Peptide vaccine for semaphorin3E ameliorates systemic glucose intolerance in mice with dietary obesity

We previously demonstrated that cellular aging signals upregulated a secreted class 3 semaphorin E (Sema3E) and its receptor plexinD1 in the adipose tissue of a murine model of dietary obesity and that Sema3E was a chemoattractant, mediating its biological effects by inducing infiltration of plexinD1-positive inflammatory macrophages into the visceral white adipose tissue. This study was performed to develop a peptide vaccine for Sema3E and test its therapeutic potential in a murine model of dietary obesity. Two antigenic peptides were selected to generate neutralizing antibodies for a vaccine. These peptides were conjugated to keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH), and were administered with Freund’s adjuvant to obese wild-type male mice. The Sema3E antibody titer was analyzed by ELISA, and the biological effects of the peptides were tested in mice with dietary obesity. Among the two candidate peptides, the Sema3E antibody titer was significantly increased by injection of KLH-conjugated HKEGPEYHWS (Sema3E vaccine). Administration of Sema3E vaccine suppressed the infiltration of plexinD1-positive cells, ameliorated chronic inflammation in visceral white adipose tissue, and improved systemic glucose intolerance in mice with dietary obesity, suggesting that Sema3E vaccine has the potential to become a next generation therapy for obesity and diabetes.