Identification and sequencing of peptides derived from the hypervariable region of vaccination-induced antibodies

• Grant number: 24/03645-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: May 01, 2024
• End date: April 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Biochemistry
• Principal Investigator: Daniel Carvalho Pimenta
• Grantee: Natalia Gabrielly Pereira dos Santos
• Host Institution: Instituto Butantan. Secretaria da Saúde (São Paulo - Estado). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 21/11944-6 - Continuous improvement of vaccines: Center for Viral Surveillance and Serological Assessment (CeVIVAS), AP.CCD

Abstract

Conventional serologies can be indicative of immunity, but they can simply be markers of previous contact with a certain agent. Neutralizing antibodies, as the name suggests, are those capable of effectively blocking (neutralizing) the interaction between the pathogenic agent and the host cell. Because of this, the plaque reduction neutralization test is the traditional assay and considered the gold standard for measuring neutralizing antibodies.Thinking about an alternative for the direct evaluation of antibodies induced by immunization, we propose to use a new methodology based on mass spectrometry that specifically evaluates the CDRs (Complementarity Determining Region) of circulating antibodies.