Project description:The time course of whole blood gene expression was measured after the fourth immunisation at month 6 in participants who had been randomised into vaccine or placebo group 1 of the clinical protocol HVTN087 - A phase 1 trial to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and immunogenicity of an IL-12 pDNA enhanced HIV-1 multi-antigen pDNA vaccine delivered intramuscularly with electroporation, with an HIV-1 rVSV vaccine boost, in healthy HIV-uninfected adult participants (NCT01578889).
Project description:We used RNAseq to investigate innate immune responsiveness in canine 030-D cell line induced by inactivated L. interrogans serogroups Canicola and Icterohaemorrhagiae, and two bivalent, non-adjuvanted canine Leptospira vaccines containing the same serogroups. We identified more than 900 DEGs associated with pathways related to innate immune responses in common to these three stimuli. Several molecules including CXCL-10, SAA, and complement factor C3 were identified that could serve as targets for development of a biomarker-based in vitro assay to assess Leptospira vaccine quality. In vitro assay could replace the current animal vaccine-challenge potency assay and contribute to reduction of animal use in vaccine manufacturing.
Project description:Vaccine-enhanced disease (VED) occurs as a result of vaccination followed by infection with virulent Mycoplasma pneumoniae. To date, VED has prevented development of an efficacious vaccine against this significant human respiratory pathogen. Herein we report that vaccination with M. pneumoniae lipid-associated membrane proteins (LAMPs) induces lung lesions consistent with exacerbated disease following challenge, without reducing bacterial loads. Removal of lipid moieties from LAMPs prior to vaccination eliminates VED and reduces bacterial loads after infection. Collectively, these data indicate that lipid moieties of lipoproteins are the causative factors of M. pneumoniae VED.
Project description:A mixed-aerosol pH1N1 (Cal04) challenge of rhesus macaques was establised to serve as a pre-clinical model for the evaluation of candidate vaccines. After characterizing the clinical signs and immune responses associated with pH1N1 challenge in naïve rhesus macaques, a follow-up study assessing 2 candidate vaccines was performed. This study has 2 phases: 1) Model Establisment consisting of 3 groups: Unvaccinated Live Challenge (n=3, Unvaccinated UV-inactivated Challenge (n=3), Previously Vaccinated Live Challenge (n=3) which were sampled at 2 baseline timepoints Day -7 and Day 0. Following the H1N1 Challenge, samples were collected at day 1,2,5,8,14,20. 2) Candidate Vaccine Assessment consisting of four groups: Previously Vaccinted with anti-CD40-NP5+PolyICLC (n=4), Previously vaccinated with CD40-HA+PolyICLC (n=4), Previously vaccinated with commercial mismatched Fluzone (n=4), Previously vaccinated with Media+PolyICLC alone (n=4). Daseline samples were collected at Day -7 and 0 (baseline) and Day 1,3,6,14,20 post-challenge.
Project description:The COVID-19 pandemic has generated intense interest in the rapid development and evaluation of vaccine candidates for this disease and other emerging diseases. Several novel methods for preparing vaccine candidates are currently undergoing clinical evaluation in response to the urgent need to prevent the spread of COVID-19. In many cases, these methods rely on new approaches for vaccine production and immune stimulation. We report on the use of a novel method (SolaVAXTM) for production of an inactivated vaccine candidate and the testing of that candidate in a hamster animal model for its ability to prevent infection upon challenge with SARS-CoV-2 virus. The studies employed in this work included an evaluation of the levels of neutralizing antibody produced post-vaccination, levels of specific antibody sub-types to RBD and spike protein that were generated, evaluation of viral shedding post-challenge, flow cytometric and single cell sequencing data on cellular fractions and histopathological evaluation of tissues post-challenge. The results from this study provide insight into the immunological responses occurring as a result of vaccination with the proposed vaccine candidate and the impact that adjuvant formulations, specifically developed to promote Th1 type immune responses, have on vaccine efficacy and protection against infection following challenge with live SARS-CoV-2. This data may have utility in the development of effective vaccine candidates broadly. Furthermore, the results suggest that preparation of a whole virion vaccine for COVID-19 using this specific photochemical method may have utility in the preparation of one such vaccine candidate.