CELLULAR AND HUMORAL IMMUNOGENICITY OF DIFFERENT FORMULATIONS BASED ON RECOMINANT TRANSIALIDASES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A MUCOSAL VACCINE AGAINST T. cruzi

PACINI MF; GONZÁLEZ FB,; BULFONI BALBI C; FARRÉ C.; DINATALE B,; PROCHETTO E,; VILLAR SILVINA RAQUEL; ESPARIZ M,; BLANCATO V; MAGNI C; BONTEMPI I; CABRERA G; MARCIPAR I; BOTTASSO O; PÉREZ AR

Tucumán

Congreso; LXVII Reunión científica anual de la Sociedad Argentina de Inmunología; 2019

Currently, there are no prophylactic vaccines to fight Chagas disease. Some antigens derived from parasite Transialidase (TS) family have shown promising results as vaccine candidates in mouse models. Here, we evaluated the immunogenicity of different fragments of recombinant TS (TSNt and TSCt), pooled or not. TS fragments were selected by bioinformatics, covering different regions containing B and T epitopes, some of them immunodominant. Vaccine formulations comprised such recombinant TS with adjuvants (c-di-AMP or ISPA). These formulations were used to immunize BALB/c mice (n=5-6/group) intranasally (three doses, one every two weeks). As controls, groups of mice were treated with PBS (non-immunized) or with TS fragments, c-di-AMP or ISPA alone. Fifteen days after the last immunization, cell-mediated immunity was evaluated in vivo (delayed hypersensitivity test-DHT) and in vitro (flow cytometry). Specific humoral immunity was also measured (ELISA). Results indicated that immunized groups TSNt+ISPA, TSCt+ISPA, TSNt+c-di-AMP, TSCt+c-di-AMP, TS(Nt+Ct)+ISPA and TS(Nt+Ct)+c-di-AMP generated an increased cellular response by DHT after 24 and 48 hours compared with control groups (p