Quadrivalent influenza nanoparticle vaccines induce broad protection

Nature. 2021 Apr;592(7855):623-628. doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03365-x. Epub 2021 Mar 24.

Abstract

Influenza vaccines that confer broad and durable protection against diverse viral strains would have a major effect on global health, as they would lessen the need for annual vaccine reformulation and immunization1. Here we show that computationally designed, two-component nanoparticle immunogens2 induce potently neutralizing and broadly protective antibody responses against a wide variety of influenza viruses. The nanoparticle immunogens contain 20 haemagglutinin glycoprotein trimers in an ordered array, and their assembly in vitro enables the precisely controlled co-display of multiple distinct haemagglutinin proteins in defined ratios. Nanoparticle immunogens that co-display the four haemagglutinins of licensed quadrivalent influenza vaccines elicited antibody responses in several animal models against vaccine-matched strains that were equivalent to or better than commercial quadrivalent influenza vaccines, and simultaneously induced broadly protective antibody responses to heterologous viruses by targeting the subdominant yet conserved haemagglutinin stem. The combination of potent receptor-blocking and cross-reactive stem-directed antibodies induced by the nanoparticle immunogens makes them attractive candidates for a supraseasonal influenza vaccine candidate with the potential to replace conventional seasonal vaccines3.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Broadly Neutralizing Antibodies / immunology*
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Female
  • Ferrets / immunology
  • Ferrets / virology
  • Hemagglutinin Glycoproteins, Influenza Virus / chemistry
  • Hemagglutinin Glycoproteins, Influenza Virus / immunology
  • Humans
  • Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype / immunology
  • Influenza A Virus, H3N2 Subtype / immunology
  • Influenza A virus / classification*
  • Influenza A virus / immunology*
  • Influenza Vaccines / administration & dosage
  • Influenza Vaccines / chemistry
  • Influenza Vaccines / immunology*
  • Influenza, Human / immunology*
  • Influenza, Human / prevention & control*
  • Influenza, Human / virology
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred BALB C
  • Models, Molecular
  • Nanomedicine*
  • Nanoparticles*

Substances

  • Broadly Neutralizing Antibodies
  • Hemagglutinin Glycoproteins, Influenza Virus
  • Influenza Vaccines