A single polypeptide vaccine derived from multiple antigens confers protection against staphylococcus aureus infection in mice

The emergence of Methicillin-resistance Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has posed a crucial threat in healthcare systems worldwide. Vaccination is ideal prevention against infection from antibiotic-resistance bacteria such as MRSA. Unfortunately, the development of S. aureus vaccine has faced tremendous challenges, suffering from repetitive failure of clinical trials. In this study, we formulated a panel of single polypeptide vaccines Sta-V5*1-3 based on a multi-valent S. aureus vaccine Sta-V5 previously developed by our team. The single polypeptide vaccines composed of antigen fragments induced robust humoral responses and protective immunity against MRSA infection in multiple animal disease models with indistinguishable efficacy when compared with Sta-V5 vaccine. We also attempted to formulate an epitope vaccine Sta-V5-EP based on T cell and B cell epitopes of antigens from Sta-V5. However, Sta-V5-EP failed to elicit sufficient protection in mouse model. Taken together, design of Sta-V5* vaccines represent a valuable S. aureus vaccine platform that avoids the laborious purification of multiple antigens and contamination with impurities.