Recombinant protein subunit vaccine synthesis in microbes: a role for yeast?

Recombinant protein subunit vaccines are formulated using protein antigens that have been synthesized in heterologous host cells. Several host cells are available for this purpose, ranging from Escherichia coli to mammalian cell lines. This article highlights the benefits of using yeast as the recombinant host.

The yeast species, Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Pichia pastoris, have been used to optimize the functional yields of potential antigens for the development of subunit vaccines against a wide range of diseases caused by bacteria and viruses. Saccharomyces cerevisiae has also been used in the manufacture of 11 approved vaccines against hepatitis B virus and one against human papillomavirus; in both cases, the recombinant protein forms highly immunogenic virus-like particles.

Advances in our understanding of how a yeast cell responds to the metabolic load of producing recombinant proteins will allow us to identify host strains that have improved yield properties and enable the synthesis of more challenging antigens that cannot be produced in other systems. Yeasts therefore have the potential to become important host organisms for the production of recombinant antigens that can be used in the manufacture of subunit vaccines or in new vaccine development.