Genetic vaccination depends at least in part on the adjuvant properties of plasmids, properties that have been ascribed to unmethylated CpG dinucleotides in bacterial DNA. Because dendritic cells (DC) participate in the T cell priming that occurs during genetic vaccination, we reasoned that CpG-containing DNA might activate DC. Thus, we assessed the effects of CpG oligodeoxynucleotides (CpG ODN...

Oligodeoxynucleotides (ODN) containing CpG motifs mimic microbial DNA and are recognized by toll-like receptor 9 on immune cells. The resulting response limits the early spread of infectious organisms and promotes the development of adaptive immunity. In this regard, CpG ODN show promise as immunoprotective agents and as vaccine adjuvants. Previous studies of nonhuman primates showed that admin...

Endosomal Toll-like receptors (TLR) such as TLR3, 7, 8 and 9 recognize pathogen associated nucleic acids. While DNA sequence does influence degree of binding to and activation of TLR9, it also appears to influence the ability of the ligand to reach the intracellular endosomal compartment. The KLK (KLKL5KLK) antimicrobial peptide, which is immunostimulatory itself, can translocate into cells wit...

The interaction of cytosine-phosphate-guanine oligodeoxynucleotides (CpG ODNs) with Toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) activates the immune system. Multimeric class A CpG ODNs induce interferon-α (IFN-α) and, to a lesser extent, interleukin-6. By contrast, monomeric class B CpG ODNs induce interleukin-6 but not IFN-α. This difference suggests that the multimerization of CpG ODN molecules is a key fact...

DNA vaccines showed great promise in preclinical models of infectious and malignant diseases, but their potency was insufficient in clinical trials and is needed to be improved. In this study, we tested systemic administration of two conventional adjuvants, synthetic oligodeoxynucleotide carrying immunostimulatory CpG motifs (CpG-ODN) and levamisole (LMS), and evaluated their effect on immune r...

Oligodinucleotides containing CpG motifs (CpG ODN) are strong adjuvants for immune responses, particularly in mice, but data on humoral and cellular immune responses in piglets are scarce. In this report, using the swine streptococcus as model bacteria, CpG ODN was used as immunoadjuvants to enhance the immune responses of the piglets to swine streptococcic septicemia killed vaccine (SSSK vacci...

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are considered as potential targets for vaccine adjuvants. Here, we explored the impact of TLR agonists on the B cell response to a prototypic thymus-independent (TI) antigen: a Streptococcus pneumoniae capsular polysaccharide (PS). In adult mice, all TLR agonists (and CpG oligodeoxynucleotides [ODN] in particular) enhance the PS antibody response, provided that their...

Allergen immunotherapy is an effective but underutilized treatment for atopic asthma. We have previously demonstrated that CpG oligodeoxynucleotides (CpG ODN) can prevent the development of a murine model of asthma. In the current study, we evaluated the role of CpG ODN in the treatment of established eosinophilic airway inflammation and bronchial hyperreactivity in a murine model of asthma. In...

Unmethylated cytosine-phosphorothioate-guanine oligodeoxynucleotides (CpG-ODNs) exhibit potent immunostimulating activity by binding with Toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) expressed on antigen-presenting cells. Here, we show that CpG-ODN encapsulated in cationic liposomes (CpG-liposomes) improves its incorporation into CD11c(+) dendritic cells (DCs) and induces enhanced serum interleukin (IL)-12 leve...

A recombinant replication-defective adenovirus expressing the major epitopes of porcine circovirus-2 (PCV-2) capsid protein (rAd/Cap/518) was previously constructed and shown to induce mucosal immunity in mice following intranasal delivery. In the present study, immune responses induced by intranasal immunization with a combination of rAd/Cap/518 and cytosine-phosphate-guanosine oligodeoxynucle...