The emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants in the Omicron lineage has resulted in diminished Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine efficacy and ...persistent transmission. In this study, we evaluated the immunogenicity and protective efficacy of two, recently authorized, bivalent COVID-19 vaccines that contain two mRNAs encoding Wuhan-1 and either BA.1 (mRNA-1273.214) or BA.4/5 (mRNA-1273.222) spike proteins. As a primary two-dose immunization series in mice, both bivalent vaccines induced greater neutralizing antibody responses against Omicron variants than the parental, monovalent mRNA-1273 vaccine. When administered to mice as a booster at 7 months after the primary vaccination series with mRNA-1273, the bivalent vaccines induced broadly neutralizing antibody responses. Whereas most anti-Omicron receptor binding domain antibodies in serum induced by mRNA-1273, mRNA-1273.214 and mRNA-1273.222 boosters cross-reacted with the antecedent Wuhan-1 spike antigen, the mRNA-1273.214 and mRNA-1273.222 bivalent vaccine boosters also induced unique BA.1-specific and BA.4/5-specific responses, respectively. Although boosting with parental or bivalent mRNA vaccines substantially improved protection against BA.5 compared to mice receiving two vaccine doses, the levels of infection, inflammation and pathology in the lung were lowest in animals administered the bivalent mRNA vaccines. Thus, boosting with bivalent Omicron-based mRNA-1273.214 or mRNA-1273.222 vaccines enhances immunogenicity and confers protection in mice against a currently circulating SARS-CoV-2 strain.
The treatment of AIDS with combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) remains lifelong largely because the virus persists in latent reservoirs. Elimination of latently infected cells could therefore ...reduce treatment duration and facilitate immune reconstitution. Here we report an approach to reduce the viral reservoir by activating dormant viral gene expression and directing T lymphocytes to lyse previously latent, HIV-1-infected cells. An immunomodulatory protein was created that combines the specificity of a HIV-1 broadly neutralizing antibody with that of an antibody to the CD3 component of the T-cell receptor. CD3 engagement by the protein can stimulate T-cell activation that induces proviral gene expression in latently infected T cells. It further stimulates CD8 T-cell effector function and redirects T cells to lyse these previously latent-infected cells through recognition of newly expressed Env. This immunomodulatory protein could potentially help to eliminate latently infected cells and deplete the viral reservoir in HIV-1-infected individuals.
Nearly all chronic human infections are associated with alterations in the memory B cell (MBC) compartment, including a large expansion of CD19
T-bet
MBC in the peripheral blood of HIV-infected ...individuals with chronic viremia. Despite their prevalence, it is unclear how these B cells arise and whether they contribute to the inefficiency of antibody-mediated immunity in chronic infectious diseases. We addressed these questions by characterizing T-bet-expressing B cells in lymph nodes (LN) and identifying a strong T-bet signature among HIV-specific MBC associated with poor immunologic outcome. Confocal microscopy and quantitative imaging revealed that T-bet
B cells in LN of HIV-infected chronically viremic individuals distinctly accumulated outside germinal centers (GC), which are critical for optimal antibody responses. In single-cell analyses, LN T-bet
B cells of HIV-infected individuals were almost exclusively found among CD19
MBC and expressed reduced GC-homing receptors. Furthermore, HIV-specific B cells of infected individuals were enriched among LN CD19
T-bet
MBC and displayed a distinct transcriptome, with features similar to CD19
T-bet
MBC in blood and LN GC B cells (GCBC). LN CD19
T-bet
MBC were also related to GCBC by B cell receptor (BCR)-based phylogenetic linkage but had lower BCR mutation frequencies and reduced HIV-neutralizing capacity, consistent with diminished participation in GC-mediated affinity selection. Thus, in the setting of chronic immune activation associated with HIV viremia, failure of HIV-specific B cells to enter or remain in GC may help explain the rarity of high-affinity protective antibodies.
Thirty-four adults received two 100-μg injections of Moderna’s mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, and serum anti–spike protein and neutralizing antibody titers were measured at day 119 — 90 days after the ...second injection. By three different assays, binding and neutralizing antibody titers declined slightly but remained elevated and higher than titers in convalescent plasma.
Vaccine-based elicitation of broadly neutralizing antibodies holds great promise for preventing HIV-1 transmission. However, the key biophysical markers of improved antibody recognition remain ...uncertain in the diverse landscape of potential antibody mutation pathways, and a more complete understanding of anti-HIV-1 fusion peptide (FP) antibody development will accelerate rational vaccine designs. Here we survey the mutational landscape of the vaccine-elicited anti-FP antibody, vFP16.02, to determine the genetic, structural, and functional features associated with antibody improvement or fitness. Using site-saturation mutagenesis and yeast display functional screening, we found that 1% of possible single mutations improved HIV-1 envelope trimer (Env) affinity, but generally comprised rare somatic hypermutations that may not arise frequently in vivo. We observed that many single mutations in the vFP16.02 Fab could enhance affinity >1,000-fold against soluble FP, although affinity improvements against the HIV-1 trimer were more measured and rare. The most potent variants enhanced affinity to both soluble FP and Env, had mutations concentrated in antibody framework regions, and achieved up to 37% neutralization breadth compared to 28% neutralization of the template antibody. Altered heavy- and light-chain interface angles and conformational dynamics, as well as reduced Fab thermal stability, were associated with improved HIV-1 neutralization breadth and potency. We also observed parallel sets of mutations that enhanced viral neutralization through similar structural mechanisms. These data provide a quantitative understanding of the mutational landscape for vaccine-elicited FP-directed broadly neutralizing antibody and demonstrate that numerous antigen-distal framework mutations can improve antibody function by enhancing affinity simultaneously toward HIV-1 Env and FP.
Extraordinary antibodies capable of near pan-neutralization of HIV-1 have been identified. One of the broadest is antibody 10E8, which recognizes the membrane-proximal external region (MPER) of the ...HIV-1 envelope and neutralizes >95% of circulating HIV-1 strains. If delivered passively, 10E8 might serve to prevent or treat HIV-1 infection. Antibody 10E8, however, is markedly less soluble than other antibodies. Here, we describe the use of both structural biology and somatic variation to develop optimized versions of 10E8 with increased solubility. From the structure of 10E8, we identified a prominent hydrophobic patch; reversion of four hydrophobic residues in this patch to their hydrophilic germ line counterparts resulted in an ∼10-fold decrease in turbidity. We also used somatic variants of 10E8, identified previously by next-generation sequencing, to optimize heavy and light chains; this process yielded several improved variants. Of these, variant 10E8v4 with 26 changes versus the parent 10E8 was the most soluble, with a paratope we showed crystallographically to be virtually identical to that of 10E8, a potency on a panel of 200 HIV-1 isolates also similar to that of 10E8, and a half-life in rhesus macaques of ∼10 days. An anomaly in 10E8v4 size exclusion chromatography that appeared to be related to conformational isomerization was resolved by engineering an interchain disulfide. Thus, by combining a structure-based approach with natural variation in potency and solubility from the 10E8 lineage, we successfully created variants of 10E8 which retained the potency and extraordinary neutralization breadth of the parent 10E8 but with substantially increased solubility.
Antibody 10E8 could be used to prevent HIV-1 infection, if manufactured and delivered economically. It suffers, however, from issues of solubility, which impede manufacturing. We hypothesized that the physical characteristic of 10E8 could be improved through rational design, without compromising breadth and potency. We used structural biology to identify hydrophobic patches on 10E8, which did not appear to be involved in 10E8 function. Reversion of hydrophobic residues in these patches to their hydrophilic germ line counterparts increased solubility. Next, clues from somatic variants of 10E8, identified by next-generation sequencing, were incorporated. A combination of structure-based design and somatic variant optimization led to 10E8v4, with substantially improved solubility and similar potency compared to the parent 10E8. The cocrystal structure of antibody 10E8v4 with its HIV-1 epitope was highly similar to that with the parent 10E8, despite 26 alterations in sequence and substantially improved solubility. Antibody 10E8v4 may be suitable for manufacturing.
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