• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.875-882
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• 1997

To produce the recombinant fibronectin-binding protein(FnBP) for development of subunit vaccine against Staphylococcus aureus. The fnbp gene was amplified from the chromosomal DNA of S aureus KNU 196 strain using the polymerase chain reaction, and cloned into pGEX-4T-2. Then, the recombinant FnBP fused with glutathione-S-transferase was produced in E coli, purified by affinity chromatography, and identified its antigenicity and immunogenicity by Western blot. The recombinant FnBP produced in this study is considered to have the same property of native FnBP purified from S aureus, and is expected to be useful as a candidate for S aureus subunit vaccine.

• International Journal of Oral Biology
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.63-70
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• 2017

Selecting an appropriate antigen with optimal immunogenicity and physicochemical properties is a pivotal factor to develop a protein based subunit vaccine. Despite rapid progress in modern molecular cloning and recombinant protein technology, there remains a huge challenge for purifying and using protein antigens rich in hydrophobic domains, such as membrane associated proteins. To overcome current limitations using hydrophobic proteins as vaccine antigens, we adopted in silico analyses which included bioinformatic prediction and sequence-based protein 3D structure modeling, to develop a novel periodontitis subunit vaccine against the outer membrane protein FomA of Fusobacterium nucleatum. To generate an optimal antigen candidate, we predicted hydrophilicity and B cell epitope parameter by querying to web-based databases, and designed a truncated FomA (tFomA) candidate with better solubility and preserved B cell epitopes. The truncated recombinant protein was engineered to expose epitopes on the surface through simulating amino acid sequence-based 3D folding in aqueous environment. The recombinant tFomA was further expressed and purified, and its immunological properties were evaluated. In the mice intranasal vaccination study, tFomA significantly induced antigen-specific IgG and sIgA responses in both systemic and oral-mucosal compartments, respectively. Our results testify that intelligent in silico designing of antigens provide amenable vaccine epitopes from hard-to-manufacture hydrophobic domain rich microbial antigens.

• Journal of fish pathology
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.9-15
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• 2015

The potential of Streptococcus iniae glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) as an antigen for a subunit vaccine was investigated using a zebrafish model. The recombinant S. iniae GAPDH was purified using His-tag column chromatography, and antisera against the recombinant GAPDH (rGAPDH) were produced by intraperitoneal immunization of rats. By immunization with S. iniae rGAPDH, the survival rates of zebrafish against an S. iniae challenge increased, suggesting that GAPDH would be an antigen capable of inducing protective immune responses in fish. Furthermore, we demonstrated using Western blotting, that the antisera against rGAPDH of S. iniae had cross-reactivity with GAPDH from Streptococcus parauberis and Lactococcus garviae, which are also culprits of streptococcosis in cultured fish in Korea. These results suggest that S. iniae GAPDH may be used as an antigen for the development of a subunit vaccine against streptococcosis caused by diverse cocci in cultured fish.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.61 no.4
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• pp.439-448
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• 2023

Tick infestation causes a significant threat to human and animal health, requiring effective immunological control methods. This study aimed to investigate the potential of recombinant Haemaphysalis longicornis enolase protein for tick vaccine development. The exact mechanism of the recently identified enolase protein from the H. longicornis Jeju strain remains poorly understood. Enolase plays a crucial role in glycolysis, the metabolic process that converts glucose into energy, and is essential for the motility, adhesion, invasion, growth, and differentiation of ticks. In this study, mice were immunized with recombinant enolase, and polyclonal antibodies were generated. Western blot analysis confirmed the specific recognition of enolase by the antiserum. The effects of immunization on tick feeding and attachment were assessed. Adult ticks attached to the recombinant enolase-immunized mice demonstrated longer attachment time, increased bloodsucking abilities, and lower engorgement weight than the controls. The nymphs and larvae had a reduced attachment rate and low engorgement rate compared to the controls. Mice immunized with recombinant enolase expressed in Escherichia coli displayed 90% efficacy in preventing tick infestation. The glycolytic nature of enolase and its involvement in crucial physiological processes makes it an attractive target for disrupting tick survival and disease transmission. Polyclonal antibodies recognize enolase and significantly reduce attachment rates, tick feeding, and engorgement. Our findings indicate that recombinant enolase may be a valuable vaccine candidate for H. longicornis infection in experimental murine model.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.133-136
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• 2007

Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is the most common sexually transmitted disease in the United States. An estimated 6.2 million people are infected with HPV every year. Randomized controlled studies consistently show that HPV vaccine is effective in preventing infection and HPV related cervical lesions. In June 2006, Gardasil (qadrivalent HPV recombinant vaccine) was approved by the FDA for use in females 9-26 years of age. This article reviews published data to evaluate the effectiveness of HPV vaccine for the prevention of cervical cancer.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.10
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• pp.1335-1343
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• 2022

COVID-19 is an emerging disease that poses a severe threat to global public health. As such, there is an urgent demand for vaccines against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Here, we describe a virus-like nanoparticle candidate vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 produced by an E. coli expression system. The fusion protein of a truncated ORF2-encoded protein of aa 439~608 (p170) from hepatitis E virus CCJD-517 and the receptor-binding domain of the spike protein from SARS-CoV-2 were expressed, purified and characterized. The antigenicity and immunogenicity of p170-RBD were evaluated in vitro and in Kunming mice. Our investigation revealed that p170-RBD self-assembled into approximately 24 nm virus-like particles, which could bind to serum from vaccinated people (p < 0.001) and receptors on cells. Immunization with p170-RBD induced the titer of IgG antibody vaccine increased from 14 days post-immunization and was significantly enhanced after a booster immunization at 28 dpi, ultimately reaching a peak level on 42 dpi with a titer of 4.97 log₁₀. Pseudovirus neutralization tests showed that the candidate vaccine induced a strong neutralizing antibody response in mice. In this research, we demonstrated that p170-RBD possesses strong antigenicity and immunogenicity and could be a potential candidate for use in future SARS-CoV-2 vaccine development.

• The Journal of Korean Society of Virology
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.139-146
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• 1998

Recombinant polioviruses have been developed by many research groups for use as vaccine vector because poliovirus induces mucosal immunity as well as humoral immunity through oral uptake. We assessed the potential use of poliovirus as a T-cell epitope carrier. Recombinant poliovirus V129 5L was constructed to have a substituted T-helper epitope from the core protein of Hepatitis B virus at neutralization antigenic site 1 on its VP1 capsid protein. The recombinant virus replicated less efficiently than type 1 poliovirus Mahoney strain. The V129 5L formed a little smaller plaques than the Mahoney strain and showed some 1.25 log unit lower titer at the peak in the one-step growth kinetics though it had similar growth profile to that of the Mahoney strain. Since V129 5L recombinant virus was genetically stable even after 24 successive passages in HeLa cells, the antigenic site 1 on VP1 capsid protein was confirmed for its ability of carrying T cell epitope. The genetic stability of V129 5L also indicated that recombinant poliovirus can be successfully utilized for the development of the multivalent vaccines.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.9 no.6
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• pp.265-273
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• 2009

Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) is a small single-stranded RNA virus which belongs to the family Picornaviridae, genus Apthovirus. It is a principal cause of FMD which is highly contagious in livestock. In a wild type virus infection, infected animals usually elicit antibodies against structural and non-structural protein of FMDV. A structural protein, VP1, is involved in neutralization of virus particle, and has both B and T cell epitopes. A RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, 3D, is highly conserved among other serotypes and strongly immunogenic, therefore, we selected VP1 and 3D as vaccine targets. VP1 and 3D genes were codon-optimized to enhance protein expression level and cloned into mammalian expression vector. To produce recombinant protein, VP1 and 3D genes were also cloned into pET vector. The VP1 and 3D DNA or proteins were co-immunized into 5 weeks old BALB/C mice. Antigen-specific serum antibody (Ab) responses were detected by Ab ELISA. Cellular immune response against VP1 and 3D was confirmed by ELISpot assay. The results showed that all DNA- and protein-immunized groups induced cellular immune responses, suggesting that both DNA and recombinant protein vaccine administration efficiently induced Ag-specific humoral and cellular immune responses.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.201-207
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• 2020

Postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) is a challenging condition for pain management specialists. The prevention of herpes zoster (HZ) and subsequent PHN in individuals aged 50 years and older, via the development of new vaccines, is an ongoing research project. The live zoster vaccine (LZV, Zostavax^®) was the first proof of concept that vaccination could prevent HZ, but LZV cannot be used in various immunecompromised patients. This led to the development of a new non-live recombinant zoster vaccine (RZV, Shingrix^®). This RZV has shown promising results in many clinical trials, with high reactogenicity and similar systemic adverse effects compared to those of LZV. The National Advisory Committee on Immunization has recommended LZV as a standard vaccine for HZ prevention in adults ≥ 50 years of age, but no studies directly comparing the safety and efficacy of RZV and LZV vaccines have been conducted. This article reviews the brief history, efficacy, and safety of the two vaccines and discusses the advantage of RZV over LZV based on the available literature.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.53-60
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• 2008

We have investigated efficiency of a recombinant subunit Pasteurella multocida toxin (PMT) that was mixed with a vaccine consisted of inactivated whole cells of Bordetella bronchiseptica, P. multocida (types A and D). For verification of the efficacy of the vaccine, all experimental pigs (suckling piglets, sow and gilts) in the three farms were vaccinated. Antibody titers against B. bronchiseptica and P. multocida type A of the vaccinated pigs by microplate agglutination were significantly higher than those of the control pigs (p < 0.05). Similar patterns were observed in the analysis of anti- PMT neutralizing antibody by serum neutralizing method using Vero cell (p < 0.05). Anti- P. multocida type D antibody titer of the vaccinated sows and gilts by ELISA showed significant differences with those of the non-vaccinated pigs (p < 0.05). Although antibody titers increased, it was unable to find out the difference in the clinical signs between the vaccinated and non-vaccinated pigs. However, the increase in body weight of the vaccinated piglets was observed in comparison with the non-vaccinated piglets on a farm. At slaughtering of the pigs, pathological lesions in the turbinate bones of the vaccinated pigs were significantly lower than those of the non-vaccinated pigs (p < 0.001). These results suggested that efficacy of the vaccine in pigs demonstrated to protect against atrophic rhinitis in Korea.