Genome-Scale Screening of Vaccine Candidates Against Pseudomonas Aeruginosa

Abstract BackgroundInfections due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) are becoming a serious threat to patients in intensive care units. A PA vaccine is a practical and economical solution to solve the problems caused by PA infection successfully. In recent years, several antigen candidates have been tested in animal and human clinical trials, but none of them has been approved to date. An alternative strategy for antigen screening and protective antigens is in urgent demand.MethodsIn this study, we generated a genome-wide library of PA protein fragments tagged with maltose-binding protein (MBP). Using sera from patients who recovered after PA infection, we identified novel protective antigens and investigate the mechanism of these antigens induced protections.Resultswe identified a novel protective antigen, FlgE, which is the structural component of the flagella hook. Vaccination with recombinant FlgE (reFlgE) induced a Th2-predominant immune response and reduced bacterial load and inflammation in PA-infected mice. Anti-reFlgE antibodies recognized native FlgE on the bacterial membrane in vitro and conferred protection in mice, which may be due to the mediation of opsonophagocytic killing and inhibition of bacterial motility. In addition, the combination of reFlgE with rePcrVNH, an engineered antigen we reported previously, provided elevated protection against PA infection.ConclusionOur data demonstrate that FlgE is a promising vaccine candidate for PA and provide a new strategy for the efficient screening of antigens of other pathogens.