Thermostable H1 hemagglutinin stem with M2e epitopes provides broad cross-protection against group1 and 2 influenza A viruses.

Mol Ther Methods Clin Dev

Center for Inflammation, Immunity & Infection, Institute for Biomedical Sciences, Georgia State University, 100 Piedmont Avenue, PSC 718 P.O. Box 5035, Atlanta, GA 30303, USA.

Published: September 2022


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Article Abstract

Hemagglutinin (HA) stem-based vaccines have limitations in providing broad and effective protection against cross-group influenza viruses, despite being a promising universal vaccine target. To overcome the limited cross-protection and low efficacy by HA stem vaccination, we genetically engineered a chimeric conjugate of thermostable H1 HA stem and highly conserved M2e repeat (M2e-H1stem), which was expressed at high yields in M2e-H1stem protein presented native-like epitopes reactive to antisera of live virus infection. M2e-H1stem protein vaccination of mice induced strong M2e- and HA stem-specific immune responses, conferring broadly effective cross-protection against both antigenically distinct group 1 (H1N1, H5N1, and H9N2 subtypes) and group 2 (H3N2 and H7N9 subtypes) seasonal and pandemic potential influenza viruses. M2e-H1stem vaccination generated CD4 and CD8 T cell responses and antibody-dependent cytotoxic cellular and humoral immunity, which contributed to enhancing cross-protection. Furthermore, comparable broad cross-group protection was observed in older aged mice after M2e-H1stem vaccination. This study provides evidence warranting further development of chimeric M2e-stem proteins as a promising universal influenza vaccine candidate in adult and aged populations.

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http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9198381PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.omtm.2022.05.007DOI Listing

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