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Cross-Protection Induced by Highly Conserved Human B, CD4(+,) and CD8(+) T Cell Epitopes-Based Coronavirus Vaccine Against Severe Infection, Disease, and Death Caused by Multiple SARS-CoV-2 Variants of Concern
BACKGROUND: The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has created one of the largest global health crises in almost a century. Although the current rate of SARS-CoV-2 infections has decreased significantly; the long-term outlook of COVID-19 remains a serious cause of high death worldwide; wit...
Autores principales: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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Formato: | Online Artículo Texto |
Lenguaje: | English |
Publicado: |
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
2023
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Materias: | |
Acceso en línea: | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10245830/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/37292861 http://dx.doi.org/10.1101/2023.05.24.541850 |
Sumario: | BACKGROUND: The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has created one of the largest global health crises in almost a century. Although the current rate of SARS-CoV-2 infections has decreased significantly; the long-term outlook of COVID-19 remains a serious cause of high death worldwide; with the mortality rate still surpassing even the worst mortality rates recorded for the influenza viruses. The continuous emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs), including multiple heavily mutated Omicron sub-variants, have prolonged the COVID-19 pandemic and outlines the urgent need for a next-generation vaccine that will protect from multiple SARS-CoV-2 VOCs. METHODS: In the present study, we designed a multi-epitope-based Coronavirus vaccine that incorporated B, CD4(+), and CD8(+) T cell epitopes conserved among all known SARS-CoV-2 VOCs and selectively recognized by CD8(+) and CD4(+) T-cells from asymptomatic COVID-19 patients irrespective of VOC infection. The safety, immunogenicity, and cross-protective immunity of this pan-Coronavirus vaccine were studied against six VOCs using an innovative triple transgenic h-ACE-2-HLA-A2/DR mouse model. RESULTS: The Pan-Coronavirus vaccine: (i) is safe; (ii) induces high frequencies of lung-resident functional CD8(+) and CD4(+) T(EM) and T(RM) cells; and (iii) provides robust protection against virus replication and COVID-19-related lung pathology and death caused by six SARS-CoV-2 VOCs: Alpha (B.1.1.7), Beta (B.1.351), Gamma or P1 (B.1.1.28.1), Delta (lineage B.1.617.2) and Omicron (B.1.1.529). CONCLUSIONS: A multi-epitope pan-Coronavirus vaccine bearing conserved human B and T cell epitopes from structural and non-structural SARS-CoV-2 antigens induced cross-protective immunity that cleared the virus, and reduced COVID-19-related lung pathology and death caused by multiple SARS-CoV-2 VOCs. |
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