The Effects of GM‐CSF and IL‐5 as Molecular Adjuvants on Immune Responses and Contraception Induced by mZP3 DNA Vaccination

Abstract

Various approaches have been developed to improve the antibody response of zona pellucida glycoprotein-3 (ZP3) vaccination. In this study, we investigated whether GM-CSF and IL-5 can be used as cytokine adjuvants to increase the humoral immune response generated by mouse ZP3 (mZP3) DNA vaccine. Mice in experimental group were injected by GM-CSF 4days before the co-immunization of IL-5 and mZP3 DNA vaccine. The contraception and the correlation with humoral and cellular immune responses were analyzed after immunization and mating. The effect of cytokine adjuvant on the maturation of DCs was evaluated. Co-immunization of GM-CSF and IL-5 with mZP3 DNA vaccine induced the highest level of serum IgG and IL-4 expression in CD4(+) T cells. Importantly, this strategy reduced mice fertility without disrupting normal ovarian morphology. GM-CSF enhanced the maturation of DCs evidenced by up-regulating the expression of MHC-II and CD86. GM-CSF and IL-5 co-administration enhanced humoral immune responses to mZP3, and this may be a potential strategy for development of immunocontraceptive vaccine.