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Vaccines
Special Issues
Innovations in Vaccine Technology
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Innovations in Vaccine Technology

A special issue of Vaccines (ISSN 2076-393X). This special issue belongs to the section "Attenuated/Inactivated/Live and Vectored Vaccines".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2025 | Viewed by 3685

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Rachel Stephenson

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
Interests: peptides; subunit vaccines; vaccine development; infectious diseases
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Advances in vaccine technology have improved our ability to prevent infectious diseases,  revolutionizing global public health. Scientists have pursued safe and more effective immunization strategies from traditional approaches such as attenuated or inactivated vaccines to modern techniques such as mRNA and viral vector vaccines. These innovations have increased our capacity to respond to emerging threats such as pandemics. In addition, innovations in vaccine delivery systems, adjuvants and formulation techniques have further improved vaccine efficacy, safety and accessibility. Moreover, the integration of computational modeling, artificial intelligence and bioinformatics has made it easier to design and optimize novel vaccine candidates.

This Special Issue focuses on groundbreaking research and discoveries in the field of vaccine technology. We are inviting researchers, clinicians and stakeholders to contribute their insights and findings that drive forward the frontier of immunization and improve health.

Dr. Rachel Stephenson
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Vaccines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • inactivated vaccines
  • live-attenuated vaccines
  • messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines
  • subunit, recombinant, polysaccharide and conjugate vaccines
  • toxoid vaccines
  • viral vector vaccines
  • personalized vaccines
  • antigen design
  • reverse vaccinology
  • lipid nanoparticles
  • cell-based vaccine production
  • virus-like particles

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

24 pages, 2982 KiB  
Article
Gold Nanoparticles as a Platform for Delivery of Immunogenic Peptides to THP-1 Derived Macrophages: Insights into Nanotoxicity
by Eduardo Zúñiga, Braulio Contreras-Trigo, Jorge Buchert, Fabián Sáez-Ahumada, Leonardo Hernández, Víctor Fica-León, Estefania Nova-Lamperti, Bostjan Kobe, Fanny Guzmán, Víctor Diaz-García, Enrique Guzmán-Gutiérrez and Patricio Oyarzún
Vaccines 2025, 13(2), 119; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines13020119 - 24 Jan 2025
Viewed by 457
Abstract
Background: Peptide-based nanovaccines have emerged as a promising strategy for combating infectious diseases, as they overcome the low immunogenicity that is inherent to short epitope-containing synthetic peptides. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) present several advantages as peptide nanocarriers, but a deeper understanding of the design [...] Read more.
Background: Peptide-based nanovaccines have emerged as a promising strategy for combating infectious diseases, as they overcome the low immunogenicity that is inherent to short epitope-containing synthetic peptides. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) present several advantages as peptide nanocarriers, but a deeper understanding of the design criteria is paramount to accelerate the development of peptide-AuNPs nanoconjugates (p-AuNPs). Methods: Herein, we synthesized and characterized p-AuNPs of 23 nm (p-Au23) and 68 nm (p-Au68) with varying levels of peptide surface coverage and different peptide designs, investigating their effect on the cell viability (cell death and mitochondrial activity), cellular uptake, and cathepsin B activity in THP-1 macrophages. Results: p-Au23 proved no negative effect in the cell viability and high levels of nanoconjugate uptake, but p-Au68 induced strong toxicity to the cell line. The peptide sequences were successfully designed with spacer regions and a cell-penetrating peptide (pTAT) that enhanced cellular uptake and cathepsin B activity for p-Au23, while pTAT induced severe effects in the THP-1 viability (~40–60% cell death). Conclusions: These findings provide valuable insight into the design criteria of AuNPs and immunogenic peptides, along with nanotoxicity effects associated with AuNP size and surface charge in human monocyte-derived macrophages. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovations in Vaccine Technology)
21 pages, 8315 KiB  
Article
Enhancing DNA Vaccine Delivery Through Stearyl-Modified Cell-Penetrating Peptides: Improved Antigen Expression and Immune Response In Vitro and In Vivo
by Sheng Jiang, Cheng Zu, Bin Wang and Yiwei Zhong
Vaccines 2025, 13(1), 94; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines13010094 - 20 Jan 2025
Viewed by 463
Abstract
Background: Inefficient cellular uptake is a significant limitation to the efficacy of DNA vaccines. In this study, we introduce S-Cr9T, a stearyl-modified cell-penetrating peptide (CPP) designed to enhance DNA vaccine delivery by forming stable complexes with plasmid DNA, thereby protecting it from degradation [...] Read more.
Background: Inefficient cellular uptake is a significant limitation to the efficacy of DNA vaccines. In this study, we introduce S-Cr9T, a stearyl-modified cell-penetrating peptide (CPP) designed to enhance DNA vaccine delivery by forming stable complexes with plasmid DNA, thereby protecting it from degradation and promoting efficient intracellular uptake. Methods and Results: In vitro studies showed that S-Cr9T significantly improved plasmid stability and transfection efficiency, with optimal performance at an N/P ratio of 0.25. High-content imaging revealed that the S-Cr9T–plasmid complex stably adhered to the cell membrane, leading to enhanced plasmid uptake and transfection. In vivo, S-Cr9T significantly increased antigen expression and triggered a robust immune response, including a threefold increase in IFN-γ secretion and several hundred-fold increases in antibody levels compared to control groups. Conclusions: These findings underscore the potential of S-Cr9T to enhance DNA vaccine efficacy, offering a promising platform for advanced gene therapy and vaccination strategies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovations in Vaccine Technology)
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15 pages, 1375 KiB  
Article
A Study on the Induction of Multi-Type Immune Responses in Mice via an mRNA Vaccine Based on Hemagglutinin and Neuraminidase Antigen
by Mengyuan Liu, Yixuan Liu, Shaohui Song, Qiurong Qiao, Jing Liu, Yun Xie, Jian Zhou and Guoyang Liao
Vaccines 2025, 13(1), 91; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines13010091 - 19 Jan 2025
Viewed by 624
Abstract
Background: The Influenza A virus (IAV), a pathogen affecting the respiratory system, represents a major risk to public health worldwide. Immunization remains the foremost strategy to control the transmission of IAV. The virus has two primary antigens: hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). Our [...] Read more.
Background: The Influenza A virus (IAV), a pathogen affecting the respiratory system, represents a major risk to public health worldwide. Immunization remains the foremost strategy to control the transmission of IAV. The virus has two primary antigens: hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). Our previous studies have demonstrated that an IAV NA mRNA vaccine can induce Th1-type immune responses in mice. This research examined the immune responses elicited by an mRNA vaccine targeting both HA and NA antigens in murine models. Methods: In this study, we used two dual-antigen immunization strategies: single-site immunization with an IAV HA+NA mRNA vaccine and multi-site immunization with an IAV HA mRNA vaccine and IAV NA mRNA vaccine. Hemagglutination-inhibiting antibody titer and neutralizing antibody titer in the sera of immunized mice were evaluated, and a viral challenge experiment was conducted. Additionally, the immune responses elicited by the two immunization strategies were characterized using flow cytometry and ELISA. Comparative analyses were performed with mice immunized individually with the IAV HA mRNA vaccine, IAV NA mRNA vaccine, and inactivated vaccine. Results: The results showed that by using a multi-site immunization strategy, mice were able to generate higher levels of hemagglutination-inhibiting and neutralizing antibodies, and were protected in a viral challenge experiment. Moreover, the multi-site regimen also promoted the generation of cytotoxic T cells and maintained a balanced Th1/Th2 immune response. Conclusions: Using mRNA vaccine based on a HA and NA antigen with multi-site immunization strategy can induce higher levels of hemagglutination-inhibiting and neutralizing antibodies, and multi-type immune responses in mice, providing new theoretical and experimental support for advancing upcoming influenza vaccines. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovations in Vaccine Technology)
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13 pages, 1403 KiB  
Article
Analytical Performance of a Multiplexed Microarray Assay for Rapid Identification and Quantification of a Multivalent mRNA Vaccine
by Megan N. Gerold, Evan Toth, Rebecca H. Blair, Rachel Y. Gao, Durgesh V. Nadkarni, Sutapa Barua, Joshua Woods, Kathy L. Rowlen and Erica D. Dawson
Vaccines 2024, 12(10), 1144; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines12101144 - 5 Oct 2024
Viewed by 1498
Abstract
mRNA vaccines were highly effective in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, making them an attractive platform to address cancers and other infectious diseases. Many new mRNA vaccines in development are multivalent, which represents a difficulty for the standard assays commonly used to characterize [...] Read more.
mRNA vaccines were highly effective in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, making them an attractive platform to address cancers and other infectious diseases. Many new mRNA vaccines in development are multivalent, which represents a difficulty for the standard assays commonly used to characterize the critical quality attributes of monovalent formulations. Here, we present a multiplexed analytical tool with nucleic acid microarray technology using the VaxArray platform that measures the identity and quantity of mono- and multivalent mixtures of naked mRNA and mRNA encapsulated in lipid nanoparticle formulations in under 2 h without any additional preparation steps, such as extraction or RT-PCR. Using a quadrivalent mixture of encapsulated mRNA constructs that encode for four unique proteins in a vaccine formulation, the VaxArray mRNA assay was demonstrated to be highly specific for each mRNA with sensitivity < 1 µg/mL. The quantification of individual mRNAs within the lipid nanoparticle mixture resulted in a precision of ≤10% RSD and an accuracy of 100 ± 9%. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovations in Vaccine Technology)
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