A Nanoparticle-Based Anticaries Vaccine Enhances the Persistent Immune Response To Inhibit Streptococcus mutans and...

Area of Science:

• Nanotechnology-based vaccine development
• Immunology and infectious disease prevention
• Biomaterials and drug delivery systems

Background:

• Dental caries is primarily caused by Streptococcus mutans, necessitating effective preventative strategies.
• Protein antigen c (PAc) from S. mutans has been explored as an anticaries vaccine but exhibits limited immunogenicity.
• There is a need for adjuvants to enhance the efficacy of PAc-based anticaries vaccines.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate a novel anticaries vaccine using zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 nanoparticles (ZIF-8 NPs) as an adjuvant for PAc.
• To investigate the in vitro and in vivo immune responses and anticaries efficacy of the ZIF-8@PAc vaccine.
• To assess the potential of ZIF-8 NPs as a biocompatible and effective adjuvant for PAc-based vaccines.

Main Methods:

• Preparation of ZIF-8@PAc nanoparticles encapsulating PAc.
• In vitro studies to assess nanoparticle internalization and antigen processing by immune cells.
• In vivo studies in mice and rats to evaluate humoral and cellular immune responses, including antibody titers, cytokine levels, splenocyte proliferation, and dendritic cell maturation, following immunization with ZIF-8@PAc compared to PAc alone.

Main Results:

• ZIF-8 NPs enhanced PAc internalization into lysosomes, facilitating antigen presentation.
• Mice immunized with ZIF-8@PAc showed significantly higher IgG antibody titers, increased cytokine production, enhanced splenocyte proliferation, and a greater percentage of mature dendritic cells and central memory T cells compared to PAc alone.
• Rats immunized with ZIF-8@PAc demonstrated a robust immune response, effectively inhibiting S. mutans colonization and improving prophylactic anticaries efficacy.

Conclusions:

• ZIF-8@PAc nanoparticles serve as a potent anticaries vaccine, significantly boosting immunogenicity and protective efficacy.
• ZIF-8 NPs demonstrate excellent biocompatibility, pH responsiveness, and antigen-loading capacity, making them promising adjuvants.
• This study highlights the potential of ZIF-8 NPs for the development of next-generation anticaries vaccines, offering new insights into caries prevention.