Comprehensive in Silico Prediction and Proteomic Analysis of B- and T-Cell Epitopes for the Capsid Protein of Banana Bunchy Top Virus (BBTV)
El-Masry, S., Abdel Razek, F., Ibrahim, S., El-Dougdoug, K., Sadik, A. (2025). Comprehensive in Silico Prediction and Proteomic Analysis of B- and T-Cell Epitopes for the Capsid Protein of Banana Bunchy Top Virus (BBTV). EKB Journal Management System, 17(1), 151-161. doi: 10.21608/eajbsg.2025.430201
Samar S.A. El-Masry; Fatma S. Abdel Razek; Shafik D. Ibrahim; Khalid A. El-Dougdoug; Atef S. Sadik. "Comprehensive in Silico Prediction and Proteomic Analysis of B- and T-Cell Epitopes for the Capsid Protein of Banana Bunchy Top Virus (BBTV)". EKB Journal Management System, 17, 1, 2025, 151-161. doi: 10.21608/eajbsg.2025.430201
El-Masry, S., Abdel Razek, F., Ibrahim, S., El-Dougdoug, K., Sadik, A. (2025). 'Comprehensive in Silico Prediction and Proteomic Analysis of B- and T-Cell Epitopes for the Capsid Protein of Banana Bunchy Top Virus (BBTV)', EKB Journal Management System, 17(1), pp. 151-161. doi: 10.21608/eajbsg.2025.430201
El-Masry, S., Abdel Razek, F., Ibrahim, S., El-Dougdoug, K., Sadik, A. Comprehensive in Silico Prediction and Proteomic Analysis of B- and T-Cell Epitopes for the Capsid Protein of Banana Bunchy Top Virus (BBTV). EKB Journal Management System, 2025; 17(1): 151-161. doi: 10.21608/eajbsg.2025.430201

Comprehensive in Silico Prediction and Proteomic Analysis of B- and T-Cell Epitopes for the Capsid Protein of Banana Bunchy Top Virus (BBTV)

Egyptian Academic Journal of Biological Sciences, G. Microbiology
Volume 17, Issue 1, June 2025, Page 151-161  XML PDF (653.01 K)
Document Type: Original Article
DOI: 10.21608/eajbsg.2025.430201
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Authors
Samar S.A. El-Masry1; Fatma S. Abdel Razek1; Shafik D. Ibrahim2; Khalid A. El-Dougdoug1; Atef S. Sadik1
1Department of Agricultural Microbiology, Laboratory of Virology, Faculty of Agriculture, Ain Shams University, P.O. Box 68, Hadayek Shobra, Cairo, Egypt.
2Agricultural Genetic Engineering Research Institute, Agricultural Research Center, 9 Gamaa St., P.O. Box, 12619, Giza, Egypt.
Abstract
The Banana Bunchy Top Virus (BBTV) poses a significant threat to global banana cultivation, underscoring the urgent need for effective preventive strategies. In this study, an immunoinformatics-driven approach was employed to design a multi-epitope chimeric vaccine targeting the BBTV capsid protein. Linear B-cell and T-cell epitopes were predicted using a combination of computational tools, including SVMTriP, ABCpred, BepiPred-2.0, NetMHCpan, and NetMHCIIpan. The most promising epitopes-three B-cell, two cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL), and three T helper lymphocyte (THL) epitopes-were selected based on their antigenicity, non-allergenicity, and non-toxicity. These epitopes were assembled into a single construct using AAY, GPGPG, and KK linkers, and the PADRE adjuvant was added to enhance immunogenicity. The final chimeric vaccine sequence comprised 165 amino acids, with a high antigenicity score (0.7930) and favorable safety profile. Physicochemical analysis revealed desirable features including stability (instability index: 23.05), thermostability (aliphatic index: 76.86), and hydrophilicity (GRAVY score: -0.349). Secondary structure analysis predicted a balanced composition of alpha helices, beta sheets, and random coils, with over half of the residues exposed, suggesting strong immune accessibility. The 3D structure was modeled using AlphaFold 3 and refined through GalaxyRefine. The best model exhibited excellent validation parameters (RMSD: 0.615, GDT-HA: 0.8729, Ramachandran favored regions: 99.4%, ERRAT score: 96.2963, Z-score: -2.6), confirming structural reliability. Overall, these findings suggest that the designed multi-epitope vaccine is a promising candidate for subsequent in vitro and in vivo evaluation against BBTV. 
Keywords
Banana Bunchy Top Virus (BBTV); B-cell epitopes; Immunoinformatics; Multi-epitope vaccine; T-cell epitopes
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