%0 Journal Article
%T Vaccine efficacy induced by virus-like particles containing Leishmania donovani surface glycoprotein GP63.
%A Yoon KW
%A Chu KB
%A Eom GD
%A Mao J
%A Quan FS
%J PLoS Negl Trop Dis
%V 18
%N 6
%D 2024 Jun
%M 38857253
暂无%R 10.1371/journal.pntd.0012229
%X Leishmania donovani surface glycoprotein 63 (GP63) is a major virulence factor involved in parasite escape and immune evasion. In this study, we generated virus-like particles (VLPs) expressing L. donovani GP63 using the baculovirus expression system. Mice were intramuscularly immunized with GP63-VLPs and challenged with L. donovani promastigotes. GP63-VLP immunization elicited higher levels of L. donovani antigen-specific serum antibodies and enhanced splenic B cell, germinal center B cell, CD4+, and CD8+ T cell responses compared to unimmunized controls. GP63-VLPs inhibited the influx of pro-inflammatory cytokines IFN-γ and IL-6 in the livers, as well as thwarting the development of splenomegaly in immunized mice. Upon L. donovani challenge infection, a drastic reduction in splenic parasite burden was observed in VLP-immunized mice. These results indicate that GP63-VLPs immunization conferred protection against L. donovani challenge infection by inducing humoral and cellular immunity in mice.