Efficient induction of cell mediated immunity to varicella zoster virus glycoprotein E co lyophilized with a cationic liposome based adjuvant in mice.
Varicella zoster virus (VZV) is a neurotropic and lymphotropic alpha herpesvirus that causes varicella and herpes zoster (HZ) At a primary infection, VZV causes varicella in young children. Reactivation of latent VZV in sensory ganglia causes painful HZ in elderly people, occasionally leading to a serious complication, postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) A live attenuated VZV vaccine, the first vaccine licensed for the prevention of HZ and PHN is not very effective, while a recombinant subunit vaccine provides higher and longer protection against HZ. In the present study, we developed a new adjuvant system CIA09A, which is composed of cationic liposomes, the Toll like receptor 4 (TLR4) agonist de O acylated lipooligosaccharide, and Quillaja saponin fraction QS 21. We then determined its adjuvant activity for recombinant VZV glycoprotein E (gE) in mice. Co lyophilization of the liposomal adjuvant formulation with gE did not abolish the immune stimulating activity. In fact, the CIA09A adjuvanted gE vaccine was highly effective in eliciting both humoral and cellular immune responses to the recombinant gE protein and VZV in a VZV primed mouse model. Furthermore, the frequency of gE specific polyfunctional CD4+ T cells expressing interferon (IFN) g, tumor necrosis factor (TNF) a, and interleukin (IL) 2 was significantly increased in mice immunized with the adjuvanted vaccine. These data indicate that co lyophilization of protein antigens with CIA09A enables development of a liposome adjuvanted vaccine in a single vial to induce strong cell mediated immunity required for vaccine efficacy. Thus, the CIA09A adjuvanted gE vaccine warrants further development as a new prophylactic vaccine against HZ.
Vaccine