Flaviviruses elude the host immune response through spatial control of surface peptide. Likewise, controlled display of peptides on engineered nanoparticles allows biomimetic tuning of biological interactions. Recently, computational methods have been demonstrated for preclinical assessment of vaccine nanoparticle display platforms. Taking this further, a computational physics algorithm which begins with structural data and ends with nanoparticle immunogenicity and structure prediction is presented for nanoengineering efforts directed at discovering chimeric vaccines with broad cross-flavivirus neutralizing potential. The strategy presented facilitates early-stage vaccine discovery through the combination of epitope and nanoparticle vaccine identification, prediction, and assessment methods. A protein backbone fluctuation metric echoing coat protein cooperativity is used to discover and assess epitopes. The approach is illustrated in terms of a chimeric vaccine for protection against the clinically relevant Zika virus.

Computational physics-based broadly neutralizing vaccine design-From epitope identification and assessment to predicted nanoparticle immunogenicity: Zika virus

254th National Meeting (2017)

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