Studies on the molecular design, chemical synthesis, and immunogenicity of multiple antigen peptide vaccines from MAGE-2

Objective To improve the immunogenicity of linear peptide by employing the multiple antigen peptide (MAP) as vaccine candidate structure. Methods The molecular engineering experiment of the CTL epitope peptide MAGE 2220 228 was performed. The four branch MAP (MAP4) was synthesized by Fmoc method and the purity was analyzed by RP HPLC. The peptide was identified by liquid chromatography (LC) and mass spectrum (MS). The MAP4 immunogenicity was studied using human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from HLA A2+ healthy donors. The CTL response and the IFN γ secretion were detected by standard 51 Cr release assay and enzyme linked immunospot (ELISPOT) assay. Results Low concentration MAP4 could induce effective CTL response and generous IFN γsecretion in vitro . Conclusion The MAP structure is a good candidate structure for designing a new generation of peptide based vaccine, which can induce effective CTL response and generous IFN γ secretion. The MAP structure can also improve the immunogenicity of short CTL peptide.