In silico design of a capsid vertex component 1 protein targeted multi-epitope vaccine against cytomegalovirus

Abstract

Cytomegalovirus is a virus causing irreversible neurological damage in newborns. In this study, in silico computational method was performed where, as primary protein, Capsid Vertex Component 1 Protein of cytomegalovirus from Uniprot server was selected. Using Vaxijen v2.0 it’s antigenicity (0.5142) & Cytotoxic T lymphocyte,helper T lymphocyte,B cell epitopes was found via NetCTL-1.2, NetMHCIIpan 4.0, Bepipred servers. Helper T lymphocyte epitopes were Screened via IFN, IL-4Pred & IL-10Pred epitopes. For constructing the vaccine, linkers were used. A Biochemical analysis gave potential results. With ProtParam the instability index (34.10), grand average of hydropathy (-0.263) & molecular weight (56399.91 kDa) was predicted. Using AllergenOnline & T3DB, the vaccine was discerned as non-allergen & non-toxic. ProSAweb gave Z-score (-5.95) & SWISS-MODEL generated Ramachandran plots. By C-IMMSIM, desirable responses of immune cells & antibodies in accordance with three doses of the vaccine was analyzed. In vitro, in vivo methods can be done to validate the safety & efficacy of the vaccine.