Transient Expression of Flavivirus Structural Proteins in Nicotiana benthamiana

Abstract

Flaviviruses are a threat to public health and can cause major disease outbreaks. Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is caused by a flavivirus, and it is one of the most important causes of viral encephalitis in Europe and is on the rise in Sweden. As there is no antiviral treatment available, vaccination remains the best protective measure against TBE. Currently available TBE vaccines are based on formalin-inactivated virus produced in cell culture. These vaccines must be delivered by intramuscular injection, have a burdensome immunization schedule, and may exhibit vaccine failure in certain populations. This project aimed to develop an edible TBE vaccine to trigger a stronger immune response through oral delivery of viral antigens to mucosal surfaces. We demonstrated successful expression and post-translational processing of flavivirus structural proteins which then self-assembled to form virus-like particles in Nicotiana benthamiana. We performed oral toxicity tests in mice using various plant species as potential bioreactors and evaluated the immunogenicity of the resulting edible vaccine candidate. Mice immunized with the edible vaccine candidate did not survive challenge with TBE virus. Interestingly, immunization of female mice with a commercial TBE vaccine can protect their offspring against TBE virus infection.

Development of SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibody detection assay by using recombinant plant-produced proteins

“…Also, plants have suitable post-translational machinery similar like mammalian-systems, and the recombinant protein folding in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) were reported in earlier studies [ 7 , [10] , [11] , [12] , [13] , [14] ]. The plant-produced antigens can also be developed as vaccine candidates [15] , [16] , [17] , [18] , [19] , [20] , [21] . The vaccine candidates, monoclonal antibodies and other non-pharmaceutical proteins (industrial enzymes, growth factors, cytokines, anti-microbial peptides) produced in plants were summarized in recent reviews [ 7 , 22 , 23 ].…”