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Immunogenicity of nuclear-encoded LTB:ST fusion protein from Escherichia coli expressed in tobacco plants

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Abstract

Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) is one of the main causative agents of diarrhea in infants and for travelers. Inclusion of a heat-stable (ST) toxin into vaccine formulations is mandatory as most ETEC strains can produce both heat-labile (LT) and ST enterotoxins. In this study, a genetic fusion gene encoding for an LTB:ST protein has been constructed and transferred into tobacco via Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation. Transgenic tobacco plants carrying the LTB:ST gene are then subjected to GM1-ELISA revealing that the LTB:ST has assembled into pentamers and displays antigenic determinants from both LTB and ST. Protein accumulation of up to 0.05% total soluble protein is detected. Subsequently, mucosal and systemic humoral responses are elicited in mice orally dosed with transgenic tobacco leaves. This has suggested that the plant-derived LTB:ST is immunogenic via the oral route. These findings are critical for the development of a plant-based vaccine capable of eliciting broader protection against ETEC and targeting both LTB and ST. Features of this platform in comparison to transplastomic approaches are discussed.

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Acknowledgments

This research was funded by grants El Potosí estudiantil 2004 (IPICYT), 37048-B, 56980 and 102109 from CONACYT and PROMEP 103.5/10/5460. Thanks to Dr. John Clements for providing the LTB protein and Dr. Jim Carrington for supplying the pTRL0027 vector.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratorio de Biofarmacéuticos recombinantes, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosí, Av. Dr. Manuel Nava 6, 78210, San Luis Potosí, SLP, Mexico

    Sergio Rosales-Mendoza, Ruth E. Soria-Guerra & Dania O. Govea-Alonso

  2. Inmunidad en Mucosas, UBIMED, FES-Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Avenida de los Barrios 1, 54090, Tlalnepantla, Mexico

    Leticia Moreno-Fierros

  3. Laboratorio de Biología Molecular de Plantas, División de Biología Molecular, Instituto Potosino de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica, Camino a la Presa San José 2055, 78216, San Luis Potosí, SLP, Mexico

    Areli Herrera-Díaz & Ángel G. Alpuche-Solís

  4. Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA

    Schuyler S. Korban

Authors
  1. Sergio Rosales-Mendoza
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  2. Ruth E. Soria-Guerra
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  3. Leticia Moreno-Fierros
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  4. Dania O. Govea-Alonso
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  5. Areli Herrera-Díaz
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  6. Schuyler S. Korban
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  7. Ángel G. Alpuche-Solís
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ángel G. Alpuche-Solís.

Additional information

Communicated by P. Lakshmanan.

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Rosales-Mendoza, S., Soria-Guerra, R.E., Moreno-Fierros, L. et al. Immunogenicity of nuclear-encoded LTB:ST fusion protein from Escherichia coli expressed in tobacco plants. Plant Cell Rep 30, 1145–1152 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-011-1023-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-011-1023-0

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