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Introduction: Pseudorabies (PR) is a multi-animal comorbid disease caused by pseudorabies virus (PRV), which are naturally found in pigs. At the end of 2011, the emergence of PRV variant strains in many provinces in China had caused huge economic losses to pig farms. Rapid detection diagnosis of pigs infected with the PRV variant helps prevent outbreaks of PR. The immunochromatography test strip with colloidal gold nanoparticles is often used in clinical testing due to its low cost and high throughput. Methods: This study was designed to produce monoclonal antibodies targeting PRV through immunization of mice using the eukaryotic system to express the gE glycoprotein. Subsequently, paired monoclonal antibodies were screened based on their sensitivity and specificity for use in the preparation of test strips. Results and discussion: The strip prepared in this study was highly specific, only PRV was detected, and there was no cross-reactivity with glycoprotein gB, glycoprotein gC, glycoprotein gD, and glycoprotein gE of herpes simplex virus and varicellazoster virus, porcine epidemic diarrhea virus, Senecavirus A, classical swine fever virus, porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus, and porcine parvovirus. Moreover, it demonstrated high sensitivity with a detection limit of 1.336 × 103 copies/µL (the number of viral genome copies per microliter); the coincidence rate with the RT-PCR detection method was 96.4%. The strip developed by our laboratory provides an effective method for monitoring PRV infection and controlling of PR vaccine quality.
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BACKGROUND: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), with different antigenic variants, has posed a significant threat to public health. It is urgent to develop inhalable vaccines, instead of injectable vaccines, to elicit mucosal immunity against respiratory viral infections. METHODS: We reported an inhalable hybrid nanovaccine (NVRBD-MLipo) to boost protective immunity against SARS-CoV-2 infection. Nanovesicles derived from genetically engineered 293T cells expressing RBD (NVRBD) were fused with pulmonary surfactant (PS)-biomimetic liposomes containing MPLA (MLipo) to yield NVRBD-MLipo, which possessed virus-biomimetic structure, inherited RBD expression and versatile properties. RESULTS: In contrast to subcutaneous vaccination, NVRBD-MLipo, via inhalable vaccination, could efficiently enter the alveolar macrophages (AMs) to elicit AMs activation through MPLA-activated TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway. Moreover, NVRBD-MLipo induced T and B cells activation, and high level of RBD-specific IgG and secretory IgA (sIgA), thus elevating protective mucosal and systemic immune responses, while reducing side effects. NVRBD-MLipo also demonstrated broad-spectrum neutralization activity against SARS-CoV-2 (WT, Delta, Omicron) pseudovirus, and protected immunized mice against WT pseudovirus infection. CONCLUSIONS: This inhalable NVRBD-MLipo, as an effective and safe nanovaccine, holds huge potential to provoke robust mucosal immunity, and might be a promising vaccine candidate to combat respiratory infectious diseases, including COVID-19 and influenza.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , SARS-CoV-2 , Animals , Humans , Mice , Nanovaccines , COVID-19/prevention & control , Biomimetics , Immunity, Mucosal , Antibodies, Viral , Antibodies, NeutralizingABSTRACT
Influenza A virus (IAV) poses a significant threat to human and animal health, necessitating the development of universal influenza vaccines that can effectively activate mucosal immunity. Intranasal immunization has attracted significant attention due to its capacity to induce triple immune responses, including mucosal secretory IgA. However, inducing mucosal immunity through vaccination is challenging due to the self-cleansing nature of the mucosal surface. Thiolated chitosan (TCS) were explored for mucosal vaccine delivery, capitalizing on biocompatibility and bioadhesive properties of chitosan, with thiol modification enhancing mucoadhesive capability. The focus was on developing a universal nanovaccine by utilizing TCS-encapsulated virus-like particles displaying conserved B-cell and T-cell epitopes from M2e and NP proteins of IAV. The optimal conditions for nanoparticle formation were investigated by adjusting the thiol groups content of TCS and the amount of sodium tripolyphosphate. The nanovaccine induced robust immune responses and provided complete protection against IAVs from different species following intranasal immunization. The broad protective effect of nanovaccines can be attributed to the synergistic effect of antibodies and T cells. This study developed a universal intranasal nanovaccine and demonstrated the potential of TCS in the development of mucosal vaccines for respiratory infectious diseases.
Subject(s)
Chitosan , Influenza A virus , Orthomyxoviridae Infections , Animals , Humans , Mice , Orthomyxoviridae Infections/prevention & control , Nanovaccines , Immunity, Cellular , Sulfhydryl Compounds , Mice, Inbred BALB C , Antibodies, ViralABSTRACT
Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) is a highly infectious pathogen with a high mortality rate, which poses a serious threat to newborn piglets. A rapid, safe and effective vaccine is necessary for protecting pigs from PED infection. Nanoparticles have become molecular scaffolds for displaying soluble antigens due to their unique physical and chemical properties. Here, a vaccine candidate was based on the display of PEDV S1 protein on a mi3 nanoparticle platform using SpyTag/SpyCatcher technology. The size, zeta potential and microstructure of the S1-mi3 NPs were investigated, and their effects on the uptake of antigen-presenting cells (APCs) and maturation of dendritic cells (DCs) were analyzed. Mice were immunized via muscular and intranasal administrations, and the levels of humoral, cellular and mucosal immune responses were analyzed. As a result, S1 proteins were surface-displayed on NPs successfully, which self-assembled into nanoparticles composed of 60 subunits and showed superior safety and stability. In addition, mi3 NPs promoted antigen internalization and dendritic cell (DCs) maturation. In the mouse model, S1-mi3 NPs significantly increased the PEDV-specific antibody including serum IgG, secretory IgA (SIgA) and neutralizing antibodies (NAb). Furthermore, S1-mi3 NPs elicited more CD3+CD4+ and CD3+CD8+ T cell and cellular immune-related cytokines (IFN-γ and IL-4) compared to monomeric S1. In particular, it can induce an effective germinal center-specific (GC) B cell response, which is closely related to the production of neutralizing antibodies. Overall, S1-mi3 NPs are a promising subunit vaccine candidate against PEDV, and this self-assembly NPs also provide an attractive platform for improving vaccine efficacy against emerging pathogens.
Subject(s)
Coronavirus Infections , Nanoparticles , Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus , Rodent Diseases , Swine Diseases , Viral Vaccines , Animals , Swine , Mice , Immunity, Mucosal , Antibodies, Viral , Antibodies, Neutralizing , Coronavirus Infections/veterinaryABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic is a persistent global threat to public health. As for the emerging variants of SARS-CoV-2, it is necessary to develop vaccines that can induce broader immune responses, particularly vaccines with weak cellular immunity. METHODS: In this study, we generated a double-layered N-S1 protein nanoparticle (N-S1 PNp) that was formed by desolvating N protein into a protein nanoparticle as the core and crosslinking S1 protein onto the core surface against SARS-CoV-2. RESULTS: Vaccination with N-S1 PNp elicited robust humoral and vigorous cellular immune responses specific to SARS-CoV-2 in mice. Compared to soluble protein groups, the N-S1 PNp induced a higher level of humoral response, as evidenced by the ability of S1-specific antibodies to block hACE2 receptor binding and neutralize pseudovirus. Critically, N-S1 PNp induced Th1-biased, long-lasting, and cross-neutralizing antibodies, which neutralized the variants of SARS-CoV-2 with minimal loss of activity. N-S1 PNp induced strong responses of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, mDCs, Tfh cells, and GCs B cells in spleens. CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate that N-S1 PNp vaccination is a practical approach for promoting protection, which has the potential to counteract the waning immune responses against SARS-CoV-2 variants and confer broad efficacy against future new variants. This study provides a new idea for the design of next-generation SARS-CoV-2 vaccines based on the B and T cells response coordination.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , SARS-CoV-2 , Animals , Humans , Mice , CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes , Antibody Formation , COVID-19 Vaccines , Pandemics , COVID-19/prevention & control , Immunization , Vaccination , Antibodies, Viral , Antibodies, NeutralizingSubject(s)
HIV , Humans , Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction/methods , HIV/genetics , Sensitivity and SpecificityABSTRACT
Porcine Epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV), which can result in severe vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration and death in newborn piglets, poses a great threat to the pig industry around the world. The S1 subunit of S protein is crucial for triggering neutralizing antibodies binding to the receptor. Based on the advantages of high immunogenicity and precise assembly of nanoparticles, the mi3 nanoparticles and truncated S1 protein were assembled by the SpyTag/SpyCatcher system and then expressed in HEK293F cells, whereafter high-efficiency monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) were produced and identified. The obtained five mAbs can bind to various genotypes of PEDV, including a mAb (12G) which can neutralize G1 and G2 genotypes of PEDV in vitro. By further identification of monoclonal antibody target sequences, 507FNDHSF512 and 553LFYNVTNSYG562 were first identified as B-cell linear epitopes, in which 553LFYNVTNSYG562 was a neutralizing epitope. Alanine scans identified the key amino acid sites of two epitopes. Moreover, the results of multiple sequence alignment analysis showed that these two epitopes were highly conserved in various subtype variants. In brief, these findings can serve as a basis for additional research of PEDV and prospective resources for the creation of later detection and diagnostic techniques.
Subject(s)
Antibodies, Monoclonal , Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus , Animals , Swine , Antibodies, Viral , Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus/genetics , Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus/chemistry , Prospective Studies , Antibodies, Neutralizing , Epitopes, B-LymphocyteABSTRACT
Varicella-zoster virus (VZV) is a highly infectious DNA virus that can cause varicella (chickenpox) and herpes zoster (HZ). A simple, sensitive and specific detection method is desirable for the VZV infection. In this study, VZV gE protein, expressed in CHO cells, was used to immunize BALB/c mice for the generation of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). For the first time, we developed a colloidal gold-based immunochromatographic strip for rapid detection of VZV using a pair of mAbs against gE protein. The limit of detection (LOD) of the strip was 30 ng mL-1 of purified VZV gE antigen, and it could specifically test VZV without cross-reactivity with Enterovirus 71 (EV-71), Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) and Herpes simplex virus 2 (HSV-2). The coincidence rate between the strip and commercial real-time PCR diagnostic kit was 100% using vesicle as the clinical sample. Our strip provided a technical support for rapid and specific detection of VZV.
Subject(s)
Chickenpox , Herpes Zoster , Animals , Mice , Cricetinae , Herpesvirus 3, Human/genetics , Cricetulus , Antibodies, Viral , Chickenpox/diagnosis , Herpesvirus 2, Human , Antibodies, MonoclonalABSTRACT
Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) is an important swine infectious pathogen that seriously threatens the global swine industry. PCV2 Cap protein is the only structural and the main immunogenic protein constituting the viral capsid. In this study, a gold nanoparticle-based immunochromatographic strip with high sensitivity and specificity was developed which could be used for rapid detection of PCV2 virions or Cap protein in research. The visual detection limit of the strip was 103.18 50% tissue culture infective does (TCID50)/mL for PCV2, and 2.03 µg/mL for PCV2 Cap protein. No cross-reactivity was observed with the PCV1 and PCV3 Cap proteins and other common swine pathogens such as porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus, classical swine fever virus, pseudorabies virus, porcine epidemic diarrhea virus, porcine parvovirus, and swine influenza virus. The repeatability of the strip was good. The stability of the strip was perfect for 12 months in a dry state at room temperature. Visual results could be obtained within 5 min by simply inserting the strip into the diluted sample. The strip is a time-saving, labor-saving, and reliable tool for testing of PCV2 virions or Cap protein in research. The idea of this study might open a new perspective for the application of the strip. IMPORTANCE Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) Cap protein is the only structural and the main immunogenic protein constituting the viral capsid. Although many methods can be used to identify PCV2 or PCV2 Cap protein in vaccine research, they usually require high workload and time. The developed strip can specifically detect PCV2 virions or Cap protein, and visual qualitative results can be obtained within 5 min by simply diluting the sample and inserting the strip into the sample. The final value of the strip is providing a simple and time-saving method for real-time monitoring of PCV2 antigen in vaccine research with reliable results, such as the different stages of PCV2 Cap protein expression and purification, as well as the different stages of PCV2 reproduction and purification.
Subject(s)
Circoviridae Infections , Circovirus , Metal Nanoparticles , Swine Diseases , Vaccines , Animals , Swine , Circovirus/metabolism , Gold/metabolism , Swine Diseases/epidemiology , Circoviridae Infections/diagnosis , Circoviridae Infections/veterinary , Vaccines/metabolism , Antibodies, ViralABSTRACT
Virginiamycin (VIR), a feed additive, is used to promote pig and poultry growth. However, it is hazardous to human health. This work described a label-free electrochemical immunosensor based on silver nanoparticles-reduced graphene oxide (AgNPs-rGO) nanocomposites and staphylococcal protein A (SPA) for the first time to directly detect the residual marker VIR M1. Good catalytic currents for oxygen reduction reaction were apparently obtained after the modification of nanocomposites on gold electrode. Nanocomposites were characterized using UV-Vis, X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). SPA was targeted to immobilize VIR M1 monoclonal antibody (mAb) by binding to Fc region of antibody. The proposed immunosensor showed a wide linear range from 0.25 ng mL-1 to 100 ng mL-1, providing detection limit (LOD) of 0.18 ng mL-1 of VIR M1. Recovery rates ranged from 92.27% to 98.84%, and relative standard deviation (RSD) was not above 6.6%, indicating the immunosensor could detect VIR M1 in actual samples with high accuracy. The sensor showed good selectivity, reproducibility and stability and could be considered as a potential tool for detection of VIR M1 in feed and animal derived food.
Subject(s)
Biosensing Techniques , Graphite , Metal Nanoparticles , Nanocomposites , Animals , Humans , Swine , Electrochemical Techniques/methods , Staphylococcal Protein A , Streptogramin A , Biosensing Techniques/methods , Reproducibility of Results , Metal Nanoparticles/chemistry , Immunoassay/methods , Silver , Graphite/chemistry , Nanocomposites/chemistry , Gold/chemistry , Antibodies , Limit of DetectionABSTRACT
African swine fever (ASF) is a highly infectious and lethal viral disease caused by the African swine fever virus (ASFV). The four prominent loop structures on the surface of the primary structural protein P72 are considered to be key protective epitopes. In this study, the four critical loops (ER1-4) of the ASFV p72 protein were individually fused to hepatitis B virus core particles (HBc) and self-assembled into nanoparticles to preserve the natural conformation of the loop structure and enhance its immunogenicity. Then, four recombinant proteins were obtained in E. coli expression system and monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) were developed and characterized. All 10 mAbs obtained were able to react with P72 protein and ASFV with potencies up to 1:204 800. Amino acids 250-274, 279-299 and 507-517 of the P72 protein were identified as linear epitopes and highly conserved. The mAb 4G8 showed the highest inhibition rate of 84% against ASFV positive sera. Importantly, neutralization experiments illustrated that mAb 4G8 has a 67% inhibition rate, indicating that its corresponding epitopes are potential candidates for ASFV vaccine. In conclusion, highly immunogenic nanoparticles of the ASFV P72 key loop were constructed to induce the production of highly effective mAbs and clarify their epitope information for the diagnosis and prevention of ASFV.
Subject(s)
African Swine Fever Virus , African Swine Fever , Swine Diseases , Swine , Animals , Antibodies, Monoclonal , Escherichia coli , EpitopesABSTRACT
As the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) poses a grave threat to human life and health, it is essential to develop an efficient and sensitive detection method to identify infected individuals. This study described an electrode platform immunosensor to detect SARS-CoV-2-specific spike receptor-binding domain (RBD) protein based on a bare gold electrode modified with Ag-rGO nanocomposites and the biotin-streptavidin interaction system. The Ag-rGO nanocomposites was obtained by chemical synthesis and characterized by electrochemistry and scanning electron microscope (SEM). Cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) were used to record the electrochemical signals in the electrode modification. The differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) results showed that the limit of detection (LOD) of the immunosensor was 7.2 fg mL-1 and the linear dynamic detection range was 0.015 ~ 158.5 pg mL-1. Furthermore, this sensitive immunosensor accurately detected RBD in artificial saliva with favorable stability, specificity, and reproducibility, indicating that it has the potential to be used as a practical method for the detection of SARS-CoV-2.
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From modular vaccine production to protein assembly on nanoparticles, the SpyCatcher/SpyTag system provides a convenient plug-and-display procedure. Here, we established a general-purpose immunoaffinity chromatography (IAC) method for SpyTagged proteins (Spy&IAC). SpyTags are displayed on the surface of nanoparticles to induce high-affinity monoclonal antibodies, allowing the specific capture of the target protein. Taking the key core antigenic regions of two coronaviruses that are currently more threatened in the field of human and animal diseases, the nucleocapsid (N) protein of SARS-CoV-2 and the COE protein of porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) as model proteins, a purification model with SpyTag at the N-terminal or C-terminal expressed in E. coli or mammalian cells was constructed. After the efficient elution of Spy&IAC, the final yield of several proteins is about 3.5-15 mg/L culture, and the protein purity is above 90 %. Purification also preserves the assembly function and immunogenicity of the protein to support subsequent modular assembly and immunization programs. This strategy provides a general tool for the efficient purification of SpyTagged proteins from different expression sources and different tag positions, enabling the production of modular vaccines at lower cost and in a shorter time, which will prepare the public health field for potential pandemic threats.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Escherichia coli Proteins , Nanoparticles , Periplasmic Proteins , Vaccines , Animals , Swine , Humans , Escherichia coli , SARS-CoV-2 , COVID-19/prevention & control , Proteins , Nanoparticles/chemistry , MammalsABSTRACT
Human papillomaviruse type 16 (HPV16) is a high-risk serotype. As the main protective antigen protein, L1 protein is also the target protein for diagnosis. A simple label free electrochemical immunosensor (ECIS) was fabricated for ultrasensitive detection of HPV16 L1 protein in this work. Quasi-spherical Ag@Au core-shell nanoparticles on graphene oxide (Ag@AuNPs-GO) was developed as current response amplifier and characterized by UV-Vis Spectroscopy, Transmission Electron Microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Staphylococcal protein A was decorated on the modified electrode and utilized to immobilized the Fc portion of the monoclonal antibody specific for HPV16 L1 protein. Cyclic Voltammetry, Differential Pulse Voltammetry and Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy were used to verify the electrochemical performance and interfacial kinetic property. The increased concentration of HPV16 L1 protein led to slow electron transport and linearly decreased differential pulse voltammetry peak current with a detection limit of 0.002 ng mL-1 and a wide linear relationship in the range of 0.005-400 ng mL-1at a regression coefficient (R2) of 0.9948. Furthermore, this ECIS demonstrated acceptable accuracy with good reproducibility, stability and selectivity, suggesting a promising immunological strategy for HPV typing and early screening.
Subject(s)
Alphapapillomavirus , Biosensing Techniques , Graphite , Metal Nanoparticles , Humans , Gold/chemistry , Biosensing Techniques/methods , Metal Nanoparticles/chemistry , Immunoassay/methods , Reproducibility of Results , Graphite/chemistry , Electrochemical Techniques/methods , Limit of DetectionABSTRACT
African swine fever (ASF) is a viral disease caused by the African swine fever virus that can be highly transmitted and lethal in domestic pigs. In the absence of a vaccine, effective diagnosis is critical for minimizing the virus's spread. In recent years, with the decline of African swine fever virus (ASFV) virulence, antibody detection has become an important means of detection. ASFV nucleocapsid protein p34 is a mature hydrolytic product of pp220, which is highly conserved and has a high content in the structural protein of the virus. Prokaryotic cells were chosen to generate highly active and high-yield p34 protein, which was then used as an antigen for producing mouse monoclonal antibodies. The B-cell epitope 202QKELDKLQT210, which was highly conserved and found on the surface of the p34 protein, was first identified by an anti-p34 monoclonal antibody utilizing the peptide scanning technique and visualized in helix. This supported the viability of p34 protein detection even further. In addition, we established an indirect ELISA assay based on p34 to detect ASFV antibodies. The coincidence rate of this method with commercially available kits was shown to be 97.83%. Sensitivity analysis revealed that it could be detected in serum dilution as low as 1:6400, and there was no cross-reaction with other prevalent porcine epidemic diseases classical swine fever virus (CSFV), foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV), and porcine circovirus 2 (PCV2). In summary, the established ELISA method and anti-P34 monoclonal antibody have demonstrated that the p34 protein has a promising application prospect for the detection of African swine fever antibodies.
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African swine fever virus (ASFV), a DNA double-stranded virus with high infectivity and mortality, causing a devastating blow to the pig industry and the world economy. The CD2v protein is an essential immunoprotective protein of ASFV. In this study, we expressed the extracellular region of the CD2v protein in the 293F expression system to achieve proper glycosylation. Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) were prepared by immunizing mice with the recombinant CD2v protein. Eventually, four mAbs that target the extracellular region of the ASFV CD2v protein were obtained. All four mAbs responded well to the ASFV HLJ/18 strain and recognized the same linear epitope, 154SILE157. The specific shortest amino acid sequence of this epitope has been accurately identified for the first time. Meaningfully, the 154SILE157 epitope was highly conformed in the ASFV Chinese epidemic strain and Georgia2008/1 strains according to the analysis of the conservation and have a fair protective effect. These findings contribute to further understanding of the protein function of CD2v and provide potential support for the development of diagnostic tools and vaccines for ASFV.
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Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) can be transmitted from human to companion animals. The national wide serological surveillance against SARS-CoV-2 was conducted among pet animals, mainly in cats and dogs, 1 year after the first outbreak of COVID-19 in China. All sera were tested for SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies using an indirect enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) based on the receptor binding domain (RBD) of spike protein. This late survey takes advantage of the short duration of the serological response in these animals to track recent episode of transmission. A total of 20,592 blood samples were obtained from 25 provinces across 7 geographical regions. The overall seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infections in cats was 0.015% (2/13397; 95% confidence intervals (CI): 0.0, 0.1). The virus infections in cats were only detected in Central (Hubei, 0.375%) and Eastern China (Zhejiang, 0.087%) with a seroprevalence estimated at 0.090 and 0.020%, respectively. In dogs, the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infections was 0.014% (1/7159; 95% CI: 0.0, 0.1) in the entire nation, seropositive samples were limited to Beijing (0.070%) of Northern China with a prevalence of 0.054%. No seropositive cases were discovered in other geographic regions, nor in other companion animals analyzed in this study. These data reveal the circulation of SARS-CoV-2 in companion animals, although transmission of the virus to domestic cats and dogs is low in China, continuous monitoring is helpful for the better understand of the virus transmission status and the effect on animals.
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Spike (S) glycoprotein is the most significant structural protein of SARS-CoV-2 and a key target for neutralizing antibodies. In light of the on-going SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, identification and screening of epitopes of spike glycoproteins will provide vital progress in the development of sensitive and specific diagnostic tools. In the present study, NTD, RBD, and S2 genes were inserted into the pcDNA3.1(+) vector and designed with N-terminal 6× His-tag for fusion expression in HEK293F cells by transient transfection. Six monoclonal antibodies (4G, 9E, 4B, 7D, 8F, and 3D) were prepared using the expressed proteins by cell fusion technique. The characterization of mAbs was performed by indirect -ELISA, western blot, and IFA. We designed 49 overlapping synthesized peptides that cover the extracellular region of S protein in which 6 amino acid residues were offset between adjacent (S1-S49). Peptides S12, S19, and S49 were identified as the immunodominant epitope regions by the mAbs. These regions were further truncated and the peptides S12.2 286TDAVDCALDPLS297, S19.2 464FERDISTEIYQA475, and S49.4 1202ELGKYEQYIKWP1213 were identified as B- cell linear epitopes for the first time. Alanine scans showed that the D467, I468, E471, Q474, and A475 of the epitope S19.2 and K1205, Q1208, and Y1209 of the epitope S49.4 were the core sites involved in the mAbs binding. The multiple sequence alignment analysis showed that these three epitopes were highly conserved among the variants of concern (VOCs) and variants of interest (VOIs). Taken together, the findings provide a potential material for rapid diagnosis methods of COVID-19.
Subject(s)
Epitopes, B-Lymphocyte , SARS-CoV-2 , Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus , Amino Acid Sequence , Antibodies, Monoclonal , Antibodies, Neutralizing , Antibodies, Viral , COVID-19 , Epitopes, B-Lymphocyte/genetics , Humans , Membrane Glycoproteins/genetics , Peptides , SARS-CoV-2/genetics , Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus/genetics , Viral Envelope ProteinsABSTRACT
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the pathogenic agent leading to COVID-19. Due to high speed of transmission and mutation rates, universal diagnosis and appropriate prevention are still urgently needed. The nucleocapsid protein of SARS-CoV-2 is considered more conserved than spike proteins and is abundant during the virus' life cycle, making it suitable for diagnostic applications. Here, we designed and developed a fluorescent immunochromatography assay (FICA) for the rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies using ZnCdSe/ZnS QDs-conjugated nucleocapsid (N) proteins as probes. The nucleocapsid protein was expressed in E.coli and purified via Ni-NTA affinity chromatography with considerable concentration (0.762 mg/mL) and a purity of more than 90%, which could bind to specific antibodies and the complex could be captured by Staphylococcal protein A (SPA) with fluorescence displayed. After the optimization of coupling and detecting conditions, the limit of detection was determined to be 1:1.024 × 105 with an IgG concentration of 48.84 ng/mL with good specificity shown to antibodies against other zoonotic coronaviruses and respiratory infection-related viruses (n = 5). The universal fluorescent immunochromatography assay simplified operation processes in one step, which could be used for the point of care detection of SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies. Moreover, it was also considered as an efficient tool for the serological screening of potential susceptible animals and for monitoring the expansion of virus host ranges.