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Vaccines
Special Issues
Bacterial Vaccines in Veterinary Science
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Bacterial Vaccines in Veterinary Science

A special issue of Vaccines (ISSN 2076-393X). This special issue belongs to the section "Veterinary Vaccines".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2026 | Viewed by 779

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Shenye Yu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Harbin Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150069, China
Interests: mainly engaged in research on important animal pathogenic bacteria, including important protein structures and functions of bacteria such as Salmonella and Escherichia coli, as well as their immunogenicity and protective ability, for the development of safe and efficient vaccines; pathogenic mechanisms involving physiological, autophagic, inflammatory and other processes; and the creation of rapid and specific diagnostic methods and other related work

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Bacterial infections continue to pose severe threats to animal health, yet the immune mechanisms underlying many pathogens remain incompletely understood. This knowledge gap, together with the limited availability of effective vaccines, hinders the prevention and control of infectious diseases in animals. Conventional inactivated and live attenuated vaccines often face challenges such as outdated production processes, risks of virulence reversion, and insufficient protective efficacy.

In light of these limitations, this Special Issue emphasizes the urgent need for novel vaccine design and innovative platforms. We encourage studies that explore enhanced immune responses, particularly the role of mucosal immunity, and address the shortcomings of existing vaccine strategies. Original research and systematic reviews focusing on next-generation bacterial vaccines for veterinary use are welcome to help advance this vital field.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Shenye Yu
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Vaccines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • bacterial vaccine
  • animals
  • immune response
  • mucosal immunity
  • vaccine design

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

29 pages, 4040 KB  
Article
Identification and Expression of Immunogenic Mimotopes of C. hepaticus Using an E. coli-Based Surface Display System
by Chaitanya Gottapu, Lekshmi K. Edison, Roshen N. Neelawala, Varsha Bommineni, Gary D. Butcher, Bikash Sahay and Subhashinie Kariyawasam
Vaccines 2026, 14(4), 298; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines14040298 - 26 Mar 2026
Viewed by 535
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Spotty liver disease (SLD), caused by Campylobacter hepaticus, is an emerging disease that leads to substantial production losses in the egg industry. The shift toward antibiotic-free and cage-free production systems has further intensified the impact of SLD. The current control [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: Spotty liver disease (SLD), caused by Campylobacter hepaticus, is an emerging disease that leads to substantial production losses in the egg industry. The shift toward antibiotic-free and cage-free production systems has further intensified the impact of SLD. The current control measures largely rely on autogenous killed vaccines; however, their use is constrained by the slow and fastidious growth of C. hepaticus and inconsistent efficacy. To overcome these limitations, this study aimed to identify immunogenic mimotopes as vaccine candidates and express them on the surface of an avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC) vector. Methods: To identify immunogenic mimotopes, Ph.D.-12 phage display peptide library was screened using the hyperimmune serum raised against killed whole-cell C. hepaticus in specific pathogen-free chickens. Subsequently, the outer membrane protein C (OmpC) of E. coli was used as a scaffold for constructing a surface display library. A single restriction site, PstI, located in the seventh external loop of OmpC, was strategically utilized to insert each 12-amino-acid mimotope with a six-histidine (6xHis) tag sequence at its N-terminus, generating ompC + mimotope fusion constructs. These constructs were cloned into the inducible expression vector pTrc and electroporated into an E. coli DH5α ∆ompC strain, which lacked ompC. The surface expression of the mimotopes was confirmed in vitro. The verified ompC + mimotope constructs were subsequently subcloned into the pYA3422 constitutive expression vector and electroporated into the APEC PSUO78 ∆aroA ∆asd vaccine vector strain. A chicken vaccination–challenge trial was conducted using nine groups of chickens, including an unvaccinated challenged control and an unvaccinated–unchallenged negative control. Each experimental group received a mixture of two recombinant E. coli strains carrying different mimotopes at a dose of 1 × 109 CFU, which were administered orally twice at 16 and 18 weeks of age. Results: Fourteen immunogenic mimotopes corresponding to 13 different C. hepaticus proteins were identified as potential vaccine candidates. The expression of these mimotopes on the surface of the E. coli was successfully demonstrated using the OmpC-mediated surface display system. Of the 14 mimotopes tested, two flagellar-related peptides and one major outer membrane protein (MOMP)-derived peptide elicited significant immune responses and conferred protection against the C. hepaticus challenge. Conclusions: We successfully developed a functional E. coli surface display system that was capable of expressing 12-amino-acid mimotopes of C. hepaticus, providing a robust platform for evaluating vaccine candidates against SLD. Immunogenicity and efficacy studies in chickens demonstrated that three identified mimotopes conferred protection against C. hepaticus colonization of the bile and liver. Future in vivo investigations are necessary to develop and evaluate the immunogenicity and protective efficacy of a multivalent mimotope vaccine consisting of three identified mimotopes against both C. hepaticus and APEC, utilizing the ΔaroA Δasd APEC PSU078 strain as the vaccine vector. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bacterial Vaccines in Veterinary Science)
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