Original Article
 

Designing of DNA Vaccine Based on a Secretory Form of Major Capsid Protein of Human Papillomavirus Type 18

Abstract

More than 99% of cervical cancers are associated with human papillomaviruses (HPVs) worldwide. Current HPV vaccines are safe, highly immunogenic, with effective immunity against specific HPV types. However, DNA vaccines are a new appealing platform which can be considered for designing the HPV vaccines. This study aimed to construct a recombinant eukaryotic expression plasmid containing L1 of HPV-18, tissue plasminogen activators (tPA), and pan HLA DR-binding epitope (PADRE) genes into the pVAX1 vector.
The L1, tPA, and PADRE genes were amplified in a thermocycler. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products were cloned and insertion of the genes was confirmed using colony PCR, restriction enzymes analysis, and sequencing methods. Indirect immunofluorescence, RT-PCR, and western blot assays were applied to identify the target gene in HEK-293 cells. Total IgG and its isotypes in immunized mice were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay technique.
Western blot analysis showed a protein band of about 67.5 kDa in supernatant and cell lysate of transfected cells. The results of mice immunization with different constructs (group 1: the pVAX-L1, group 2: pVAX-tPA-PADRE-L1, group 3: pVAX1, and group 4: PBS as controls) indicated that the pVAX1-tPA-PADRE-L1 construct induced a significantly higher level of total IgG than pVAX1-L1 (p=0.003).
In conclusion, pVAX1-tPA-PADRE-L1 recombinant plasmid is a highly immunogenic construct and suggests as a promising candidate for vaccine development against HPV type 18 in low-middle-income countries.

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IssueVol 20 No 5 (2021) QRcode
SectionOriginal Article(s)
DOI https://doi.org/10.18502/ijaai.v20i5.7403
Keywords
Alphapapillomaviruses DNA vaccines Indirect fluorescent antibody technique Polymerase chain reaction Uterine cervical neoplasms Western blotting

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How to Cite
1.
Shokri S, Mahmoudvand S, Makvandi M, Taherkhani R, Rashno M, Azizi Jalilian F, Ahmadi Angali K, Foroughi MA. Designing of DNA Vaccine Based on a Secretory Form of Major Capsid Protein of Human Papillomavirus Type 18. Iran J Allergy Asthma Immunol. 2021;20(5):525-536.