A novel vaccine approach combining mosquito salivary antigens and viral antigens to protect against Zika, chikungunya and other arboviral infections.

一种结合蚊子唾液抗原和病毒抗原的新型疫苗方法，可预防寨卡病毒、基孔肯雅热和其他虫媒病毒感染。

• 批准号: 10083718
• 金额: $ 86.65万
• 依托单位: CONSERV BIOSCIENCE LIMITED
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Small Business Research Initiative
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2023 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=10083718
• 关键词: novel; vaccine; approach; combining; mosquito

Zika and chikungunya are mosquito-borne viruses with epidemic potential, and both are transmitted by the bite of infected _Aedes_ female mosquitoes. Zika and chikungunya outbreaks have been reported in South and Central America, the Caribbean, the Pacific islands, Africa, and Asia. There is a risk that these viruses will spread geographically by infected travellers and by the expansion of _Aedes'_ habitat due to global warming and deforestation. There is currently no vaccine or antiviral to prevent or treat chikungunya and Zika virus infection and the only protection comes from preventing mosquito bites. _Aedes_ mosquitoes are also carriers of dengue and yellow fever viruses whereas viruses such as West Nile, St. Louis encephalitis, and Japanese encephalitis are mainly transmitted by _Culex_ mosquitoes.Infected female mosquitoes deposit virus into the skin dermis as they probe for a blood meal to provide the nutrition required to lay fertile eggs. Probing triggers activation of distinct inflammatory pathways in response to mosquito biting and to virus sensing. Whole mosquito saliva contains molecules that help control blood flow but also contains molecules that influence the course of the infection in the host. Immune cells resident in the skin and cells recruited to the bite site are susceptible to infection, hosting the first round of viral replication rather than being the first line of defence. Modifying the immune response to the saliva could translate in reduced viral replication in the skin and dramatically alter the course of the infection.ConserV Bioscience has designed a two-component vaccine: the first component is common to all _Aedes_ and _Culex_ mosquitoes and aims to stop the beneficial effects that mosquito saliva has on supporting viral infection; the second is a variable component that targets specific regions of viruses carried by mosquitoes. For this project, the focus is on Zika and chikungunya, but this approach could be applied to prevent other mosquito-borne diseases by only requiring a change of target in the second, virus specific component.The development of a vaccine that is aimed at disrupting the mechanism by which infection becomes established in the body, combined with pathogen specific targets, is highly innovative. This project will focus on the selection of the best antigens for the two vaccine components from an existing list of potential peptide candidates. The best candidates for the two components will be evaluated, separately and combined, for immunogenicity and efficacy against both Zika and chikungunya virus.

寨卡病毒和基孔肯雅热是具有流行潜力的蚊媒病毒，两者均通过受感染的雌性伊蚊叮咬传播。据报道，南美洲和中美洲、加勒比海地区、太平洋岛屿、非洲和亚洲爆发了寨卡病毒和基孔肯雅热疫情。这些病毒有可能通过受感染的旅行者以及由于全球变暖和森林砍伐而扩大伊蚊栖息地而在地理上传播。目前没有疫苗或抗病毒药物可以预防或治疗基孔肯雅病毒和寨卡病毒感染，唯一的保护措施是防止蚊子叮咬。伊蚊也是登革热和黄热病病毒的携带者，而西尼罗河、圣路易斯脑炎和日本脑炎等病毒主要由库蚊传播。受感染的雌性蚊子在探寻血粉时将病毒沉积到皮肤真皮层中。提供产受精蛋所需的营养。探测会触发不同炎症途径的激活，以响应蚊子叮咬和病毒感应。整个蚊子唾液中含有有助于控制血流的分子，但也含有影响宿主感染过程的分子。驻留在皮肤中的免疫细胞和招募到咬伤部位的细胞很容易受到感染，它们是第一轮病毒复制的宿主，而不是第一道防线。改变对唾液的免疫反应可能会减少皮肤中的病毒复制，并显着改变感染过程。ConserV Bioscience 设计了一种双成分疫苗：第一个成分是所有伊蚊和库蚊所共有的，旨在阻止蚊子唾液对支持病毒感染的有益作用；第二个是针对蚊子携带的病毒特定区域的可变成分。该项目的重点是寨卡病毒和基孔肯雅病毒，但这种方法可以应用于预防其他蚊媒疾病，只需改变第二个病毒特异性成分的目标即可。开发旨在破坏病毒的疫苗感染在体内建立的机制与病原体的特异性靶标相结合，具有高度创新性。该项目将重点从现有的潜在候选肽列表中选择两种疫苗成分的最佳抗原。将分别和组合评估这两种成分的最佳候选者的免疫原性和针对寨卡病毒和基孔肯雅病毒的功效。