Recent progress in the design of DNA vaccines against tuberculosis.

Bacillus Calmette–Guerin (BCG) is an established vaccine used for tuberculosis (TB) prevention; however, it is not effective in adults and is only protective for children’s extrapulmonary TB. Therefore, many efforts have focused on producing effective TB vaccines for adults. One promising approach is DNA vaccination because of its ability to elicit both humoral and cellular immune responses, low cost, rapid production, desirable stability, and efficient protection against several infectious diseases. Nanoparticle (NP)-based systems can also enhance the immunogenicity of DNA vaccines by protecting naked plasmid DNA from nucleases and improving its delivery to immune cells. In this review, we focus on the design and delivery of novel DNA-based vaccines against TB and summarize investigations on specific mycobacterial antigens and chimeric combinations in animal models.