Genome-level therapeutic targets identification and chimeric Vaccine designing against the Blastomyces dermatitidis

Abstract

Blastomyces dermatitidis is a thermally dimorphic fungus that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections, including blastomycosis. After spore inhalation, a pulmonary infection develops, which can be asymptomatic and have lethal effects, such as acute respiratory distress syndrome. Its most common extra-pulmonary sites are the central nervous system, bones, skin, and genito-urinary systems. Currently, no vaccine has been approved by the FDA to prevent this infection. In the study, a peptide-based vaccine was developed against blastomycosis by using subtractive proteomics and reverse vaccinology approaches. It focuses on mining the whole genome of B. dermatitidis, identifying potential therapeutic targets, and pinpointing potential epitopes for both B- and T-cells that are immunogenic, non-allergenic, non-toxic, and highly antigenic. Multi-epitope constructs were generated by incorporating appropriate linker sequences. A linker (EAAAK) was also added to incorporate an adjuvant sequence to increase immunological potential. The addition of adjuvants and linkers ultimately resulted in the formation of a vaccine construct in which the number of amino acids was 243 and the molecular weight was 26.18 kDa. The designed antigenic and non-allergenic vaccine constructs showed suitable physicochemical properties. The vaccine's structures were predicted, and further analysis verified their interactions with the human TLR-4 receptor through protein-protein docking. Additionally, MD simulation showed a potent interaction between prioritized vaccine-receptor complexes. Immune simulation predicted that the final vaccine injections resulted in significant immune responses for the T- and B-cell immune responses. Moreover, in silico cloning ensured a high expression possibility of the lead vaccine in the E. coli (K12) vector. This study offers an initiative for the development of effective vaccines against B. dermatitidis; however, it is necessary to validate the designed vaccine's immunogenicity experimentally.