Chimeric coronavirus-like particles carrying severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SCoV) S protein protect mice against challenge with SCoV

• Published in: Vaccine Vol. 26; no. 6; pp. 797 - 808
• Main Authors: Lokugamage, Kumari G, Yoshikawa-Iwata, Naoko, Ito, Naoto, Watts, Douglas M, Wyde, Philip R, Wang, Nan, Newman, Patrick, Kent Tseng, Chien-Te, Peters, C.J, Makino, Shinji
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 06.02.2008; Elsevier; Elsevier Limited
• Subjects: Allergy and Immunology; Amino Acid Sequence; Animals; Antibodies, Viral - blood; Antibodies, Viral - immunology; Antibody Specificity; Antigens; Atoms & subatomic particles; Biological and medical sciences; Cell Line; Coronavirus M Proteins; COVID-19; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Humans; Immunization; Infections; Injections, Intramuscular; Lungs; Membrane Glycoproteins - genetics; Membrane Glycoproteins - metabolism; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Microbiology; Microscopy; Miscellaneous; Molecular Sequence Data; Mouse; Murine hepatitis virus; Neutralization Tests; Neutralizing antibody; Plasmids; Proteins; Reassortant Viruses - immunology; Reassortant Viruses - metabolism; SARS coronavirus; SARS Virus - immunology; SARS Virus - metabolism; Sequence Alignment; Severe acute respiratory syndrome; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome - blood; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome - prevention & control; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome - virology; Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus; Sucrose; Vaccination; Vaccines; Viral Envelope Proteins - genetics; Viral Envelope Proteins - metabolism; Viral Matrix Proteins - metabolism; Viral Vaccines - administration & dosage; Virology; Viroporin Proteins; Virus-like particles; SARS coronavirus; Mouse; Virus-like particles; Neutralizing antibody; Lung disease; Respiratory disease; Virus like particle; Severe acute respiratory syndrome; Rodentia; Protein; Infection; Virus; Vertebrata; Mammalia; Coronavirus; Severe acute respiratory syndrome virus; Viral disease; Coronaviridae; Nidovirales
• ISSN: 0264-410X; 1873-2518
• DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2007.11.092

Summary We tested the efficacy of coronavirus-like particles (VLPs) for protecting mice against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SCoV) infection. Coexpression of SCoV S protein and E, M and N proteins of mouse hepatitis virus in 293T or CHO cells resulted in the efficient production of chimeric VLPs carrying SCoV S protein. Balb/c mice inoculated with a mixture of chimeric VLPs and alum twice at an interval of four weeks were protected from SCoV challenge, as indicated by the absence of infectious virus in the lungs. The same groups of mice had high levels of SCoV-specific neutralizing antibodies, while mice in the negative control groups, which were not immunized with chimeric VLPs, failed to manifest neutralizing antibodies, suggesting that SCoV-specific neutralizing antibodies are important for the suppression of viral replication within the lungs. Despite some differences in the cellular composition of inflammatory infiltrates, we did not observe any overt lung pathology in the chimeric-VLP-treated mice, when compared to the negative control mice. Our results show that chimeric VLP can be an effective vaccine strategy against SCoV infection.