Unadjuvanted Intranasal Spike Vaccine Elicits Protective Mucosal Immunity Against Sarbecoviruses

Overview

Journal Science

Specialty Science

Date 2022 Oct 27

PMID 36302057

Authors

Tianyang Mao

Benjamin Israelow

Mario A Pena-Hernandez

Alexandra Suberi

Liqun Zhou

Sophia Luyten

Melanie Reschke

Huiping Dong

Robert J Homer

W Mark Saltzman

Akiko Iwasaki

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has highlighted the need for vaccines that not only prevent disease but also prevent transmission. Parenteral vaccines induce robust systemic immunity but poor immunity at the respiratory mucosa. We developed a vaccine strategy that we call "prime and spike," which leverages existing immunity generated by primary vaccination (prime) to elicit mucosal immune memory within the respiratory tract by using unadjuvanted intranasal spike boosters (spike). We show that prime and spike induces robust resident memory B and T cell responses, induces immunoglobulin A at the respiratory mucosa, boosts systemic immunity, and completely protects mice with partial immunity from lethal SARS-CoV-2 infection. Using divergent spike proteins, prime and spike enables the induction of cross-reactive immunity against sarbecoviruses.

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