构建细胞因子重组质粒表达重组蛋白,从而发挥其免疫佐剂的活性。综述了重组细胞因子在病毒疫苗中所发挥的作用,以及在一些重要病毒疫苗中的应用概况。     

以减毒沙门氏菌为SARS-CoV N DNA口服疫苗载体的初步研究

目的:以减毒沙门氏菌为载体运送SARS-CoV N DNA疫苗至小鼠体内,研究其诱导的免疫应答情况,评价减毒鼠伤寒沙门氏菌作为口服疫苗的免疫效果。方法：将含SARS-CoV N基因的pcDNA-N质粒导入减毒鼠伤寒沙门氏菌CS022中,采用口服和滴鼻相结合的方法免疫BALB/c小鼠,以ELISA检测不同时间免疫小鼠血清中抗体及其亚型;以MTT法测定特异性淋巴细胞增殖反应;ELISPOT检测细胞因子;流式检测T细胞亚型。结果：pcDNA-N DNA疫苗口服免疫后2周就可以诱生特异性IgG抗体,且以IgG2a占优势;诱导了较高水平的淋巴细胞特异性增殖反应和IFN-γ,主要以Th1免疫为主。结论：减毒沙门氏菌可以有效运送pcDNA-N重组质粒并诱导产生特异体液和细胞免疫应答,为减毒细菌作为DNA疫苗运送载体的研究提供了参考依据,也为SARS疫苗研究开辟了新方法。     

质粒骨架的CpG修饰对DNA疫苗免疫原性的影响

目的：探讨不同类型的CpG对DNA疫苗免疫应答的影响。方法：将3种不同类型的CpG通过骨架改造的方式引入核酸疫苗的质粒载体骨架中作为内源性佐剂,以LacZ为模式抗原,对其免疫小鼠后特异性抗体水平、细胞免疫水平和细胞因子水平进行比较和分析。结果：3种不同类型的CpG序列在体内能够不同程度地增强免疫小鼠的特异性抗体水平和细胞免疫水平,并且不同类型的CpG序列可能具有不同的免疫调节作用。结论：作为内源性佐剂,CpG免疫刺激DNA序列可不同程度地提高模式抗原特异性的免疫反应,可根据不同抗原的特点加以利用。     

乙肝病毒DNA疫苗的构建及其诱导小鼠的免疫应答

构建含adr亚型HBV表面抗原基因的核酸疫苗 ,考察人白细胞介素II基因及重组白细胞介素II的免疫佐剂作用。用含有人白细胞介素II基因的真核表达质粒及基因重组白细胞介素II蛋白作为佐剂 ,将编码乙型肝炎病毒表面抗原的重组真核表达质粒 pVAX/HBS免疫BALB/C小鼠 (试验组 ) ,同时设置注射质粒pVAX的阴性对照组 ,并分别于第 2 ,4周后加强免疫各 1次。试验组在第 4周时开始有HBsAb产生 ,阴性对照组未测到HbsAb ,试验组和对照组均未检测到HBsAg。乙肝病毒DNA疫苗能引起小鼠特异性体液免疫应答 ,白细胞介素II的真核表达质粒的佐剂作用不明显 ,基因重组白细胞介素II蛋白具有提高小鼠对乙肝病毒核酸疫苗免疫应答水平的佐剂活性。     

Immunostimulant adjuvant patch enhances humoral and cellular immune responses to DNA immunization

The focus of this report is on the development of an improved DNA immunization protocol, which takes advantage of the strengths of DNA immunization, as well as those associated with adjuvant delivered by transcutaneous immunostimulatory (IS) patches. Because transcutaneous delivery of adjuvants to the skin at the vaccination site has been shown to amplify the immune response to protein antigens, we hypothesized that the same IS patch when placed on the skin at the site of DNA injection could further enhance the immune response to a DNA influenza vaccine. We have combined an influenza DNA vaccine, hemagglutinin fused with three copies of complement C3d, to enhance uptake and antigen presentation, with an IS patch containing heat-labile enterotoxin from Escherichia coli. Coadministration of a potent adjuvant in IS patches placed on the skin at the site of DNA vaccination dramatically amplifies anti-influenza antibody immune response. Supplementing DNA vaccines with IS patches may be a particularly valuable strategy because DNA vaccines can be rapidly modified in response to mutations in pathogens, and individuals with compromised immune systems such as transplant patients and the elderly will benefit from the enhanced antibody response induced by the IS patches.     

Immune responses to hepatitis B surface antigen following epidermal powder immunization

Langerhans cells in the epidermis of skin are potent antigen-presenting cells that trigger the immune system to respond to invading microorganisms. We have previously shown that epidermal powder immunization with a powdered inactivated influenza virus vaccine, by targeting the Langerhans cell-rich epidermis, was more efficacious than deeper tissue injection using a needle and syringe. We now report enhanced humoral and cellular immune responses to recombinant hepatitis B surface antigen following epidermal powder immunization. We observed that epidermal powder immunization with unadjuvanted hepatitis B surface antigen elicited an antibody titre equivalent to that induced by the alum-adjuvanted vaccine delivered by intramuscular injection, suggesting that epidermal powder immunization can overcome the need for adjuvantation. We demonstrated that synthetic CpG oligonucleotides (CpG DNA) could be coformulated with hepatitis B surface antigen and delivered by epidermal powder immunization to further augment the antibody response and modulate T helper cell activities. Epidermal powder immunization of hepatitis B surface antigen formulated with CpG DNA formulations resulted in 1.5-2.0 logs higher IgG antibody titres than alum-adjuvanted commercial vaccines administered by intramuscular injection. Formulation of hepatitis B surface antigen with CpG DNA elicited an augmented IgG2a antibody response and increased frequency of IFN-gamma secreting cells. In addition, CpG DNA was found to activate epidermal Langerhans cells and stimulate the production of TNF-alpha and IL-12 cytokines by epidermal cells, explaining its strong adjuvant activity following epidermal powder immunization. These results show that epidermal powder immunization is a safe and effective method to deliver hepatitis B surface antigen and the addition of new adjuvants, such as CpG DNA, may further enhance the efficacy of this vaccine.     

Gene conjugation of molecular adjuvant C3d3 to hCGbeta increased the anti-hCGbeta Th2 and humoral immune response in DNA immunization

Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) has been used as an anti-fertility vaccine and as a target for cancer immunotherapy. We have explored the use of three copies of C3d in DNA vaccine as molecular adjuvant to improve the immunogenicity of this hormone in previous work and found that the immune response induced by pcDNA3-hCGbeta-C3d3 has been enhanced 243-fold compared with pcDNA3-hCGbeta following DNA immunization in BALB/c mice. In the present study, a new functionally active DNA vaccine of hCGbeta-C3d3 chimera based on pCMV4 vector has been described. We compared the expression efficiency of pCMV4 and pcDNA3 eukaryotic vectors for hCGbeta and hCGbeta-C3d3 fusion protein and the immune response of mice immunized with pcDNA3-hCGbeta, pCMV4-hCGbeta, pcDNA3-hCGbeta-C3d3 and pCMV4-hCGbeta-C3d3, respectively, at 25, 50 and 100 pmol dose, and further analyzed the levels of Th1 and Th2 cytokines produced by spleen lymphocytes of the immunized mice upon hCG restimulation in vitro. It was found that pCMV4 vector achieved 1.3-1.5-fold higher protein expression and raised 1.1-1.2 (primary) and 1.2-1.3 (booster) logs higher titer of anti-hCGbeta IgG than pcDNA3. Mice vaccinated with 50 pmol of hCGbeta-C3d3-DNAs elicited the highest titer of hCGbeta-specific antibody among the serial doses and the immune response induced by pCMV4-hCGbeta-C3d3 were, respectively, 1.3, 1.3 and 1.2 logs higher than that of pcDNA3-hCGbeta-C3d3 and 2.2, 2.9 and 2.4 logs higher than that of pCMV4-hCGbeta at week 2 following the booster immunization. Moreover, we observed that the production of IL-4 and IL-10 increased in mice vaccinated with hCGbeta-C3d3-DNAs and the ratio of IL-4/IFN-(gamma) showed a Th2 bias of immune response in the mice immunized with hCGbeta-C3d3-DNAs. These findings indicated that gene fusion of C3d3 to hCGbeta, as a means of harnessing the adjuvant potential of the innate immune system, may improve the antigen-specific Th2 humoral immune response of the hCGbeta DNA vaccine and the pCMV4 vector is a more ideal eukaryotic vector for DNA vaccine than pcDNA3.     

DNA immunization with a plasmid carrying the gene of hepatitis C virus protein 5A (NS5A) induces an effective cellular immune response

In spite of extensive research, no effective vaccine against hepatitis C virus (HCV) has been developed so far. DNA immunization is a potent technique of vaccine design strongly promoting the cellular arm of immune response. The genes encoding nonstructural HCV proteins (NS2-NS5B) are promising candidates for vaccine development. NS5A is a protein involved in viral pathogenesis, in the induction of immune response, and probably in viral resistance to interferon treatment. The objective of this study was to construct a DNA vaccine encoding NS5A protein and evaluate its immunogenicity. A plasmid encoding a full-size NS5A protein was produced using the pcDNA3.1 (+) vector for eukaryotic expression system. The expression of the NS5A gene was confirmed by immunoperoxidase staining of the transfected eukaryotic cells with anti- NS5A monoclonal antibodies. Triple immunization of mice with the plasmid vaccine induced a pronounced cellular immune response against a broad spectrum of NS5A epitopes as assessed by T-cell proliferation and secretion of antiviral cytokines IFN-γ and IL-2. In T-cell stimulation in vitro experiments, NS5A-derived antigens were modeled by synthetic peptides, recombinant proteins of various genotypes, and phages carrying exposed NS5A peptides. A novel immunomodulator Immunomax showed high adjuvant activity in DNA immunization. The data obtained indicate that the suggested DNA construct has a strong potential in the development of the gene vaccines against hepatitis C.     

CpG免疫刺激DNA序列及其在疫苗佐剂中的应用

CpG免疫刺激DNA序列（ISS）是一种新型疫苗佐剂,可不同程度地提高多种类型疫苗的抗原特异性的免疫反应。按照结构特点的不同,可将CpGISS分为3种类型。CpGISS能够刺激B细胞和浆样树突状细胞,促进机体产生Th1和前炎症细胞因子,且促进抗原呈递细胞的激活和成熟。目前已完成的临床实验结果表明,CpG作为人用佐剂安全,且在一定程度上能够增加疫苗的免疫反应。     

Immune responses of mice to influenza subunit vaccine in combination with CIA07 as an adjuvant

CIA07 is an immunostimulatory agent composed of E. coli DNA fragments and modified LPS lacking the lipid A moiety. In this study, we investigated whether CIA07 promotes immune responses as an adjuvant to the influenza subunit vaccine. Balb/c mice were immunized intramuscularly once or twice at a 4-week interval with the trivalent influenza subunit vaccine antigen alone or in combination with CIA07 as adjuvant. Antigen-specific serum antibody titers and hemagglutination-inhibition (HI) antibody titers were assessed. At 4 weeks after each immunization, the antigen-specific total serum IgG antibody titer in mice receiving CIA07 was 2 to 3 times higher than that in animals administered antigen alone (P<0.05). The CIA07-treated group additionally displayed higher HI antibody titers against each of the 3 vaccine strains, compared to the antigen group. Animals receiving antigen alone displayed barely detectable antigen-specific serum IgG2a antibody titers. In contrast, coadministration of CIA07 with antigen led to significantly enhanced IgG2a antibody responses, suggesting that CIA07 stimulates a Th1-type immune response. Moreover, the CIA07-treated group displayed a marked increase in the number of interferon gamma-producing CD8(+) T cells in splenocytes. These data collectively demonstrate that CIA07 has the ability to induce both Th1-type cellular and Th2-type humoral immune responses to the influenza subunit vaccine, and support its potential as an effective adjuvant to the influenza vaccine.