Influenza Virus-like Particle-Based Hybrid Vaccine Containing RBD Induces Immunity against Influenza and SARS-CoV-2 Viruses
Ramireddy Bommireddy, Shannon Stone, Noopur Bhatnagar, Pratima Kumari, Luis E. Muñoz, Judy Oh, Ki‐Hye Kim, Jameson Berry, Kristen M. Jacobsen, Lahcen Jaafar, Swe-Htet Naing, Allison N. Blackerby, Tori Van der Gaag, Chloe N. Wright, Lilin Lai, Christopher D. Pack, Sampath Ramachandiran, Mehul S. Suthar, Sang‐Moo Kang, Mukesh Kumar, Shaker Reddy, Periasamy Selvaraj
Abstract
Several approaches have produced an effective vaccine against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Since millions of people are exposed to influenza virus and SARS-CoV-2, it is of great interest to develop a two-in-one vaccine that will be able to protect against infection of both viruses. We have developed a hybrid vaccine for SARS-CoV-2 and influenza viruses using influenza virus-like particles (VLP) incorporated by protein transfer with glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored SARS-CoV-2 RBD fused to GM-CSF as an adjuvant. GPI-RBD-GM-CSF fusion protein was expressed in CHO-S cells, purified and incorporated onto influenza VLPs to develop the hybrid vaccine. Our results show that the hybrid vaccine induced a strong antibody response and protected mice from both influenza virus and mouse-adapted SARS-CoV-2 challenges, with vaccinated mice having significantly lower lung viral titers compared to naive mice. These results suggest that a hybrid vaccine strategy is a promising approach for developing multivalent vaccines to prevent influenza A and SARS-CoV-2 infections.