Cowpea mosaic virus capsid: a promising carrier for the development of carbohydrate based antitumor vaccines.

Immunotherapy targeting tumor cell surface carbohydrates is a promising approach for cancer treatment. However, the low immunogenecity of carbohydrates presents a formidable challenge. We describe here the enhancement of carbohydrate immunogenicity by an ordered display on the surface of the cowpea mosaic virus (CPMV) capsid. The Tn glycan, which is overexpressed on numerous cancer cell surfaces, was selected as the model antigen for our study. Previously it has been shown that it is difficult to induce a strong T cell-dependent immune response against the monomeric form of Tn presented in several ways on different carriers. In this study, we first synthesized Tn antigens derivatized with either a maleimide or a bromoacetamide moiety that was conjugated selectively to a cysteine mutant of CPMV. The glycoconjugate was then injected into mice and pre- and post-immune antibody levels in the mice sera were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbant assays. High total antibody titers and, more importantly, high IgG titers specific for Tn were obtained in the post-immune day 35 serum, suggesting the induction of T cell-dependent antibody isotype switching by the glycoconjugate. The antibodies generated were able to recognize Tn antigens presented in their native conformations on the surfaces of both MCF-7 breast cancer cells and the multidrug resistant breast cancer cell line NCI-ADR RES. These results suggest that the CPMV capsid can greatly enhance the immunogenicity of weak antigens such as Tn and this can provide a promising tool for the development of carbohydrate based anti-cancer vaccines.