Maureen Buckley (IRVINE LAB)

Tracking RNA Vaccine-derived Antigen Biodistribution and Kinetics In Vivo

RNA vaccines have recently shown potential to increase the speed and reduce the cost of vaccine clinical trials. However, their mechanisms of action remain poorly understood. Specifically, the cell- and tissue-level localization of RNA-derived immunogens and their persistence following primary immunization remain unknown. Here, we propose novel genetically-tagged antigen constructs and primary cocktail staining modalities that can be used to define where RNA-derived antigens are transported and how long they persist following primary immunization.

Jason Zhang (IRVINE & LOVE LABS)

Formulating Immune Protection: Enhance Humoral Response Through Vaccine Engineering

Protein subunit vaccines, while safe and currently state-of-the-art, exhibit limitations in immunogenicity and durability of protection. We developed a vaccine approach incorporating a potent nanoparticulate adjuvant and slow delivery of immunogens that excels at inducing robust humoral responses. Through scRNA-seq and scBCR-seq, we report this formulation induced more clonally expanded and diverse immunogen-specific B cells by enhancing the trafficking of immunogens to the lymph node follicles.