Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41576707›Full record

ArticleVaccine2026

VSA-2-, a novel plant-derived adjuvant for SARS-CoV-2 subunit vaccine.

Awadalkareem Adam, Christy Lee, Madison C Jones, Brinley R Harrington, Jing Zou, Bi-Hung Peng, Xuping Xie, Pengfei Wang, Tian Wang

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Vaccine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing 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

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Awadalkareem AdamDepartment of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA; Sealy Institute for Vaccine Sciences, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA.
Christy LeeDepartment of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA.
Madison C JonesDepartment of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA.
Brinley R HarringtonDepartment of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA.
Jing ZouDepartment of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA.
Bi-Hung PengDepartment of Neurobiology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA.
Xuping XieDepartment of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA; Sealy Institute for Drug Discovery, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA; Institute for Human Infections and Immunity, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA.
Pengfei WangDepartment of Chemistry, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA.
Tian WangDepartment of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA; Sealy Institute for Vaccine Sciences, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA; Institute for Human Infections and Immunity, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA; Department of Pathology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA. Electronic address: ti1wang@utmb.edu.

Funding

Porous silicon microparticle-based subunit vaccines for SARS-CoV-2R01AI176670 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS MED BR GALVESTON · PI Tian Wang · 2023 to 2026
$2.7M
Role of microglia in neural infectionR01NS125778 · NINDS · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS MED BR GALVESTON · PI Tian Wang, Ping Wu · 2022 to 2026
$2.5M
Infectious Diseases and Inflammatory Disorders Training ProgramT35AI078878 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS MED BR GALVESTON · PI WANG, TIAN · 2008 to 2025
$701k
NIAID NIH HHS R01 AI176670NIAID NIH HHS T35 AI078878NINDS NIH HHS R01 NS125778
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

QS-21, a key component of several licensed vaccines is facing limited supply, dose-limiting toxicity and other drawbacks which together limit its broader usage. Development of saponin alternatives to QS-21 that retain its desirable adjuvant activity without its drawbacks is in high need. Incorporating an amide side chain into the more sustainable Momordica saponins (MS) I and II led to the recent discovery of two semisynthetic immunostimulatory adjuvants VSA-1 and VSA-2. Here, we showed that SARS-CoV-2 receptor-binding protein (RBD) adjuvanted with VSA-2 induced high titers of SARS-CoV-2 specific humoral and T helper-1 prone immune responses in mice comparable to that triggered by QS-21-RBD vaccination. Vaccination with VSA-2-RBD provided strong protection against SARS-CoV-2 and variants infection and the virus-induced lung inflammation and pathology similarly as QS-21-RBD vaccination. Overall, our results suggest that VSA-2 adjuvant can potentially complement the clinically proven saponin adjuvant QS-21 in vaccines against infectious diseases.

Indexed as

Adjuvants, ImmunologicAdjuvants, VaccineCOVID-19COVID-19 VaccinesSaponinsSARS-CoV-2AnimalsAntibodies, ViralFemaleImmunity, HumoralMiceMice, Inbred BALB CProtein Subunit VaccinesSaposinsSpike Glycoprotein, CoronavirusVaccines, SubunitAdjuvants, ImmunologicAdjuvants, VaccineAntibodies, ViralCOVID-19 VaccinesProtein Subunit VaccinesSaponinsSaposinsSpike Glycoprotein, CoronavirusVaccines, SubunitVSA-2AdjuvantSARS-CoV-2 subunit vaccineVSA

Identifiers

PMID41576707
PMCPMC12956034

What OpenQuestion holds

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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.