SARS-CoV-2 Virus-like Particles Produced by a Single Recombinant Baculovirus Generate Anti-S Antibody and Protect against Variant Challenge

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by infection with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has highlighted the need for the rapid generation of efficient vaccines for emerging disease. Virus-like particles, VLPs, are an established vaccine technology that produces vi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Viruses 2022-04, Vol.14 (5), p.914
Main Authors: Sullivan, Edward, Sung, Po-Yu, Wu, Weining, Berry, Neil, Kempster, Sarah, Ferguson, Deborah, Almond, Neil, Jones, Ian M, Roy, Polly
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Antibodies
Baculoviridae - genetics
baculovirus
Cloning
coronavirus
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
COVID-19 - prevention & control
COVID-19 - therapy
COVID-19 Serotherapy
COVID-19 vaccines
Cricetinae
Disease transmission
Glycoproteins
Humans
Immunization, Passive
Insect cells
Proteins
recombinant
SARS
SARS-CoV-2 - genetics
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
Structural proteins
Sucrose
Vaccines
Virus-like particles
Viruses
VLP
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Summary:Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by infection with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has highlighted the need for the rapid generation of efficient vaccines for emerging disease. Virus-like particles, VLPs, are an established vaccine technology that produces virus-like mimics, based on expression of the structural proteins of a target virus. SARS-CoV-2 is a coronavirus where the basis of VLP formation has been shown to be the co-expression of the spike, membrane and envelope structural proteins. Here we describe the generation of SARS-CoV-2 VLPs by the co-expression of the salient structural proteins in insect cells using the established baculovirus expression system. VLPs were heterologous ~100 nm diameter enveloped particles with a distinct fringe that reacted strongly with SARS-CoV-2 convalescent sera. In a Syrian hamster challenge model, non-adjuvanted VLPs induced neutralizing antibodies to the VLP-associated Wuhan S protein and reduced virus shedding and protected against disease associated weight loss following a virulent challenge with SARS-CoV-2 (B.1.1.7 variant). Immunized animals showed reduced lung pathology and lower challenge virus replication than the non-immunized controls. Our data suggest SARS-CoV-2 VLPs offer an efficient vaccine that mitigates against virus load and prevents severe disease.
ISSN:1999-4915
1999-4915
DOI:10.3390/v14050914