ジャーナル: Science / 年: 2024 タイトル: Mutating a flexible region of the RSV F protein can stabilize the prefusion conformation. 著者: Yu Liang / Shuai Shao / Xin Yu Li / Zi Xin Zhao / Ning Liu / Zhao Ming Liu / Fu Jie Shen / Hao Zhang / Jun Wei Hou / Xue Feng Zhang / Yu Qin Jin / Li Fang Du / Xin Li / Jing Zhang / Ji Guo Su / Qi Ming Li / 要旨: The respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) fusion (F) glycoprotein is highly immunogenic in its prefusion (pre-F) conformation. However, the protein is unstable, and its conformation must be stabilized ...The respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) fusion (F) glycoprotein is highly immunogenic in its prefusion (pre-F) conformation. However, the protein is unstable, and its conformation must be stabilized for it to function effectively as an immunogen in vaccines. We present a mutagenesis strategy to arrest the RSV F protein in its pre-F state by blocking localized changes in protein structure that accompany large-scale conformational rearrangements. We generated a series of mutants and screened them in vitro to assess their potential for forming a stable pre-F. In animals, the immunogenicity of a representative mutant F protein, with a conformation confirmed by cryo-electron microscopy, elicited levels of neutralizing antibodies and protection against RSV-induced lung damage that were comparable to those of DS-Cav1, a pre-F used in a licensed vaccine.