The various strains of influenza virus cause respiratory symptoms in humans every year and annual vaccinations are recommended. Due to its RNA-type genes and segmented state, it belongs to a virus that mutates frequently with antigenic drift and shift, giving rise to various strains. Each year, the World Health Organization identifies the epidemic strains and operates a global surveillance system to suggest the viral composition for the influenza vaccine. Influenza viruses, which have multiple viral strains, are produced in the format of multivalent vaccine. However, the multivalent vaccine has a possibility of causing immune interference by introducing multiple strain-specific antigens in a single injection. Therefore, evaluating immune interference phenomena is essential when assessing multivalent vaccines. In this study, the protective ability and immunogenicity of multivalent and monovalent vaccines were evaluated in mice to assess immune interference in the multivalent vaccine. Monovalent and multivalent vaccines were manufactured using the latest strain of the 2022–2023 seasonal influenza virus selected by the World Health Organization. The protective abilities of both types of vaccines were tested through hemagglutination inhibition test. The immunogenicity of multivalent and monovalent vaccines were tested through enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to measure the cellular and humoral immunity expression rates. As a result of the protective ability and immunogenicity test, higher level of virus neutralizing ability and greater amount of antibodies in both IgG1 and IgG2 were confirmed in the multivalent vaccine. No immune interference was found to affect the protective capacity and immune responses of the multivalent vaccines.
COVID-19 is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome virus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which can infect both humans and animals. SARS-CoV-2 originated from bats and can affect various species capable of crossing the species barrier due to active mutation. Although reports on reverse zoonosis (human-to-animal transmission) of SARS-CoV-2 remain limited, reverse zoonosis has been reported in many species such as cats, tigers, minks, etc. Therefore, transmission to more animals cannot be ruled out. Moreover, the wide distribution of SARS-CoV-2 in the human population could result in an increased risk of reverse zoonosis. To counteract reverse zoonosis, we developed the first COVID-19 subunit vaccines for dogs, which are representative companion animals, and the vaccine includes the SARS-CoV-2 recombinant protein of whole S1 protein and the receptor-binding domain (RBD). A subunit vaccine is a vaccine developed by purifying only the protein region that induces an immune response instead of the whole pathogen. This type of vaccine is safer than the whole virus vaccine because there is no risk of infection and proliferation through back-mutation of the virus. Vaccines were administered to beagles twice at an interval of 3 weeks subcutaneously and antibody formation rates were assessed in serum. We identified a titer, comparable to that of vaccinated people, shown to be sufficient to protect against SARS-CoV-2. Therefore, the vaccination of companion animals, such as dogs, may prevent reverse zoonosis by protecting animals from SARS-CoV-2; thus, reverse zoonosis of COVID-19 is preventable.
1 January 2024 in Transboundary and Emerging Diseases
The NS1 influenza protein of influenza A virus is a viral nonstructural protein encoded by the NS gene segment that has multiple accessory functions during viral infection. In recent years, the major role ascribed to NS1 has been its inhibition of host immune responses, especially the limitation of both interferon (IFN) production and the antiviral effects of IFN‐induced protein. We isolated an equine influenza virus with a naturally truncated NS1 gene in our previous study. In this current research, we inserted this partially truncated NS gene into the H3N2 canine influenza virus using reverse genetics to develop a live attenuated vaccine strain. To evaluate whether the developed strain is suitable as a live vaccine candidate, we compared its replication kinetics with wild‐type virus in MDCK cells and specific pathogen‐free eggs. Additionally, we investigated host antiviral gene expression, viral replication in the respiratory system, and associated lung tissue damage in mice experiments. To confirm the efficacy of the vaccine candidate, we evaluated the immunogenicity and protectivity of the developed vaccine strain against canine influenza H3N2, compared with a commercial inactivated vaccine. Through these experiments, it was confirmed that the naturally truncated NS1 inserted virus has sufficient potential as a live vaccine candidate, and we hopefully expect that this study would make a great contribution to the development of a live vaccine for canine influenza H3N2.
Oral vaccines must withstand gastric acid and mucus, reach microfold cells, and trigger durable mucosal IgA, but most carriers cannot simultaneously provide enteric protection, on-demand intestinal activation, and predictable biodegradation. We present magnesium-propelled polymersome (PSome) nanomotors (ActiPSomes) that conserve chemical fuel in the stomach via an enteric overcoat and activate in the intestine to enhance transport and antigen encounter. After coating, the hydrodynamic diameter increased from 141.33 ± 3.62 nm to 188.63 ± 2.03 nm, confirming formation of a protective layer. Nanoparticle-tracking analysis showed negligible directional motion under gastric conditions (pH 2.0) but pronounced propulsion at intestinal pH (pH 8.0); the size mobility relationship followed MSD theory with R² ≈ 0.96. In vitro, ActiPSomes increased macrophage uptake of Nile-red-labeled antigen ∼2.8-fold versus particles without magnesium and maintained a ∼2.1-fold advantage after sequential exposure to simulated gastric and intestinal environments. In vivo, oral dosing elicited significantly higher PEDV-specific IgA titers in feces and intestines at days 7 and 14 compared with controls (p < 0.05-0.001), with no adverse clinical signs or weight loss over 14 days. Mechanistically, intestinal pH dissolves the enteric layer to expose intravesicular Mg, generating hydrogen that drives active diffusion while PLA hydrolysis supports intestinal biodegradation. These data establish a generalizable nanoplatform for enteric-protected, fuel-efficient oral vaccination against mucosal pathogens. In this study, we developed magnesium-propelled PSome nanomotors, termed ActiPSomes, that integrate enteric protection, pH-triggered propulsion, and intestinal biodegradation to enhance oral antigen delivery and mucosal immunity.
1 January 2026 in Transboundary and Emerging Diseases
Influenza D virus (IDV) is an emerging orthomyxovirus with cattle as its principal reservoir, and D/Yama2019‐lineage viruses have become dominant in East Asia. Although IDV has been detected in Korean cattle, the genomic identity, phylogenetic placement, and regional evolutionary relationships of circulating Korean strains have not been defined. To address these gaps, nasal swabs were collected from 578 cattle with mild respiratory signs on 157 farms across eight provinces in South Korea during 2022–2023 and screened by RT‐qPCR targeting the PB1 gene. Positive samples underwent complete genome sequencing of all seven segments, followed by maximum‐likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic analyses, discrete phylogeographic inference using a Bayesian stochastic search variable selection (BSSVS) model, and positive selection analyses. Six samples from three farms were IDV‐positive (sample‐level positivity: 1.04%; farm‐level positivity: 1.9%), all from 8‐to‐10‐month‐old calves. Phylogenetic analysis of all seven genomic segments placed all six Korean strains within the D/Yama2019 lineage with strong bootstrap support (99%–100%), forming a monophyletic cluster more closely related to Chinese than to Japanese D/Yama2019 reference strains. No phylogenetic evidence of reassortment was detected. Bayesian time‐scaled analysis estimated the most recent common ancestor of the Korean strains at ~2018.1–2020.1 across all seven segments. HEF‐based BSSVS analysis suggested a China‐to‐South Korea transition within the sampled dataset (posterior probability (PP) = 0.982; Bayes factor (BF) = 163.67), although this result should be interpreted in light of the small number of Korean sequences and the single‐segment basis of the phylogeographic analysis. Positive selection analyses revealed limited, method‐dependent signals without support from the fixed effects likelihood model, and Korean‐associated amino acid substitutions in PB1, P3, NS1, and NS2 were interpreted as lineage‐associated molecular signatures rather than evidence of adaptive evolution. These findings provide a whole‐genome baseline for IDV surveillance in South Korea and support continued longitudinal monitoring to clarify the persistence and transmission dynamics of D/Yama2019‐lineage viruses in the region.