8th Cuban Congress on Microbiology and Parasitology, 5th National Congress on Tropical Medicine and 5th International Symposium on HIV/aids infection in Cuba

Title

PURIFIED AND HIGHLY AGGREGATED CHIMERIC PROTEIN DIIIC-2 INDUCES A FUNCTIONAL IMMUNE RESPONSE IN MICE AGAINST DENGUE 2 VIRUS

Authors

Ernesto Marcos López , Lázaro Gil González , Laura Lazo Vázquez , Alienys Izquierdo Oliva , Enma Brown . , Edith Suzarte . , Iris Valdés Prado , Angélica García . , Lissandra Méndez . , María G. Guzmán Tirado , Gerardo Guillén . , Lisset Hermida Cruz

Abstract


Introduction: It was previously reported that DIIIC-2 (a fusion protein composed of domain III of the envelope protein and the capsid protein from dengue 2 virus), as an aggregate antigen from a partially purified preparation, induced a functional protective immune response against dengue 2 virus in the mouse encephalitis model. Materials and Methods: In the present work, a purification procedure was developed for DIIIC-2, and soluble and aggregated fractions of the purified protein were characterized and evaluated in mice. Results: The purification process rendered a protein preparation of 91 % purity, and the remaining 9 % consisted of fragments and aggregates of the same recombinant protein. After the in vitro aggregation process, upon addition of oligodeoxynucleotides, 80 % of the protein formed aggregates, whereas 20 % remained as soluble protein. An immunological evaluation revealed the proper immunogenicity of the aggregated purified protein in terms of induction of antiviral and neutralizing antibodies, cell-mediated immunity and protection upon dengue 2 virus challenge in the mouse encephalitis model. Conclusions: Based on these results, we can assert that the purified protein DIIIC-2 is functional and could be used for further scalable steps and preclinical studies in non-human primates.