Strategy for the Construction of SARS-CoV-2 S and N Recombinant Proteins and Their Immunogenicity Evaluation

This study reports the construction, expression, and purification of synthetic SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) and nucleoprotein (N) containing immunodominant epitopes. The pET28aS_epit construct included epitopes 287–317, 402, 507, 524–598, and 601–640, while the pET28aN_epit construct included residues 42–62...

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Main Authors: Paulo Henrique Guilherme Borges, Barbara Gregio, Helena Tiemi Suzukawa, Gislaine Silva-Rodrigues, Emanuella de Castro Andreassa, Isabela Madeira de Castro, Guilherme Bartolomeu-Gonçalves, Emerson José Venancio, Phileno Pinge-Filho, Viviane Monteiro Góes, Celso Vataru Nakamura, Eliandro Reis Tavares, Tatiana de Arruda Campos Brasil de Souza, Sueli Fumie Yamada-Ogatta, Lucy Megumi Yamauchi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-05-01
Series:BioTech
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2673-6284/14/2/38
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author Paulo Henrique Guilherme Borges
Barbara Gregio
Helena Tiemi Suzukawa
Gislaine Silva-Rodrigues
Emanuella de Castro Andreassa
Isabela Madeira de Castro
Guilherme Bartolomeu-Gonçalves
Emerson José Venancio
Phileno Pinge-Filho
Viviane Monteiro Góes
Celso Vataru Nakamura
Eliandro Reis Tavares
Tatiana de Arruda Campos Brasil de Souza
Sueli Fumie Yamada-Ogatta
Lucy Megumi Yamauchi
author_facet Paulo Henrique Guilherme Borges
Barbara Gregio
Helena Tiemi Suzukawa
Gislaine Silva-Rodrigues
Emanuella de Castro Andreassa
Isabela Madeira de Castro
Guilherme Bartolomeu-Gonçalves
Emerson José Venancio
Phileno Pinge-Filho
Viviane Monteiro Góes
Celso Vataru Nakamura
Eliandro Reis Tavares
Tatiana de Arruda Campos Brasil de Souza
Sueli Fumie Yamada-Ogatta
Lucy Megumi Yamauchi
author_sort Paulo Henrique Guilherme Borges
collection DOAJ
description This study reports the construction, expression, and purification of synthetic SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) and nucleoprotein (N) containing immunodominant epitopes. The pET28aS_epit construct included epitopes 287–317, 402, 507, 524–598, and 601–640, while the pET28aN_epit construct included residues 42–62, 153–172, and 355–401. Commercial sequences of both proteins were used as controls. The four constructs were expressed using the <i>Escherichia coli</i> BL21(DE3) star strain at 37 °C. The results show that the S protein constructs were insoluble, unlike the N protein constructs. Both recombinant proteins induced immune responses in mice and were recognized by antibodies present in sera from COVID-19-positive and/or SARS-CoV-2-vaccinated humans. No significant differences in immune recognition were observed between our constructs and the commercially available proteins. In conclusion, S_epit and N_epit could be promising starting points for the development of new strategies based on immunological reactions for the control of SARS-CoV-2 infections.
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spelling doaj-art-c0c01844a2f847c9a8b034c8c8e519db2025-08-20T02:24:26ZengMDPI AGBioTech2673-62842025-05-011423810.3390/biotech14020038Strategy for the Construction of SARS-CoV-2 S and N Recombinant Proteins and Their Immunogenicity EvaluationPaulo Henrique Guilherme Borges0Barbara Gregio1Helena Tiemi Suzukawa2Gislaine Silva-Rodrigues3Emanuella de Castro Andreassa4Isabela Madeira de Castro5Guilherme Bartolomeu-Gonçalves6Emerson José Venancio7Phileno Pinge-Filho8Viviane Monteiro Góes9Celso Vataru Nakamura10Eliandro Reis Tavares11Tatiana de Arruda Campos Brasil de Souza12Sueli Fumie Yamada-Ogatta13Lucy Megumi Yamauchi14Post-Graduate Program in Microbiology, Department of Microbiology, State University of Londrina, Londrina 86.055-900, BrazilPost-Graduate Program in Microbiology, Department of Microbiology, State University of Londrina, Londrina 86.055-900, BrazilLaboratory of Molecular Biology of Microorganisms, Department of Microbiology, State University of Londrina, Londrina 86.055-900, BrazilPost-Graduate Program in Microbiology, Department of Microbiology, State University of Londrina, Londrina 86.055-900, BrazilCarlos Chagas Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (FIOCRUZ-PR), Curitiba 81350-010, BrazilPost-Graduate Program in Microbiology, Department of Microbiology, State University of Londrina, Londrina 86.055-900, BrazilPost-Graduate Program in Clinical and Laboratory Physiopathology, State University of Londrina, Londrina 86.055-900, BrazilDepartment of Immunology, Parasitology and General Pathology, State University of Londrina, Londrina 86.055-900, BrazilDepartment of Immunology, Parasitology and General Pathology, State University of Londrina, Londrina 86.055-900, BrazilInstitute of Molecular Biology of Paraná, Curitiba 81350-010, BrazilLaboratory of Technological Innovation in the Development of Pharmaceuticals and Cosmetics, State University of Maringá, Maringá 87020-900, BrazilLaboratory of Molecular Biology of Microorganisms, Department of Microbiology, State University of Londrina, Londrina 86.055-900, BrazilCarlos Chagas Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (FIOCRUZ-PR), Curitiba 81350-010, BrazilLaboratory of Molecular Biology of Microorganisms, Department of Microbiology, State University of Londrina, Londrina 86.055-900, BrazilLaboratory of Molecular Biology of Microorganisms, Department of Microbiology, State University of Londrina, Londrina 86.055-900, BrazilThis study reports the construction, expression, and purification of synthetic SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) and nucleoprotein (N) containing immunodominant epitopes. The pET28aS_epit construct included epitopes 287–317, 402, 507, 524–598, and 601–640, while the pET28aN_epit construct included residues 42–62, 153–172, and 355–401. Commercial sequences of both proteins were used as controls. The four constructs were expressed using the <i>Escherichia coli</i> BL21(DE3) star strain at 37 °C. The results show that the S protein constructs were insoluble, unlike the N protein constructs. Both recombinant proteins induced immune responses in mice and were recognized by antibodies present in sera from COVID-19-positive and/or SARS-CoV-2-vaccinated humans. No significant differences in immune recognition were observed between our constructs and the commercially available proteins. In conclusion, S_epit and N_epit could be promising starting points for the development of new strategies based on immunological reactions for the control of SARS-CoV-2 infections.https://www.mdpi.com/2673-6284/14/2/38SARS-CoV-2immunoinformaticspurification of recombinant proteinssynthetic biology
spellingShingle Paulo Henrique Guilherme Borges
Barbara Gregio
Helena Tiemi Suzukawa
Gislaine Silva-Rodrigues
Emanuella de Castro Andreassa
Isabela Madeira de Castro
Guilherme Bartolomeu-Gonçalves
Emerson José Venancio
Phileno Pinge-Filho
Viviane Monteiro Góes
Celso Vataru Nakamura
Eliandro Reis Tavares
Tatiana de Arruda Campos Brasil de Souza
Sueli Fumie Yamada-Ogatta
Lucy Megumi Yamauchi
Strategy for the Construction of SARS-CoV-2 S and N Recombinant Proteins and Their Immunogenicity Evaluation
BioTech
SARS-CoV-2
immunoinformatics
purification of recombinant proteins
synthetic biology
title Strategy for the Construction of SARS-CoV-2 S and N Recombinant Proteins and Their Immunogenicity Evaluation
title_full Strategy for the Construction of SARS-CoV-2 S and N Recombinant Proteins and Their Immunogenicity Evaluation
title_fullStr Strategy for the Construction of SARS-CoV-2 S and N Recombinant Proteins and Their Immunogenicity Evaluation
title_full_unstemmed Strategy for the Construction of SARS-CoV-2 S and N Recombinant Proteins and Their Immunogenicity Evaluation
title_short Strategy for the Construction of SARS-CoV-2 S and N Recombinant Proteins and Their Immunogenicity Evaluation
title_sort strategy for the construction of sars cov 2 s and n recombinant proteins and their immunogenicity evaluation
topic SARS-CoV-2
immunoinformatics
purification of recombinant proteins
synthetic biology
url https://www.mdpi.com/2673-6284/14/2/38
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