Immunogenicity and protective role of antigenic regions from five outer membrane proteins of Flavobacterium columnare in grass carp Ctenopharyngodon idella

Flavobacterium columnare causes columnaris disease in freshwater fi sh. In the present study, the antigenic regions of fi ve outer membrane proteins(OMPs), including zinc metalloprotease, prolyl oligopeptidase, thermolysin, collagenase and chondroitin AC lyase, were bioinformatically analyzed, fused together, and then expressed as a recombinant fusion protein in Escherichia coli. The expressed protein of 95.6 k Da, as estimated by 10% sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, was consistent with the molecular weight deduced from the amino acid sequence. The purifi ed recombinant protein was used to vaccinate the grass carp, C tenopharyngodon idella. Following vaccination of the fi sh their Ig M antibody levels were examined, as was the expression of I g M, Ig D and Ig Z immunoglobulin genes and other genes such as MHC Iα and MHC I I β, which are also involved in adaptive immunity. Interleukin genes( IL), including I L- 1β, IL- 8 and I L- 10, and type I and type II interferon(I FN) genes were also examined. At 3 and 4 weeks post-vaccination(wpv), signifi cant increases in Ig M antibody levels were observed in the fi sh vaccinated with the recombinant fusion protein, and an increase in the expression levels of I g M, Ig D and Ig Z genes was also detected following the vaccinations, thus indicating that an adaptive immune response was induced by the vaccinations. Early increases in the expression levels of IL and IFN genes were also observed in the vaccinated fi sh. At four wpv, the fi sh were challenged with F. column a re, and the vaccinated fi sh showed a good level of protection against this pathogen, with 39% relative percent survival(RPS) compared with the control group. It can be concluded, therefore, that the fi ve OMPs, in the form of a recombinant fusion protein vaccine, induced an immune response in fi sh and protection against F. columnare.

High throughput monoclonal antibody generation by immunizing multiple antigens

Recognizing proteins via the production of highly specific monoclonal antibodies(mAbs)is crucial to identifying proteins for proteomic research.However,traditional mAb generation is time-consuming with low efficiency.In this study,we assessed the high throughput method of producing mAbs by immunizing mice with multiple antigens in order to obtain hybridomas against these multiple antigens in one cell fusion.We selected eight proteins that play important roles in human physiological or pathological processes.These proteins were mixed and simultaneously administered to one mouse.We observed the immunizing period for 10 d,and determined the effect of liquid medium and semi-solid medium in hybridoma generation.As a result,all eight immunogens induced antibodies in the immunized mouse in one cell fusion,we obtained hybridomas specific to all eight proteins by enzyme-linked immuno sorbent assay(ELISA)screening,hybridomas against five out of eight showed specific positive in Western-blotting assays.This indicates that we generated mAbs specific to eight proteins in one cell fusion,greatly increasing the efficiency of mAb generation.Furthermore,we observed that hybridomas selected from the liquid medium and semi-solid medium showed different reactivity to antigens.Our study established high-throughput and time-saving methods for production of mAbs.These results provide alternative approaches for increasing the efficacy of mAb generation.

Protective effect of DNA-mediated immunization with a combination of SAG1 and IL-2 gene adjuvant against infection of Toxoplasma gondii in mice

To characterize the immune response induced by SAG1 encoding plasmid combined with IL 2 gene adjuvant in mice and to assess the protective effect of this vaccination against toxoplasmosis Methods Mice were co injected intramuscularly with plasmid encoding Toxoplasma gondii SAG1 plus murine IL 2 expression vector at a dose of 100 μg Booster immunizations were employed 2 more times at 3 week interval As controls, mice were inoculated with PBS or empty plasmid pcDNA3 Humoral and cellular responses were assayed using ELISA for the determination of Ab, Ab isotype and IFN γ, as well as IL 4 To detect the integration and dissemination of DNA in the injected mice, PCR and in situ hybridization were performed All mice were then infected with highly virulent RH tachyzoites of Toxoplasma gondii intraperitoneally Results Significant increases in specific IgG levels were observed in mice after immunization three times with SAG1 expression plasmid With respect to the IgG isotype, co inoculation of IL 2 expression plasmid enhanced the level of IgG2a and the production of IFN γ Challenging mice by vaccinating with combined plasmids with RH tachyzoites resulted in prolonged survival Conclusion Humoral and cytokine responses elicited by SAG1 DNA immunization can be modulated by co inoculation with IL 2 expression plasmid The use of DNA vaccine in combination with an appropriate cytokine gene to prevent T gondii infection warrants further investigation