Vaccination with HIV/SIV DNAs elicits potent T-cell responses. To improve humoral immune responses, we combined DNA and protein in a co-immunization protocol using in vivo electroporation in mice and macaques. DNA&protein co-immunization induced higher antibody responses than DNA or protein alone, or DNA prime/protein boost in mice. DNA&protein co-immunization induced similar levels of cellular responses as those obtained by DNA only vaccination. The inclusion of SIV or HIV Env gp120 protein did not impair the development of cellular immune responses elicited by DNA present in the vaccine regimen. In macaques, the DNA&protein co-immunization regimen also elicited higher levels of humoral responses with broader cross-neutralizing activity. Despite the improved immunogenicity of DNA&protein co-immunization, the protein formulation with the EM-005 (GLA-SE) adjuvant further increased the anti-Env humoral responses. Dissecting the contribution of EM-005, we found that its administration upregulated the expression of co-stimulatory molecules and stimulated cytokine production, especially IL-6, by dendritic cells in vivo. These terminally differentiated, mature, dendritic cells possibly promote higher levels of humoral responses, supporting the inclusion of the EM-005 adjuvant with the vaccine. Thus, DNA&protein co-immunization is a promising strategy to improve the rapidity of development, magnitude and potency of the humoral immune responses.

Most microwave absorbers lose their function under harsh working conditions, such as a high temperature and an oxidative environment. Here, we developed a heterogeneous ZrN 0.4 B 0.6 /SiC nanohybrid via combined catalytic chemical vapor deposition (CCVD) and chemical vapor infiltration (CVI) processes using ZrB 2 as the starting material. The composition and structure of the ZrN 0.4 B 0.6 /SiC nanohybrid were controlled by tuning the CCVD and CVI parameters, such as reaction temperature, time, and reactant concentration. The optimal heterogeneous ZrN 0.4 B 0.6 /SiC nanohybrids were obtained initially by preparing ZrB 2 @C via the CCVD process at 650 °C for 30 min and the subsequent CVI at 1500 °C, where the ZrB 2 @C reacted with Si under N 2 . The ZrN 0.4 B 0.6 /SiC nanohybrid exhibited enhanced microwave absorption ability with a minimum reflection loss value of approximately −50.8 dB at 7.7 GHz, a thickness of ∼3.05 mm, and antioxidation features at a high temperature of 600 °C. The heterogeneous ZrN 0.4 B 0.6 /SiC nanohybrid possessed reasonable conductivity, leading to dielectric loss, whereas SiC nanofibers formed a three-dimensional network that brought higher dipole moments, whereas a small part of the ZrN 0.4 B 0.6 /SiC nanohybrid structure generated an effective interface for higher attenuation of microwaves. Therefore, these material features synergistically resulted in a well-defined Debye relaxation, Maxwell−Wagner relaxation, dipole polarization, and the quarter-wavelength cancellation, which accounted for the enhanced microwave absorption.

Changes made as a result of publishing processes such as copy-editing, formatting and page numbers may not be reflected in this version. For the definitive version of this publication, please refer to the published source. You are advised to consult the publisher's version if you wish to cite this paper.