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Improvement of DNA Vaccines by Electroporation

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Gene Vaccines

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Abstract

DNA vaccines have been on the scientific horizon since 1992, yet the past decade of clinical study has been precarious, with most trials exhibiting excellent safety, yet poor immune responses in humans. Despite the initial disappointments of immunogenicity observed in early clinical trials, the advantageous properties of plasmid DNA as a vaccine strategy over existing technologies continued to drive the field forward. Recently, non- human primate preclinical models as well as data generated in a few clinical trials have suggested that there are significant improvements in immunogenicity by the renewed enhanced DNA platform. This is due to a host of new technological improvements that together have improved vaccine antigen expression, delivery, and formulation resulting in improved immune potency. Improvements in plasmid delivery by modalities including the gene gun, biojector and most recently electroporation (EP) in particular, in combination with other technological developments such as species-specific codon optimization, improved RNA structural design, incorporation of novel leader sequences, novel formulations and adjuvant strategies have had a significant effect on immune outcome in relevant primate models and now humans. This new generation of DNA vaccines will likely have a more prominent role in vaccine clinical research.

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Acknowledgements

D.B.W. and the D.B.W. laboratory would like to note several commercial relationships for purposes of disclosure. These relations may include the provision of board or committee service, consultations, stock ownership, S.R.A., royalties, etc. on the part of one or both parties as a result of collaborative work with commercial entities including but not limited to Novartis, Inovio, VGXi, BMS, Medarex, Pfizer, Virxsys, Ichor, Merck, and Althea.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Arielle A. Ginsberg, Natalie A. Hutnick & David B. Weiner

  2. Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc., San Diego, CA, USA

    Xuefei Shen

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  1. Arielle A. Ginsberg
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  2. Xuefei Shen
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  3. Natalie A. Hutnick
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  4. David B. Weiner
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Correspondence to David B. Weiner .

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  1. , Department of Molecular Biology, University of Salzburg, Hellbrunnerstrasse 34, Salzburg, 5020, Austria

    Josef Thalhamer

  2. , Department of Molecular Biology, University of Salzburg, Hellbrunnerstrasse 34, Salzburg, 5020, Austria

    Richard Weiss

  3. , Department of Molecular Biology, University of Salzburg, Hellbrunnerstrasse 34, Salzburg, 5020, Austria

    Sandra Scheiblhofer

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Ginsberg, A.A., Shen, X., Hutnick, N.A., Weiner, D.B. (2012). Improvement of DNA Vaccines by Electroporation. In: Thalhamer, J., Weiss, R., Scheiblhofer, S. (eds) Gene Vaccines. Springer, Vienna. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-7091-0439-2_7

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