An Exploration of Epitope-Based Vaccine Design with Broad Protection Against Influenza A (H3) Viral Strains Using Computational Biology

Abstract

Influenza is a highly contagious disease due to its frequently mutating viral Hemaglutinin (HA) and Neuraminidase (NA) proteins.[1] WHO reports that 250,000-500,000 people worldwide die of seasonal influenza every year.[2]This necessitates the search for universal vaccines, or broadly protective influenza vaccines. This research explored the feasibility of epitope-based broad-spectrum influenza H3 vaccine design based on common linear epitopes. Given the previously prepared broadly neutralizing antibody 4E3 that recognizes multiple H3 strains by NIDVD, three epitope candidates were selected using computer-simulated antigen-antibody docking. The three epitopes were then evaluated in vitro using molecular cloning, protein expression and immunoassay technologies. EPI-3 (amino acid sequence: WGVHHPVTDNDQIFLYAQA) was successfully cloned, expressed, and evaluated using Western Blot. The positive WB result proved the methodological validity of epitope-based broad-spectrum vaccine design using computational biology. Further work using this method is expected from the scientific community.