A candidate multi-epitope vaccine against SARS-CoV-2

In the past two decades, 7 coronaviruses have infected the human population, with two major outbreaks caused by SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV in the year 2002 and 2012, respectively. Currently, the entire world is facing a pandemic of another coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, with a high fatality rate. The spike glycoprotein of SARS-CoV-2 mediates entry of virus into the host cell and is one of the most important antigenic determinants, making it a potential candidate for a vaccine. In this study, we have computationally designed a multi-epitope vaccine using spike glycoprotein of SARS-CoV-2. The overall quality of the candidate vaccine was validated in silico and Molecular Dynamics Simulation confirmed the stability of the designed vaccine. Docking studies revealed stable interactions of the vaccine with Toll-Like Receptors and MHC Receptors. The in silico cloning and codon optimization supported the proficient expression of the designed vaccine in E. coli expression system. The efficiency of the candidate vaccine to trigger an effective immune response was assessed by an in silico immune simulation. The computational analyses suggest that the designed multi-epitope vaccine is structurally stable which can induce specific immune responses and thus, can be a potential vaccine candidate against SARS-CoV-2.The authors thank Dr. Joseph V.G., Chancellor Garden City University for his constant support to carry out this research work. FC acknowledges partial support from the Innovative Medicines Initiative 2 Joint Undertaking under grant agreement No. 853989 (Project ERA4TB). This Joint Undertaking receives support from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program and EFPIA and Global Alliance for TBDrug Development non profit organization Bill & D.M.Melinda Gates Foundation and University of Dundee. D.M.M was supported by a grant from NIH, R35 GM131731