Vaccine efficacy is enhanced by optimizing the design of polymeric particles for adjuvant and antigen delivery. The efficacy of vaccine adjuvants such as Toll-like receptor agonists (TLRa) can be improved through formulation and delivery approaches. Here, we attached small molecule TLR-7/8a to polymer scaffolds (polymer–TLR-7/8a) and evaluated how different physicochemical properties of the TLR-7/8a and polymer carrier influenced the location, magnitude and duration of innate immune activation in vivo. Particle formation by polymer–TLR-7/8a was the most important factor for restricting adjuvant distribution and prolonging activity in draining lymph nodes. The improved pharmacokinetic profile by particulate polymer–TLR-7/8a was also associated with reduced morbidity and enhanced vaccine immunogenicity for inducing antibodies and T cell immunity. We extended these findings to the development of a modular approach in which protein antigens are site-specifically linked to temperature-responsive polymer–TLR-7/8a adjuvants that self-assemble into immunogenic particles at physiologic temperatures in vivo. Our findings provide a chemical and structural basis for optimizing adjuvant design to elicit broad-based antibody and T cell responses with protein antigens.

Microsporidia comprise a phylum of over 1400 species of obligate intracellular pathogens that can infect almost all animals, but little is known about the host response to these parasites. Here we use the whole-animal host C. elegans to show an in vivo role for ubiquitin-mediated response to the microsporidian species Nematocida parisii, as well to the Orsay virus, another natural intracellular pathogen of C. elegans. We analyze gene expression of C. elegans in response to N. parisii, and find that it is similar to response to viral infection. Notably, we find an upregulation of SCF ubiquitin ligase components, such as the cullin ortholog cul-6, which we show is important for ubiquitin targeting of N. parisii cells in the intestine. We show that ubiquitylation components, the proteasome, and the autophagy pathway are all important for defense against N. parisii infection. We also find that SCF ligase components like cul-6 promote defense against viral infection, where they have a more robust role than against N. parisii infection. This difference may be due to suppression of the host ubiquitylation system by N. parisii: when N. parisii is crippled by anti-microsporidia drugs, the host can more effectively target pathogen cells for ubiquitylation. Intriguingly, inhibition of the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) increases expression of infection-upregulated SCF ligase components, indicating that a trigger for transcriptional response to intracellular infection by N. parisii and virus may be perturbation of the UPS. Altogether, our results demonstrate an in vivo role for ubiquitin-mediated defense against microsporidian and viral infections in C. elegans. Microbial pathogens have two distinct lifestyles: some pathogens live outside of host cells, and others live inside of host cells and are called intracellular pathogens. Microsporidia are fungal-related intracellular pathogens that can infect all animals, but are poorly understood. We used the roundworm C. elegans as a host to show that ubiquitin pathways provide defense against both a natural microsporidian infection of C. elegans, as well as a natural viral infection. Our study shows that ubiquitin, the proteasome and autophagy components are all important to control intracellular infection in C. elegans, although microsporidia seem to partially evade this defense. We also show that SCF ubiquitin ligases help control both microsporidia and virus infection. Furthermore, we find that C. elegans upregulates expression of SCF ligases when ubiquitin-related degradation machinery is inhibited, indicating that C. elegans monitors the functioning of this core cellular process and upregulates ligase expression when it is perturbed. Altogether, our findings describe ubiquitin-mediated pathways that are involved in host response and defense against intracellular pathogens, and how this machinery is regulated by infection to increase defense against intracellular pathogens such as microsporidia and viruses.

Commensal-specific T cells are flexible: Barrier tissues, like the skin, are sites where noninvasive commensal microbes constantly interact with resident T cells. These encounters can result in commensal-specific T cell responses that promote, for example, host defense and tissue repair. Harrison et al. show that subsets of skin-resident commensal-specific interleukin-17A–producing CD4 ⁺ and CD8 ⁺ T cells have a dual nature: They coexpress transcription factors that direct antagonistic antimicrobial (type 17) and antiparasite and pro–tissue repair (type 2) programs. When skin is damaged, epithelial cell alarmins license type 17 T cells to turn on type 2 cytokines. Thus, commensal-specific type 17 T cells can direct antimicrobial activity under homeostatic conditions but rapidly turn on tissue repair in the context of injury. Science , this issue p. eaat6280