Toxoplasma gondii can cause severe and even fatal disease in human beings and animals. Effective vaccines may contribute to control toxoplasmosis. GRA14, a novel secreted dense granule protein of T. gondii, has been proposed as a vaccine candidate due to its intervacuolar transport and unique topology in the parasitophorous vacuole membrane. In this study, we constructed a DNA vaccine encoding GRA14 of T. gondii. BALB/c mice were immunized intramuscularly three times at 2 week intervals and challenged with T. gondii RH strain 5 weeks later. The immune responses were evaluated using lymphocyte proliferation assay, cytokine and antibody measurements. In addition, the survival times and parasite load of mice challenged with the virulent T. gondii RH strain were evaluated. The results showed that the mice immunized with pcGRA14 induced both enhanced specific humoral and Th1 cellular immune responses, and also mice immunized with the pcGRA14 showed an increased survival time and decreased parasite load compared with control groups (P<.05). The results indicated, for the first time, that the GRA14 is a potential DNA vaccine against toxoplasmosis.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.