The Immunogenicity in Mice of HCV Core Delivered as DNA Is Modulated by Its Capacity to Induce Oxidative Stress and Oxidative Stress Response.

ABSTRACT: HCV core is an attractive HCV vaccine target, however, clinical or preclinical trials of core-based vaccines showed little success. We aimed to delineate what restricts its immunogenicity and improve immunogenic performance in mice. We designed plasmids encoding full-length HCV 1b core and its variants truncated after amino acids (aa) 60, 98, 152, 173, or up to aa 36 using virus-derived or synthetic polynucleotides (core191/60/98/152/173/36_191v or core152s DNA, respectively). We assessed their level of expression, route of degradation, ability to trigger the production of reactive oxygen species/ROS, and to activate the components of the Nrf2/ARE antioxidant defense pathway heme oxygenase 1/HO-1 and NAD(P)H: quinone oxidoreductase/Nqo-1. All core variants with the intact N-terminus induce

SUBMITTER: Jansons J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6468923 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature