Oral delivery of maize-produced porcine epidemic diarrhea virus spike protein elicits neutralizing antibodies in pigs.

Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus (PEDV) causes severe diarrhea and mortality in piglets. Robust immunity may break the transmission cycle. Expression of antigens in maize grains is a promising method for producing low-cost vaccines.

Supercritical fluid extraction provides an enhancement to the immune response for orally-delivered hepatitis B surface antigen.

The hepatitis B virus continues to be a major pathogen worldwide despite the availability of an effective parenteral vaccine for over 20 years. Orally-delivered subunit vaccines produced in maize may help to alleviate the disease burden by providing a low-cost, heat-stable alternative to the parenteral vaccine. Oral subunit vaccination has been an elusive goal due to the large amounts of antigen required to induce an immunologic response when administered through the digestive tract.

Production of highly concentrated, heat-stable hepatitis B surface antigen in maize.

Plant-based oral vaccines are a promising emergent technology that could help alleviate disease burden worldwide by providing a low-cost, heat-stable, oral alternative to parenterally administered commercial vaccines. Here, we describe high-level accumulation of the hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) at a mean concentration of 0.51%TSP in maize T1 seeds using an improved version of the globulin1 promoter.

Bioencapsulation of the hepatitis B surface antigen and its use as an effective oral immunogen.

Hepatitis B remains a major global health problem despite the availability of a safe and effective vaccine. Segments of the population lack access to or respond poorly to the parenteral vaccine, perpetuating the infection-transmission cycle. A low cost, orally delivered vaccine has the potential to alleviate many of these problems.