VIRUS-LIKE PARTICLES TO BE USED IN ORAL VACCINES

Different innovative approaches are currently employed for the development of safe and effective vaccines. Besides the traditional method that uses inactivated and/or live attenuated virus, other non-viral vaccine technologies (such as the use of virus-like particles (VLPs), the incorporation of antigens into nanoparticles, and DNA/RNA vaccines) are available and they offer many advantages to address the challenges of vaccine development. The use of VLPs are widely accepted because the immune system responds to them in a similar way to the response against vaccines of inactivated complete virus. Here, we have been using the biophysical techniques (CD/SRCD spectroscopy, fluorescence analysis, bioinformatics, SAXS, etc) to ensure the chemical and structural integrity of the VLPs in time and at different pHs, temperatures, environmental conditions, and especially after incorporation into silica particles. The use of ordered mesoporous silica as carrier systems were able to act as a protective vehicle for the antigens, increasing their thermal and pH stability, optimizing immune response, and contributing in the preparation of oral vaccines. A detailed knowledge of the morphological and structural properties of the VLPs and the characterization of the factors capable of affecting their integrity are fundamental to collaborate in their use as a vaccine strategy.

This work was supported by grants #2022/01951-8 and #2017/17844-8 from the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) - Brazil.