# Honey Bee AMPs as a Novel Carrier Protein for the Development of a Subunit Vaccine: An Immunoinformatic Approach

## TL;DR

This study explores honey bee antimicrobial peptides as potential carrier proteins for subunit vaccines using immunoinformatics methods.

## Contribution

The study identifies novel honey bee peptides with high antigenicity and non-allergenic profiles for vaccine development.

## Key findings

- Five honey bee peptides (P15450, A0A2A3EK62, Q86BU7, C7AHW3, I3RJI9A) showed high antigenicity and non-allergenic properties.
- Molecular docking and simulations revealed stable interactions with TLR3 and TLR4-MD2 receptors.
- The peptides demonstrated favorable binding energetics and potential immunogenic properties for vaccine applications.

## Abstract

Infectious diseases remain a persistent global health threat, intensified by the rapid emergence of antibiotic-resistant pathogens. Despite the transformative impact of antibiotics, the escalating resistance crisis underscores the urgent need for alternative therapeutic approaches. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have emerged as promising candidates due to their broad-spectrum antimicrobial and immunomodulatory activities. The present study investigated 82 honey bee antimicrobial peptides (BAMPs) representing seven families: abaecin, apamin, apisimin, apidaecin, defensin, hymenoptaecin, and melittin among eight honey bee species. Immunoinformatics analyses identified five peptides (P15450, A0A2A3EK62, Q86BU7, C7AHW3, and I3RJI9A) with high antigenicity and non-allergenic profiles. Structural modeling, molecular docking with TLR3 and TLR4-MD2, and molecular dynamics simulations revealed stable receptor-peptide interactions and favorable binding energetics, further supported by silico immune simulations. Overall, these findings suggest that the selected BAMPs exhibit strong immunogenic potential and may serve as effective adjuvants or carrier molecules in subunit vaccine design against drug-resistant pathogens; however, further experimental validation is essential to confirm their safety and immunological efficacy.