Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40434102›Full record

ArticleJournal of virology2025

Hydrophobic residue substitutions enhance the stability and

Qiaoyun Song, Haixia Yang, Haoyue Zhu, Yun Hu, Wenling Shen, Huifeng Cheng, Jialiao Cai, Manlan Qiu, Yueyue Li, Yaolan Li and 3 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of virology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors.

Qiaoyun Song *State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, Jinan University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.
Haixia Yang *State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, Jinan University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.
Haoyue Zhu *Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Pharmacodynamic Constituents of TCM & New Drugs Research, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Joint Laboratory for Pharmacodynamic Constituents of TCM and New Drugs Research, Jinan University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.
Yun Hu *State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, Jinan University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.
Wenling ShenState Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, Jinan University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.
Huifeng ChengState Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, Jinan University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.
Jialiao CaiState Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, Jinan University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.
Manlan QiuState Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, Jinan University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.
Yueyue LiGuangdong Province Key Laboratory of Pharmacodynamic Constituents of TCM & New Drugs Research, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Joint Laboratory for Pharmacodynamic Constituents of TCM and New Drugs Research, Jinan University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.
Yaolan LiState Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, Jinan University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.
Wencai YeState Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, Jinan University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.ORCID 0000-0002-2810-1001
Ying WangState Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, Jinan University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.ORCID 0000-0003-4524-1812
Wei TangState Key Laboratory of Bioactive Molecules and Druggability Assessment, Jinan University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.ORCID 0000-0002-1990-4558

Funding

Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities 21624224Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation 2022B1515120015, 2024B1515040014Guangdong Major Project of Basic and Applied Basic Research 2023B0303000026Guangzhou Basic and Applied Basic Research Subject (Young Doctor "Sailing" project) 2024A04J4171National Natural Science Foundation of China 82003610National Natural Science Foundation of China 82293681(82293680)National Natural Science Foundation of China 82321004Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province 2025A1515011828, 2023A1515011113
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) entry into host cells is facilitated by viral fusion, wherein the metastable RSV fusion (F) protein undergoes a conformational change from a prefusion state to a highly stable postfusion structure. The prefusion F elicits a more robust human antibody response than its postfusion F and is a primary target for RSV vaccine development. However, the inherent instability of the prefusion F trimer and its low protein expression level in host cells are a significant challenge for developing a high-potency RSV vaccine. Here, we report that the introduction of four hydrophobic residue substitutions in the RSV F protein resulted in a highly stable prefusion F trimer (pre-F-IFLP). This engineered variant exhibits enhanced expression and stability compared to DS-Cav1, with improved thermal stability, increased resistance to acid and base, and extended storage life. Furthermore, pre-F-IFLP induced neutralizing antibody responses 72-fold higher than those elicited by DS-Cav1 following a second booster immunization and fully protected mice against RSV infection. IMPORTANCE: In this study, we demonstrate that introducing four hydrophobic residue substitutions into the RSV F protein leads to the generation of a highly stable prefusion F trimer (pre-F-IFLP) with improved expression levels in cultured cells and superior stability compared to DS-Cav1, the first-generation prefusion F-stabilized RSV vaccine. Furthermore, pre-F-IFLP induced significantly higher neutralizing antibody responses than DS-Cav1 following both the first and second booster immunizations and conferred complete protection against RSV infection in a mouse model. These findings present an alternative approach for stabilizing the trimeric prefusion F protein, enhancing its expression, and significantly improving its protective efficacy for the prevention of RSV infection

Indexed as

Respiratory Syncytial Virus, HumanRespiratory Syncytial Virus InfectionsRespiratory Syncytial Virus VaccinesViral Fusion ProteinsAmino Acid SubstitutionAnimalsAntibodies, NeutralizingAntibodies, ViralFemaleHumansHydrophobic and Hydrophilic InteractionsImmunogenicity, VaccineMiceMice, Inbred BALB CProtein StabilityAntibodies, NeutralizingAntibodies, ViralF protein, human respiratory syncytial virusRespiratory Syncytial Virus VaccinesViral Fusion Proteinsprefusion Frespiratory syncytial virusvaccineviral fusion

Identifiers

PMID40434102
PMCPMC12172430

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.