scholarly journals A Potent and Effective SuicidalListeriaVaccine Platform

2019 ◽  
Vol 87 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
William G. Hanson ◽  
Erin L. Benanti ◽  
Edward E. Lemmens ◽  
Weiqun Liu ◽  
Justin Skoble ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTLive-attenuatedListeria monocytogeneshas shown encouraging potential as an immunotherapy platform in preclinical and clinical settings. However, additional safety measures will enable application across malignant and infectious diseases. Here, we describe a new vaccine platform, termed Lm-RIID (L. monocytogenesrecombinase-induced intracellular death), that induces the deletion of genes required for bacterial viability yet maintains potent T cell responses to encoded antigens. Lm-RIID grows normally in broth but commits suicide inside host cells by inducing Cre recombinase and deleting essential genes flanked byloxPsites, resulting in a self-limiting infection even in immunocompromised mice. Lm-RIID vaccination of mice induces potent CD8+T cells and protects against virulent challenges, similar to liveL. monocytogenesvaccines. When combined with α-PD-1, Lm-RIID is as effective as live-attenuatedL. monocytogenesin a therapeutic tumor model. This impressive efficacy, together with the increased clearance rate, makes Lm-RIID ideal for prophylactic immunization against diseases that require T cells for protection.

2017 ◽  
Vol 85 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amy Ellis ◽  
Alexis Balgeman ◽  
Mark Rodgers ◽  
Cassaundra Updike ◽  
Jaime Tomko ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Nonhuman primates can be used to study host immune responses to Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Mauritian cynomolgus macaques (MCMs) are a unique group of animals that have limited major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genetic diversity, such that MHC-identical animals can be infected with M. tuberculosis. Two MCMs homozygous for the relatively common M1 MHC haplotype were bronchoscopically infected with 41 CFU of the M. tuberculosis Erdman strain. Four other MCMs, which had at least one copy of the M1 MHC haplotype, were infected with a lower dose of 3 CFU M. tuberculosis. All animals mounted similar T-cell responses to CFP-10 and ESAT-6. Two epitopes in CFP-10 were characterized, and the MHC class II alleles restricting them were determined. A third epitope in CFP-10 was identified but exhibited promiscuous restriction. The CFP-10 and ESAT-6 antigenic regions targeted by T cells in MCMs were comparable to those seen in cases of human M. tuberculosis infection. Our data lay the foundation for generating tetrameric molecules to study epitope-specific CD4 T cells in M. tuberculosis-infected MCMs, which may guide future testing of tuberculosis vaccines in nonhuman primates.


2017 ◽  
Vol 85 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucia Trotta ◽  
Kathleen Weigt ◽  
Katina Schinnerling ◽  
Anika Geelhaar-Karsch ◽  
Gerrit Oelkers ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Classical Whipple's disease (CWD) is characterized by the lack of specific Th1 response toward Tropheryma whipplei in genetically predisposed individuals. The cofactor GrpE of heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70) from T. whipplei was previously identified as a B-cell antigen. We tested the capacity of Hsp70 and GrpE to elicit specific proinflammatory T-cell responses. Peripheral mononuclear cells from CWD patients and healthy donors were stimulated with T. whipplei lysate or recombinant GrpE or Hsp70 before levels of CD40L, CD69, perforin, granzyme B, CD107a, and gamma interferon (IFN-γ) were determined in T cells by flow cytometry. Upon stimulation with total bacterial lysate or recombinant GrpE or Hsp70 of T. whipplei, the proportions of activated effector CD4+ T cells, determined as CD40L+ IFN-γ+, were significantly lower in patients with CWD than in healthy controls; CD8+ T cells of untreated CWD patients revealed an enhanced activation toward unspecific stimulation and T. whipplei-specific degranulation, although CD69+ IFN-γ+ CD8+ T cells were reduced upon stimulation with T. whipplei lysate and recombinant T. whipplei-derived proteins. Hsp70 and its cofactor GrpE are immunogenic in healthy individuals, eliciting effective responses against T. whipplei to control bacterial spreading. The lack of specific T-cell responses against these T. whipplei-derived proteins may contribute to the pathogenesis of CWD.


2016 ◽  
Vol 84 (9) ◽  
pp. 2627-2638 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles S. Rosenberg ◽  
Weibo Zhang ◽  
Juan M. Bustamante ◽  
Rick L. Tarleton

Trypanosoma cruziinfection drives the expansion of remarkably focused CD8+T cell responses targeting epitopes encoded by varianttrans-sialidase (TS) genes. Infection of C57BL/6 mice withT. cruziresults in up to 40% of all CD8+T cells committed to recognition of the dominant TSKB20 and subdominant TSKB18 TS epitopes. However, despite this enormous response, these mice fail to clearT. cruziinfection and subsequently develop chronic disease. One possible reason for the failure to cureT. cruziinfection is that immunodomination by these TS-specific T cells may interfere with alternative CD8+T cell responses more capable of complete parasite elimination. To address this possibility, we created transgenic mice that are centrally tolerant to these immunodominant epitopes. Mice expressing TSKB20, TSKB18, or both epitopes controlledT. cruziinfection and developed effector CD8+T cells that maintained an activated phenotype. Memory CD8+T cells from drug-cured TSKB-transgenic mice rapidly responded to secondaryT. cruziinfection. In the absence of the response to TSKB20 and TSKB18, immunodominance did not shift to other known subdominant epitopes despite the capacity of these mice to expand epitope-specific T cells specific for the model antigen ovalbumin expressed by engineered parasites. Thus, CD8+T cell responses tightly and robustly focused on a few epitopes within variant TS antigens appear to neither contribute to, nor detract from, the ability to controlT. cruziinfection. These data also indicate that the relative position of an epitope within a CD8+immunodominance hierarchy does not predict its importance in pathogen control.


2019 ◽  
Vol 216 (11) ◽  
pp. 2619-2634 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ping-Hsien Lee ◽  
Tori N. Yamamoto ◽  
Devikala Gurusamy ◽  
Madhusudhanan Sukumar ◽  
Zhiya Yu ◽  
...  

Host conditioning has emerged as an important component of effective adoptive cell transfer–based immunotherapy for cancer. High levels of IL-1β are induced by host conditioning, but its impact on the antitumor function of T cells remains unclear. We found that the administration of IL-1β increased the population size and functionality of adoptively transferred T cells within the tumor. Most importantly, IL-1β enhanced the ability of tumor-specific T cells to trigger the regression of large, established B16 melanoma tumors in mice. Mechanistically, we showed that the increase in T cell numbers was associated with superior tissue homing and survival abilities and was largely mediated by IL-1β–stimulated host cells. In addition, IL-1β enhanced T cell functionality indirectly via its actions on radio-resistant host cells in an IL-2– and IL-15–dependent manner. Our findings not only underscore the potential of provoking inflammation to enhance antitumor immunity but also uncover novel host regulations of T cell responses.


2014 ◽  
Vol 82 (10) ◽  
pp. 4092-4103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abinav Kumar Singh ◽  
Nagaraja R. Thirumalapura

ABSTRACTDiverse pathogens have evolved to survive and replicate in the endosomes or phagosomes of the host cells and establish persistent infection. Ehrlichiae are Gram-negative, intracellular bacteria that are transmitted by ticks. Ehrlichiae reside in the endosomes of the host phagocytic or endothelial cells and establish persistent infection in their vertebrate reservoir hosts. CD4+T cells play a critical role in protection against phagosomal infections. In the present study, we investigated the expansion, maintenance, and functional status of antigen-specific CD4+T cells during persistentEhrlichia murisinfection in wild-type and interleukin-10 (IL-10)-deficient mice. Our study indicated that early induction of IL-10 led to reduced inflammatory responses and impaired bacterial clearance during persistentEhrlichiainfection. Notably, we demonstrated that the functional production of gamma interferon (IFN-γ) by antigen-specific CD4+T cells maintained during a persistent phagosomal infection progressively deteriorates. The functional loss of IFN-γ production by antigen-specific CD4+T cells was reversed in the absence of IL-10. Furthermore, we demonstrated that transient blockade of IL-10 receptor during the T cell priming phase early in infection was sufficient to enhance the magnitude and the functional capacity of antigen-specific effector and memory CD4+T cells, which translated into an enhanced recall response. Our findings provide new insights into the functional status of antigen-specific CD4+T cells maintained during persistent phagosomal infection. The study supports the concept that a better understanding of the factors that influence the priming and differentiation of CD4+T cells may provide a basis to induce a protective immune response against persistent infections.


2015 ◽  
Vol 22 (7) ◽  
pp. 742-753 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wendy C. Brown ◽  
Joshua E. Turse ◽  
Paulraj K. Lawrence ◽  
Wendell C. Johnson ◽  
Glen A. Scoles ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTWe have shown that in cattle previously immunized with outer membrane proteins, infection withAnaplasma marginaleinduces a functionally exhausted CD4 T-cell response to theA. marginaleimmunogen. Furthermore, T-cell responses following infection in nonimmunized cattle had a delayed onset and were sporadic and transient during persistent infection. The induction of an exhausted T-cell response following infection presumably facilitates pathogen persistence. In the current study, we hypothesized that the loss of epitope-specific T-cell responses requires the presence of the immunizing epitope on the pathogen, and T-cell dysfunction correlates with the appearance of regulatory T cells. In limited studies in cattle, regulatory T cells have been shown to belong to γδ T-cell subsets rather than be CD4 T cells expressing forkhead box protein P3 (FoxP3). Cattle expressing the DRB3*1101 haplotype were immunized with a truncatedA. marginalemajor surface protein (MSP) 1a that contains a DRB3*1101-restricted CD4 T-cell epitope, F2-5B. Cattle either remained unchallenged or were challenged withA. marginalebacteria that express the epitope or withA. marginalesubsp.centralethat do not. Peripheral blood and spleen mononuclear cells were monitored for MSP1a epitope F2-5B-specfic T-cell proliferative responses and were stained for γδ T-cell subsets or CD4+CD25+FoxP3+T cells before and during infection. As hypothesized, the induction of T-cell exhaustion occurred only following infection withA. marginale, which did not correlate with an increase in either CD4+CD25+FoxP3+T cells or any γδ T-cell subset examined.


2015 ◽  
Vol 84 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomohiro Okagawa ◽  
Satoru Konnai ◽  
Asami Nishimori ◽  
Ryoyo Ikebuchi ◽  
Seiko Mizorogi ◽  
...  

Johne's disease (paratuberculosis) is a chronic enteritis in cattle that is caused by intracellular infection withMycobacterium aviumsubsp.paratuberculosis. This infection is characterized by the functional exhaustion of T-cell responses toM. aviumsubsp.paratuberculosisantigens during late subclinical and clinical stages, presumably facilitating the persistence of this bacterium and the formation of clinical lesions. However, the mechanisms underlying T-cell exhaustion in Johne's disease are poorly understood. Thus, we performed expression and functional analyses of the immunoinhibitory molecules programmed death-1 (PD-1)/PD-ligand 1 (PD-L1) and lymphocyte activation gene 3 (LAG-3)/major histocompatibility complex class II (MHC-II) inM. aviumsubsp.paratuberculosis-infected cattle during the late subclinical stage. Flow cytometric analyses revealed the upregulation of PD-1 and LAG-3 in T cells in infected animals, which suffered progressive suppression of interferon gamma (IFN-γ) responses to theM. aviumsubsp.paratuberculosisantigen. In addition, PD-L1 and MHC-II were expressed on macrophages from infected animals, consistent with PD-1 and LAG-3 pathways contributing to the suppression of IFN-γ responses during the subclinical stages ofM. aviumsubsp.paratuberculosisinfection. Furthermore, dual blockade of PD-L1 and LAG-3 enhancedM. aviumsubsp.paratuberculosis-specific IFN-γ responses in blood from infected animals, andin vitroLAG-3 blockade enhanced IFN-γ production fromM. aviumsubsp.paratuberculosis-specific CD4+and CD8+T cells. Taken together, the present data indicate thatM. aviumsubsp.paratuberculosis-specific T-cell exhaustion is in part mediated by PD-1/PD-L1 and LAG-3/MHC-II interactions and that LAG-3 is a molecular target for the control ofM. aviumsubsp.paratuberculosis-specific T-cell responses.


2014 ◽  
Vol 82 (11) ◽  
pp. 4654-4665 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing-Wen Lin ◽  
Tovah N. Shaw ◽  
Takeshi Annoura ◽  
Aurélie Fougère ◽  
Pascale Bouchier ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTModel antigens are frequently introduced into pathogens to study determinants that influence T-cell responses to infections. To address whether an antigen's subcellular location influences the nature and magnitude of antigen-specific T-cell responses, we generatedPlasmodium bergheiparasites expressing the model antigen ovalbumin (OVA) either in the parasite cytoplasm or on the parasitophorous vacuole membrane (PVM). For cytosolic expression, OVA alone or conjugated to mCherry was expressed from a strong constitutive promoter (OVAhsp70orOVA::mCherryhsp70); for PVM expression, OVA was fused to HEP17/EXP1 (OVA::Hep17hep17). Unexpectedly, OVA expression inOVAhsp70parasites was very low, but when OVA was fused to mCherry (OVA::mCherryhsp70), it was highly expressed. OVA expression inOVA::Hep17hep17parasites was strong but significantly less than that inOVA::mCherryhsp70parasites. These transgenic parasites were used to examine the effects of antigen subcellular location and expression level on the development of T-cell responses during blood-stage infections. While all OVA-expressing parasites induced activation and proliferation of OVA-specific CD8+T cells (OT-I) and CD4+T cells (OT-II), the level of activation varied:OVA::Hep17hep17parasites induced significantly stronger splenic and intracerebral OT-I and OT-II responses than those ofOVA::mCherryhsp70parasites, butOVA::mCherryhsp70parasites promoted stronger OT-I and OT-II responses than those ofOVAhsp70parasites. Despite lower OVA expression levels,OVA::Hep17hep17parasites induced stronger T-cell responses than those ofOVA::mCherryhsp70parasites. These results indicate that unconjugated cytosolic OVA is not stably expressed inPlasmodiumparasites and, importantly, that its cellular location and expression level influence both the induction and magnitude of parasite-specific T-cell responses. These parasites represent useful tools for studying the development and function of antigen-specific T-cell responses during malaria infection.


2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven C. Derrick

ABSTRACT In this issue of Clinical and Vaccine Immunology, K. Jensen et al. (Clin Vaccine Immunol 24:e00360-16, 2017, https://doi.org/10.1128/CVI.00360-16 ) describe a dual-purpose attenuated Mycobacterium tuberculosis-simian immunodeficiency virus vaccine (AMTB-SIV). Interestingly, immunized infant macaques required fewer oral exposures to SIV to become infected relative to nonimmunized animals. The authors hypothesized that augmented susceptibility to SIV was due to activation of CD4+ T cells through trained immunity. This commentary explores the possible relationship between trained immunity, enhanced CD4 T cell responses, and increased susceptibility to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).


mSphere ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Iti Saraav ◽  
Qiuling Wang ◽  
Kevin M. Brown ◽  
L. David Sibley

ABSTRACTMicroneme (MIC) proteins play important roles in the recognition, adhesion, and invasion of host cells byToxoplasma gondii. Previous studies have shown that MIC proteins are highly immunogenic in the mouse and recognized by human serum antibodies. Here we report thatT. gondiiantigens MIC1, MIC3, MIC4, and MIC6 were capable of inducing memory responses leading to production of gamma interferon (IFN-γ) by T cells fromT. gondii-infected mice. Production of IFN-γ was demonstrated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent spot (ELISPOT) assay and also intracellular cytokine staining. All four MIC antigens displayed very high sensitivity (100%) and specificity (86 to 100%) for detecting chronic infection. Interestingly, IFN-γ was produced by both CD4+and CD8+T cells in BALB/c mice but primarily by CD4+T cells in C57BL/6 mice. Phenotypic characterization of IFN-γ-producing CD4+and CD8+T cells in BALB/c mice and CD4+T cells in C57BL/6 mice revealed effector memory T cells (CD44hiCD62Llo) as the predominant cells that contributed to IFN-γ production in response to MIC antigens. Effector memory responses were seen in mice of different major histocompatibility complex class II (MHC-II) haplotypes, suggesting that MIC antigens contain epitopes that are broadly recognized.IMPORTANCECurrent diagnosis of toxoplasmosis relies almost exclusively on antibody detection, and while detection of IgG provides a useful estimate of prior infection, it does not alone indicate immune status. In contrast, detection of IFN-γ responses toT. gondiiantigens has been used to monitor immune responsiveness in HIV-infected patients, thus providing valuable predictions about the potential for disease reactivation. However, specificT. gondiiantigens that can be used in assays to detect cellular immunity remain largely undefined. In this study, we examined the diagnostic potential of microneme antigens ofT. gondiiusing IFN-γ detection assays. Our findings demonstrate that MIC antigens (MIC1, MIC3, MIC4, and MIC6) elicit IFN-γ responses from memory T cells in chronically infected mice. Monitoring IFN-γ production by T cells stimulated with MIC antigens provided high sensitivity and specificity for detection ofT. gondiiinfection in mice. Taken together, these studies suggest that microneme antigens might be useful as an adjunct to serological testing to monitor immune status during infection.


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