Investigation of urinary metabolomics in a phase I hookworm vaccine trial in Gabon

PLoS One. 2022 Sep 26;17(9):e0275013. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0275013. eCollection 2022.

Abstract

Metabolomics provides a powerful tool to study physiological changes in response to various perturbations such as vaccination. We explored whether metabolomic changes could be seen after vaccination in a phase I trial where Gabonese adults living either in rural or semi-urban areas received the subunit hookworm vaccine candidates (Na-GST-1 and Na-APR-1 (M74) adjuvanted with Alhydrogel plus GLA-AF (n = 24) or the hepatitis B vaccine (n = 8) as control. Urine samples were collected and assayed using targeted 1H NMR spectroscopy. At baseline, a set of metabolites significantly distinguished rural from semi-urban individuals. The pre- and post-vaccination comparisons indicated significant changes in few metabolites but only one day after the first vaccination. There was no relationship with immunogenicity. In conclusion, in a small phase 1 trial, urinary metabolomics could distinguish volunteers with different environmental exposures and reflected the safety of the vaccines but did not show a relationship to immunogenicity.

Publication types

  • Clinical Trial, Phase I
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adjuvants, Immunologic
  • Adult
  • Aluminum Hydroxide
  • Ancylostomatoidea*
  • Animals
  • Gabon
  • Hepatitis B Vaccines
  • Hookworm Infections*
  • Humans
  • Immunogenicity, Vaccine

Substances

  • Adjuvants, Immunologic
  • Hepatitis B Vaccines
  • Aluminum Hydroxide

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Deutsches Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (German Centre for Infection Research (DZIF-CRG)) project grant (TTU 03.703) awarded to AA. This work was also supported by Horizon 2020 Framework Programme in the form of a grant (WISE PSIA2020AGDG-3316) for student allowance awarded to MO. This project also received funding from the European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7 Research Potential of Convergence Regions) for research, technological development, and demonstration in the form of a grant (602843) awarded to MY. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.