Rational Design of a Multi-epitope Vaccine for Yak Milk Allergy by Immuno-informatics Approach

Abstract

Milk is a wholesome nutrient source, but one of the problems associated with milk consumption is the allergy observed in humans due to major milk proteins. Yak is one of the milch animal which is well adapted to high altitude and serve as source of nutritious milk for inhabiting human population. However, yak and cow milk are similar in composition, and are known to elicit hyperimmune reaction especially in infants and children. The several therapeutic attempts have already been made to counter cow’s milk allergic response but their response is temporary in nature. So, the following study is an attempt to overcome Yak’s milk allergic response by in-silico multi-epitope vaccine construction. For this, the suitable epitopes and adjuvants were coupled for increased vaccine efficacy and immune stimulation. The vaccine construct was found to be antigenic and free from allergens and toxins. As per computational modelling, the proposed multiepitope vaccine is physically stable and may induce immune responses in allergic conditions.