MIT identifies TB antigens to inform mRNA vaccine design for tuberculosis

MIT News reports that researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology identified TB peptides displayed on the surface of infected human cells, narrowing from over 4,000 Mycobacterium tuberculosis proteins to 27 peptides from 13 proteins that provoke T cell responses. Testing with TB-experienced donors showed 24 of these peptides eliciting immune activity, suggesting a multi-peptide vaccine strategy could reach most people. The team also explored an mRNA vaccine approach encoding EsxB and EsxG, finding lysosome-targeted delivery yielded dramatically higher MHC presentation, with EsxA aiding heterodimer formation to help escape the lysosomal membrane. While promising, human trials remain years away, and researchers are proceeding with global samples and funding from NIH and MIT. 

Paper: “Immunopeptidomics can inform the design of mRNA vaccines for the delivery of Mycobacterium tuberculosis MHC class II antigens”