Archaeal lipid mucosal vaccine adjuvant and delivery system

Abstract

Archaeal polar lipids are being evaluated as adjuvants/vaccine delivery systems for mucosal vaccines that can provide protection against pathogens that enter the human host via the mucosal surfaces. Archaeosomes, liposomes made from polar lipids extracted from Archaea, with encapsulated antigens elicit strong antigen-specific systemic immune responses upon systemic or intranasal immunization, but fail to generate mucosal immune responses. However, intranasal immunization of mice with the archaeal lipid mucosal vaccine adjuvant and delivery (AMVAD) system, obtained by the interaction of archaeosomes/antigens with multivalent cations, induces robust, antigen-specific IgA responses in nasal and vaginal mucosa, feces, bile, and serum. In addition, strong antigen-specific systemic antibody (serum IgG, IgG₁ and IgG_2a) and cell-mediated responses, including CD8⁺ cytotoxic T lymphocyte, are generated. The responses are sustained over time and are subject to good memory-boost responses. The AMVAD formulations are stable during storage, have a good safety profile and show protective efficacy in a murine model of infection/challenge.

Keywords::

• adjuvant
• archaeal lipid
• intranasal
• mucosal
• vaccine

Acknowledgements

This paper is published as NRCC 42532. We acknowledge the technical assistance of our laboratory staff and contributions of our collaborators for the AMVAD technology research.

Financial & competing interests disclosure

Girishchandra B Patel and Wangxue Chen are co-inventors of pending patent applications on archaeal lipid mucosal vaccine adjuvant and delivery (AMVAD) technology. All rights have been assigned to the National Research Council Canada. Both authors are employees of the National Research Council Canada, a Crown corporation of the Government of Canada. The AMVAD research was partially funded by Dow AgroSciences Canada, Inc. (Calgary, AB, Canada) under the Institute of Biological Sciences-Dow AgroSciences Strategic Research Alliance. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter of materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.