Human Immune Responses to a Novel Norwalk Virus Vaccine Delivered in Transgenic Potatoes

• Published in: The Journal of infectious diseases Vol. 182; no. 1; pp. 302 - 305
• Main Authors: Tacket, Carol O., Mason, Hugh S., Losonsky, Genevieve, Estes, Mary K., Levine, Myron M., Arntzen, Charles J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chicago, IL The University of Chicago Press 01.07.2000; University of Chicago Press; Oxford University Press
• Subjects: Animals; Antibodies; Antigens; Biological and medical sciences; Capsid - administration & dosage; Capsid - genetics; Capsid - immunology; Capsid proteins; Cells, Cultured; Concise Communications; Dosage; Double-Blind Method; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Humans; Immunoglobulin A - blood; Immunoglobulin G - blood; Immunoglobulin M - blood; Insecta; Microbiology; Norwalk virus; Norwalk virus - immunology; Norwalk virus - metabolism; Norwalk virus - physiology; Norwalk virus capsid protein; Plants, Genetically Modified; Potatoes; Solanum tuberosum - genetics; Solanum tuberosum - immunology; Solanum tuberosum - metabolism; Transgenic plants; Tubers; Vaccination; Vaccines, antisera, therapeutical immunoglobulins and monoclonal antibodies; Vaccines, Synthetic - administration & dosage; Vaccines, Synthetic - adverse effects; Vaccines, Synthetic - immunology; Viral Vaccines - administration & dosage; Viral Vaccines - adverse effects; Viral Vaccines - immunology; Virology; Virus Assembly; Volunteerism; Human; Immune response; Human calicivirus; Vaccination; Vaccine; Protein; Virus; Potato; Calicivirus; Immunogenicity; Caliciviridae; Norwalk virus; Transgenic plant; Capsid; Vector
• ISSN: 0022-1899; 1537-6613
• DOI: 10.1086/315653

A new approach for delivering vaccine antigens is the use of inexpensive, plentiful, plantbased oral vaccines. Norwalk virus capsid protein (NVCP), assembled into virus-like particles, was used as a test antigen, to determine whether immune responses could be generated in volunteers who ingested transgenic potatoes. Twenty-four healthy adult volunteers received 2 or 3 doses of transgenic potato (n = 20) or 3 doses of wild-type potato (n = 4). Each dose consisted of 150 g of raw, peeled, diced potato that contained 215–751 μg of NVCP. Nineteen (95%) of 20 volunteers who ingested transgenic potatoes developed significant increases in the numbers of specific IgA antibody-secreting cells. Four (20%) of 20 volunteers developed specific serum IgG, and 6 (30%) of 20 volunteers developed specific stool IgA. Overall, 19 of 20 volunteers developed an immune response of some kind, although the level of serum antibody increases was modest.