日本血吸虫三价DNA疫苗pVIVO2 SjFABP/Sj26.SjGAPDH的构建及其免疫保护作用评价

目的:构建含有日本血吸虫中国大陆株脂肪酸结合蛋白(SjFABP),3-磷酸甘油醛脱氢酶(SjGAPDH),26kDa谷胱甘肽S转移酶(Sj26)的三价DNA疫苗,并通过药理实验评价其抗血吸虫感染的免疫保护作用。 方法:  以血吸虫成虫RNA为模板制备cDNA第一链,RT-PCR扩增得到抗原基因片段,再通过重组PCR技术,将Sj26和SjGAPDH融合为Sj26.SjGAPDH基因。将SjFABP和Sj26.SjGAPDH分别克隆入pVIVO2的mcs1和mcs2,获得重组质粒pVIVO2-SjFABP/Sj26.SjGAPDH。瞬时转染MCF-7细胞,通过逆转录PCR（RT-PCR）检测抗原基因在mRNA水平的表达,通过间接荧光免疫（IIF）检测抗原基因在小鼠体内抗原水平表达,验证了DNA疫苗的有效性;并免疫小鼠后进行免疫保护性初步试验。结果:  经过酶切、测序及体内外表达验证,该三价DNA疫苗pVIVO2-SjFABP/Sj26.SjGAPDH构建成功;该三价DNA疫苗在小鼠抗血吸虫感染中诱发减虫率和减卵率达到58.6%和59.8%。结论:  该三价DNA疫苗组具有比单价和双价DNA疫苗组更加良好的免疫保护作用,为日本血吸虫DNA疫苗的研制奠定了基础。     

Schistosoma japonicum: inhibition of Mago nashi gene expression by shRNA-mediated RNA interference

RNA interference (RNAi) mediated by short interfering RNA (siRNA) is a powerful reverse genetics tool and holds enormous therapeutic potential for various diseases, including parasite infections. siRNAs bind their complementary mRNA and lead to degradation of their specific mRNA targets. RNAi has been widely used for functional analysis of specific genes in various cells and organisms. In this paper, we tested the potential of silencing the expression of the Mago nashi gene in Schistosoma japonicum by siRNAs derived from shRNA expressed by mammalian Pol III promoter H1. Schistosomula, transformed from cercariae by mechanical shearing of the tails, were electroporated with Mago nashi shRNA expression vector. Aliquots of parasites were harvested at days 1, 3, and 5 after electroporation, respectively. Levels of Mago nashi mRNA and protein were determined by RT-PCR and Western blotting analysis. The results showed that shRNA expressed from mammalian Pol III promoter H1 specifically reduced the levels of Mago nashi mRNA and proteins in S. japonicum. Changes in testicular lobes were apparent when parasites were introduced into mammalian hosts. Thus, vector-mediated gene silencing is applicable to S. japonicum, which provides a means for the functional analysis of genes in this organism.