Engineered immunogens to elicit antibodies against conserved coronavirus epitopes

Immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 primarily target the receptor binding domain of the spike protein, which continually mutates to escape acquired immunity. Other regions in the spike S2 subunit, such as the stem helix and the segment encompassing residues 815-823 adjacent to the fusion peptide, are highly conserved across sarbecoviruses and are recognized by broadly reactive antibodies, providing hope that vaccines targeting these epitopes could offer protection against both current and emergent viruses. Here we employ computational modeling to design scaffolded immunogens that display the spike 815-823 peptide and the stem helix epitopes without the distracting and immunodominant receptor binding domain. These engineered proteins bind with high affinity and specificity to the mature and germline versions of previously identified broadly protective human antibodies. Epitope scaffolds interact with both sera and isolated monoclonal antibodies with broadly reactivity from individuals with pre-existing SARS-CoV-2 immunity. When used as immunogens, epitope scaffolds elicit sera with broad betacoronavirus reactivity and protect as “boosts” against live virus challenge in mice, illustrating their potential as components of a future pancoronavirus vaccine

Skeletal remodeling dynamics: New approaches with imaging instrumentation. [Laser confocal microscopy:a2]

The aim of this research was to get an understanding of restaurateurs’ strategies when choosing wines to be offered on wine lists in Croatia, namely in Dalmatian restaurants of Dubrovnik and Split. Since similar studies have been done in France, Australia, the US, and China, the main idea was to compare those findings with the situation in Croatia. The results of the quantitative best-worst research study that included 110 restaurants in Dubrovnik and Split, showed that restaurant owners in Croatia have a set of strategies in mind when designing their wine lists including: ‘high reputation brand’, ‘tastes good’, and ‘preference for local wine’