Logo image
Back
Vaccination of koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) against Chlamydia pecorum using synthetic peptides derived from the major outer membrane protein
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Vaccination of koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) against Chlamydia pecorum using synthetic peptides derived from the major outer membrane protein

Sharon Nyari, Shahneaz Khan, G Rawlinson, Courtney Waugh, Andrew Potter, Volker Gerdts and Peter Timms
PLoS One, Vol.13(6), e0200112
2018
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0200112
pdf
PDF - Published Version (Open Access)3.72 MBDownloadView
Published VersionPDF - Published Version (Open Access)CC BY V4.0,  Open Access
url
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0200112View
Published Version

Abstract

Chlamydia pecorum is a mucosal infection, which causes debilitating disease of the urinary tract, reproductive tract and ocular sites of koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus). While antibiotics are available for treatment, they are detrimental to the koalas' gastrointestinal tract microflora leaving the implementation of a vaccine as an ideal option for the long-term management of koala populations. We have previously reported on the successes of an anti-chlamydial recombinant major outer membrane protein (rMOMP) vaccine however, recombinant protein based vaccines are not ideal candidates for scale up from the research level to small-medium production level for wider usage. Peptide based vaccines are a promising area for vaccine development, because peptides are stable, cost effective and easily produced. In this current study, we assessed, for the first time, the immune responses to a synthetic peptide based anti-chlamydial vaccine in koalas. Five healthy male koalas were vaccinated with two synthetic peptides derived from C. pecorum MOMP and another five healthy male koalas were vaccinated with full length recombinant C. pecorum MOMP (genotype G). Systemic (IgG) and mucosal (IgA) antibodies were quantified and pre-vaccination levels compared to post-vaccination levels (12 and 26 weeks). MOMP-peptide vaccinated koalas produced Chlamydia-specific IgG and IgA antibodies, which were able to recognise not only the genotype used in the vaccination, but also MOMPs from several other koala C. pecorum genotypes. In addition, IgA antibodies induced at the ocular site not only recognised recombinant MOMP protein but also, whole native chlamydial elementary bodies. Interestingly, some MOMP-peptide vaccinated koalas showed a stronger and more sustained vaccine-induced mucosal IgA antibody response than observed in MOMP-protein vaccinated koalas. These results demonstrate that a synthetic MOMP peptide based vaccine is capable of inducing a Chlamydia-specific antibody response in koalas and is a promising candidate for future vaccine development.

Details

Metrics

11 File views/ downloads
256 Record Views
12 Times Cited - Web of Science

InCites Highlights

These are selected metrics from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool, related to this output

Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
International collaboration
Web Of Science research areas
Immunology

UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

This output has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:

#3 Good Health and Well-Being

Source: InCites

Logo image