Enhancing neutralizing activity against influenza H1N1/PR8 by engineering a single-domain VL-M2 specific into a bivalent form

PLoS One. 2022 Aug 31;17(8):e0273934. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0273934. eCollection 2022.

Abstract

Flu disease, with high mortality and morbidity, is caused by the influenza virus. Influenza infections are most effectively prevented through vaccination, but it requires annual reformulation due to the antigenic shift or drift of hemagglutinin and neuraminidase proteins. Increasing resistance to available anti-influenza drugs was also recently reported. The M2 surface protein of the influenza virus is an attractive target for universal vaccine development as it is highly conserved and multifunctional throughout the viral life cycle. This study aimed to discover a single-chain variable fragment (scFv) targeting the M2 protein of influenza A H1N1/PR8, showing neutralizing activity through plaque inhibition in virus replication. Several candidates were isolated using bio-panning, including scFv and single-domain VL target M2 protein, which was displayed on the yeast surface. The scFv/VL proteins were obtained with high yield and high purity through soluble expression in E. coli BL21 (DE3) pLysE strains. A single-domain VL-M2-specific antibody, NVLM10, exhibited the highest binding affinity to influenza virions and was engineered into a bivalent format (NVL2M10) to improve antigen binding. Both antibodies inhibited virus replication in a dose-dependent manner, determined using plaque reduction- and immunocytochemistry assays. Furthermore, bivalent anti-M2 single-domain VL antibodies significantly reduced the plaque number and viral HA protein intensity as well as viral genome (HA and NP) compared to the monovalent single-domain VL antibodies. This suggests that mono- or bivalent single-domain VL antibodies can exhibit neutralizing activity against influenza virus A, as determined through binding to virus particle activity.

MeSH terms

  • Antibodies, Neutralizing*
  • Antibodies, Viral
  • Escherichia coli / metabolism
  • Hemagglutinin Glycoproteins, Influenza Virus / genetics
  • Humans
  • Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype*
  • Influenza Vaccines
  • Influenza, Human* / prevention & control
  • Orthomyxoviridae Infections*
  • Single-Domain Antibodies*
  • Viral Proteins / genetics

Substances

  • Antibodies, Neutralizing
  • Antibodies, Viral
  • Hemagglutinin Glycoproteins, Influenza Virus
  • Influenza Vaccines
  • Single-Domain Antibodies
  • Viral Proteins

Grants and funding

This work was supported by a grant from Novelgen Company (Project NO. S-2018-1158-000). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.