Vaccination with peptide mimetics of the gp41 prehairpin fusion intermediate yields neutralizing antisera against HIV-1 isolates
Year: 2010
Type: article
Abstract: Eliciting a broadly neutralizing polyclonal antibody response against HIV-1 remains a major challenge. One approach to vaccine development is prevention of HIV-1 entry into cells by blocking the fusion of viral and cell membranes. More specifically, our goal is to elicit neutralizing antibodies that target a transient viral entry intermediate (the prehairpin intermediate) formed by the HIV-1 gp41 protein. Because this intermediate is transient, a stable mimetic is required to elicit an immune response. Previously, a series of engineered peptides was used to select a mAb (denoted D5) that binds to the surface of the gp41 prehairpin intermediate, as demonstrated by x-ray crystallographic studies. D5 inhibits the replication of HIV-1 clinical isolates, providing proof-of-principle for this vaccine approach. Here, we describe a series of peptide mimetics of the gp41 prehairpin intermediate designed to permit a systematic analysis of the immune response generated in animals. To improve the chances of detecting weak neutralizing polyclonal responses, two strategies were employed in the initial screening: use of a neutralization-hypersensitive virus and concentration of the IgG fraction from immunized animal sera. This allowed incremental improvements through iterative cycles of design, which led to vaccine candidates capable of generating a polyclonal antibody response, detectable in unfractionated sera, that neutralize tier 1 HIV-1 and simian HIV primary isolates in vitro. Our findings serve as a starting point for the design of more potent immunogens to elicit a broadly neutralizing response against the gp41 prehairpin intermediate.
Authors: Elisabetta Bianchi, Joseph G. Joyce, Michael D. Miller, Adam C. Finnefrock, Xiaoping Liang, Marco Finotto, Paolo Ingallinella, Philip McKenna, Michael Citron, Elizabeth Ottinger, Robert W. Hepler, Renee Hrin, Deborah Nahas, Chengwei Wu, David Montefiori, John W. Shiver, Antonello Pessi, Peter S. Kim
Language: English
Topic: HIV Research and Treatment
Subfield: Virology
Field: Immunology and Microbiology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W1985829248