Immuno-informatics Study Reveals Conserved T Cell Epitopes in Non-structural Proteins of Bluetongue Virus Serotypes: Formulation of Computationally Optimized Broad-spectrum Multiepitope Vaccine

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Presentation Time: 11:30 AM - 12:45 PM
Poster Board Number: B1037
Abstract ID: 6053

Presenting Author:
Channakeshava Sokke Umeshappa , Assistant Professor at Dalhousie Univ., IWK Hlth. Ctr.

Abstract:

Bluetongue (BT) is a challenging arboviral disease impacting livestock, necessitating effective control strategies. Despite the diversity of BT virus (BTV) serotypes, our study identifies conserved CD8+ and CD4+ T cell epitopes within BTV's non-structural proteins (NS1, NS2, NS3). Through in silico methods, we found that murine MHC class I (MHC-I) CD8+ T cell epitopes are highly conserved in NS1 and NS3, while MHC-II epitopes are prevalent in all three non-structural proteins. Similarly, bovine Leukocyte antigen-restricted CD8+ and CD4+ T cell epitopes are conserved within NS1, NS2, and NS3. These epitopes were further screened for antigenicity, allergenicity, toxicity, and solubility to construct an in silico broad-spectrum vaccine. 3D structure models were refined and evaluated for binding affinities with low energies against TLR3 and TLR4 receptors. Molecular dynamics simulations demonstrated stable complexes with minimal RMSF values over 100 nanoseconds. Our study identifies promising conserved T cell epitopes for a broad-spectrum BT vaccine, suggesting their evaluation in animal models and natural hosts for immunogenicity, safety, and efficacy assessment in the field.