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Journal of Virology, January 2005, p. 626-631, Vol. 79, No. 1
0022-538X/05/$08.00+0 doi:10.1128/JVI.79.1.626-631.2005
Vaccine Research Center, NIAID, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
Received 1 April 2004/ Accepted 26 August 2004
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Construction and production of VLP.
A hybrid CCR5-tropic Env protein gp160 modified by deletion of the cleavage site (C), the fusion peptide (F), and the interspace (I) between the two heptad repeats (
CFI) to stimulate high levels of antibody production without compromising the cytotoxic T-lymphocyte response (7, 24) was further altered by deletion of V1 and V2 (
V1V2) loop regions to expose core conserved determinants (Fig. 1A, gp145
CFI
V1V2). The gp145
CFI
V1V2 cDNA was inserted downstream of the Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) enhancer-promoter, linked to a human T-cell leukemia virus type 1 R-region translational enhancer (3), and is designated Env here. This plasmid had been prepared by insertion of the AflIII/Klenow/HpaI-digested modified RSV promoter fragment into pVRC1012 (24) that had been digested with SpeI and HpaI and blunted with the Klenow fragment. The polyadenylation signal from herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (GenBank accession number U40398), amplified with the sense primer 5'CCGGATCCGTCGACCGGGAGATGGGGGAG3' and the antisense primer 5' AACCAGGCCATGATGGCCACTTGGGGGGTGGGGTGGGG3', was digested with BamHI and SfiI and inserted into those sites in the plasmid. An XbaI-to-BamHI fragment of gp145
CFI
V1V2 (24) was inserted into the modified RSV promoter vector digested with the same enzymes (Fig. 1B, Env). A codon-modified Gag known to induce cellular immunity (13) was also used (Fig. 1B, Gag). To compare these immune responses to those induced by VLP, a dual expression vector was made from the above plasmid by digesting the Env expression vector with Msc1 upstream of the RSV promoter and inserting the SpeI and KpnI Klenow-blunted Gag expression cassette in the same orientation (Fig. 1B, pVLPgp145). Gag and Env showed comparable expression in these different plasmids after transfection of human embryonic kidney (293) cells and analysis by Western blotting (Fig. 1C).
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FIG. 1. Schematic representation of HIV gene and immunization vectors. (A) The major structural features of the hybrid CCR5-tropic Env protein gp160, modified Env gp145 CFI V1V2 (7, 24), and Gag (13) used in the present study are shown. V1, V2, V3, and V4 indicate the respective variable regions. TM, transmembrane domain. (B) Schematic representation of immunization plasmids. The Gag expression plasmid containing a cytomegalovirus promoter (13) and Env gp145 CFI V1V2 (24) inserted into a modified RSV promoter were used as separate immunogens. The dual expression plasmid pVLPgp145 gives rise to VLP. CMV, cytomegalovirus. (C) Comparable expression of HIV-1 Gag, Env gp145 CFI V1V2, and the dual vector in 293 cells. Cells (2 x 106) were transfected with 5 µg of Gag plus 5 µg of pVRC1012 vector (lane 1), 5 µg of Env plus 5 µg of vector (lane 2), 5 µg of Gag plus 5 µg of Env (lane 3), 10 µg of dual expression VLP vector (lane 4), and 10 µg of vector (lane 5). Expression was measured 48 h after transfection by Western blotting as described previously (7).
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100-fold more transfectable than NIH 3T3 cells, but when standardized for transfection efficiency, the yields of VLP differed by less than twofold between the two cell types (Fig. 2, legend), suggesting that there was no block to VLP formation using codon-modified expression vectors in murine cells. The dual expression plasmid produced VLP with an average diameter of 100 nm in both human and mouse cell lines (Fig. 2A and B). Buoyant density gradient sedimentation (14, 24) of supernatants obtained from 293 cells transfected with dual expression plasmid vector VLPgp145 showed incorporation of Env into VLP, with a peak of activity detected at a density of 1.1 g/ml (Fig. 2C), comparable to that reported for HIV type 1 (HIV-1) viral particles. The relative amounts of Env per particle were quantified by measuring Gag and Env protein levels by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and Western blot analysis, respectively. The VLP from the peak of fraction 6 (Fig. 2C) contained
0.45 pmol of Gag and 0.065 pmol of Env, and the Gag/Env ratio was
7:1. Assuming
2,000 Gag molecules per particle, we estimate that these are
285 Env's or
95 trimeric Env spikes per particle of VLP. VLP incorporated Env more efficiently than native virus, estimated to have
10 trimers per virion (9), possibly because codon-modified Env expression vectors driven by a strong promoter may allow for greater Env synthesis than native virus. Characterization of these modified Env's has been published previously (7), where they have been shown to form predominantly trimers. They would be expected to behave similarly in these VLP.
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FIG. 2. Production of virus-like particles shown by electron micrographs and buoyant density gradient analysis. (A) Human 293 cells were transfected with Env, Gag, and pVLPgp145. Arrows indicate VLP from Gag and pVLPgp145. The yield of the VLP was 1.46 µg/ml measured by p24 ELISA as described previously (25). The experiment was performed in triplicate. (B) Mouse NIH 3T3 cells were transfected with pVLPgp145. The cells were harvested 48 h after transfection and observed by electron microscopy. Arrows indicate VLP. The yield of the VLP was 0.024 µg/ml as measured by p24 ELISA, but the transfection frequency was 100-fold lower, indicating 1.64-fold higher levels of VLP formation when normalized for transfection. There was therefore no block to VLP formation with these vectors in murine cells. This experiment was performed in triplicate. (C) OptiPrep (Invitrogen) gradient analysis of VLP encoded by pVLPgp145. This vector was transfected into 293 cells, and supernatants were collected after 3 days, followed by density gradient centrifugation as previously described (24).
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) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-
) expression in stimulated CD4+ or CD8+ lymphocytes was analyzed by intracellular cytokine staining as described previously (15).
The CD4+ and CD8+ responses to Gag peptides induced by administration of Gag alone, separate injections of Gag and Env, or pVLPgp145 vaccination increased relative to the empty vector control; however, there was no statistical difference in CD4+ or CD8+ responses to Gag between the separate Gag and Env- and pVLPgp145-injected mice (P values of 0.25 and 0.86, respectively; nonparametric Wilcoxon rank sum test) (Fig. 3). Although the CD4 responses to Env were not detectable, they were not different among groups (Fig. 4A, left panel). We have typically seen lower signals in CD4+ cells than in CD8+ cells (15), consistent with previous observations that CD4+ responses are lower than CD8+ responses by the intracellular cytokine staining assay (6, 17, 21), possibly because relevant posttranslational modifications are lacking in the peptides, because
-IFN and TNF-
are less efficiently synthesized in these CD4+ cells than in CD8+ cells, or because antigen-presenting cells are limiting. In contrast, the CD8+ responses to Env were detectable and showed no statistical difference between separate Gag and Env and pVLP groups (P = 0.69) (Fig. 4A, right panel).
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FIG. 3. CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell responses against HIV-1 Gag as determined by intracellular cytokine analysis. CD4+ (left) and CD8+ (right) intracellular cytokine staining for IFN- - and TNF- -positive cells was performed by a standard method (15). Mice (five per group) were immunized with 50 µg of DNA. The groups included mice injected with 50 µg of vector pVRC1012 with no insert (Vector) (7) or those injected with 25 µg of vector and 25 µg of the single-gene plasmid expressing Gag (Gag), 25 µg of vector and 25 µg of the single-gene plasmid expressing Env (Env), two individual plasmids at separate sites (Gag [25 µg] in the right quadriceps muscle and Env [25 µg] in the left quadriceps muscle) (separate Gag+Env), or 25 µg of VLP-forming dual expression vector bearing Gag+Env (VLP) on each side (total of 50 µg). Splenic cells were harvested 10 days after the final immunization and sensitized with a Gag peptide pool. The cells were fixed, stained with monoclonal antibodies, and analyzed by fluorescence-activated cell sorting to detect the IFN- - and TNF- -positive cells in the CD4+ and CD8+ populations shown. The symbols show the individual results for the five mice in each group. The thin horizontal bar represents the average of the five data points; bars show the standard deviation. The P values comparing separate and VLP groups against the Gag peptide pool are shown. The P values comparing the vector and separate groups for CD4 and CD8 response are 0.04 and 0.07, respectively.
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FIG. 4. CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell responses and antibody titers to HIV-1 Env as determined by intracellular cytokine analysis, ELISA and neutralization assays. (A) CD4+ (left) and CD8+ (right) T-cell responses against Env determined by intracellular cytokine analysis for IFN- - and TNF- -positive cells as previously described (15). Each group was immunized with control vector alone (Vector), Gag and control vector (Gag), Env and control vector (Env), Gag and Env in separate sites (separate Gag+Env), or pVLPgp145 (VLP). The symbols show the individual results for the five mice in each group. The thin horizontal bar represents the average of the five data points; bars show the standard deviations. The P values comparing the separate Gag+Env and VLP groups against the Env peptide pool are shown. (B) Antibody titer against Env in the immunized mouse sera as determined by ELISA. ELISA results represent endpoint dilution titers of Env-specific antibodies in mouse sera as determined by optical density. Sera from the five groups of mice were collected 10 days after the third immunization. The P value for the difference between the separate and VLP groups is shown. (C) Neutralizing antibody responses of the indicated mice were measured. IgG was purified from sera using the Nab protein A purification kit (Pierce, catalog number 45200). Purified IgG (12.5 µg/ml) was incubated with HXB2 pseudotyped lentiviral vectors expressing a luciferase reporter gene for 30 min before infection of human T-cell line and M8166 cells. After 48 h, luciferase activity was analyzed as described previously (25). The experiment was performed in duplicate.
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In this study, we show that immune responses induced by separate vaccination injections of plasmid DNA with Gag and Env were comparable to those elicited by a plasmid encoding both proteins that gave rise to VLP. The cellular immune responses to Gag were similar (Fig. 3). Further, there was no major difference in the cellular or humoral immune response to Env elicited by VLP and separated plasmids (Fig. 4). In murine cells that express human CD4, CCR5, and cyclin T1, infection by wild-type HIV-1 tends to integrate and express viral proteins, but few infectious viral particles are produced. This block is postulated to be due to a decrease in viral entry, viral RNA synthesis, and the failure of Gag to target to the membrane (8, 18). In the present study, VLP were observed to bud efficiently from the membranes of both 293 cells and NIH 3T3 cells (Fig. 2A and B). This finding suggests that the block to assembly of wild-type HIV-1 in murine cells (20) is overcome by expression of codon-modified synthetic viral genes, likely because of altered mRNA structure that is no longer Tat- or Rev-dependent and because of the strong enhancers that drive gene expression. These VLP are indistinguishable from immature wild-type virus by electron microscopy.
Inactivated HIV-1 and SIV particles treated with 2,2'-dithiodipyridine (aldrithiol-2) have been used to boost recombinant vaccinia viruses expressing HIV Env or SIV Gag/Pol in macaque models (23). Vaccinated monkeys produced anti-Env and -Gag antibodies after being given a booster with inactivated particles, experienced less viremia after challenge, and showed no significant loss of CD4+ T cells. DNA vaccination producing viral particles from proviral DNA using a long terminal repeat or cytomegalovirus promoter have proven to be partially protective in chimeric simian-human immunodeficiency virus and SIV challenge models (1, 2, 11); however, the use of proviral genes presents safety concerns related to reversion and recombination with natural virus. Production of HIV VLP from a single plasmid system that expresses both Gag and Env variants using synthetic codons addresses these safety concerns. In addition, it provides the advantage of producing VLP from antigen-presenting cells that may take up these plasmids, not only cells naturally infected by virus, as is the case with live attenuated vectors. However, we find that the immunogenicity of a DNA vaccine encoding HIV Env in a VLP is similar to that of individual HIV gene products in terms of quantitative cellular and humoral immune responses. Though it remains possible that VLP may prove useful for AIDS vaccine development, the present study suggests that individual plasmid DNA expression vectors can generate similar immunity. Vaccination with combinations of such gene products using DNA vaccines may add breadth to the antiviral immune response without the requirement for formation of particles in vivo, thus facilitating the development of multivalent AIDS vaccines.
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production: statistical analyses establish reproducibility and criteria for distinguishing positive responses. J. Interferon Cytokine Res. 23:369-377.[CrossRef][Medline]
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