Optimization, Production, Purification and Characterization of HIV-1 GAG-Based Virus-like Particles Functionalized with SARS-CoV-2

• Published in: Vaccines (Basel) Vol. 10; no. 2; p. 250
• Main Authors: Boix-Besora, Arnau, Lorenzo, Elianet, Lavado-García, Jesús, Gòdia, Francesc, Cervera, Laura
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 07.02.2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Bioreactors; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; COVID-19 vaccines; Cyclic GMP; Design optimization; Gag protein; HEK293; HIV; HIV-1; Human immunodeficiency virus; Immunogenicity; Ion exchange; Manufacturing; Membrane proteins; Molecular structure; Pandemics; Plasmids; Proteins; Public health; Purification; SARS-CoV-2; Severe acute respiratory syndrome; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Size exclusion chromatography; Spike protein; transient transfection; Vaccine development; Vaccines; Viral diseases; Virus-like particles; Viruses; VLP vaccines; St Louis Missouri; Canada; United States > US; COVID-19; HIV-1; HEK293; SARS-CoV-2; downstream process; transient transfection; bioprocess; VLP vaccines; design of experiments
• ISSN: 2076-393X; 2076-393X
• DOI: 10.3390/vaccines10020250

Virus-like particles (VLPs) constitute a promising approach to recombinant vaccine development. They are robust, safe, versatile and highly immunogenic supra-molecular structures that closely mimic the native conformation of viruses without carrying their genetic material. HIV-1 Gag VLPs share similar characteristics with wild-type severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus, making them a suitable platform for the expression of its spike membrane protein to generate a potential vaccine candidate for COVID-19. This work proposes a methodology for the generation of SARS-CoV-2 VLPs by their co-expression with HIV-1 Gag protein. We achieved VLP functionalization with coronavirus spike protein, optimized its expression using a design of experiments (DoE). We also performed the bioprocess at a bioreactor scale followed by a scalable downstream purification process consisting of two clarifications, an ion exchange and size-exclusion chromatography. The whole production process is conceived to enhance its transferability at current good manufacturing practice (cGMP) industrial scale manufacturing. Moreover, the approach proposed could be expanded to produce additional Gag-based VLPs against different diseases or COVID-19 variants.