Isolation of Chuzan virus, a new member of the Palyam subgroup of the genus Orbivirus, from cattle and Culicoides oxystoma in Japan

Five virus strains with identical antigenic properties were isolated from 3 RBC suspensions obtained from 2 healthy sentinel calves and from 2 pools of Culicoides oxystoma in cultures of a hamster lung cell line (HmLu-1). The virus was tentatively named Chuzan virus. The Chuzan virus was classified as a new member of the Palyam subgroup of the genus Orbivirus on the basis of its physicochemical, morphologic, and antigenic properties.     

Expression and antigenic characterization of recombinant Mycoplasma agalactiae P48 major surface protein

The gene encoding the P48 major surface lipoprotein of M. agalactiae has been recently characterised. Since its product plays an important role in the immune response of infected animals, in this study we analysed a recombinant P48 expressed in E. coli. Multiple point mutations were introduced by site directed mutagenesis in order to convert four tryptophan TGA codons, which are a typical feature of the mycoplasma genetic code, into the standard TGG. The mutated p48 gene was subcloned into pGex-2T and expressed in fusion with glutathione-S transferase. Following purification steps, P48 was eluted from carrier protein by thrombin digestion and used in Western blot and indirect ELISA using well-characterised sheep sera. Results demonstrate that specific antibodies against P48 are detected 3 weeks after onset of clinical disease and the recombinant P48 is a diagnostically relevant marker of M. agalactiae infection.     

蓝舌病毒8型VP7蛋白的表达及其单克隆抗体的制备

对蓝舌病毒(BTV)8型群特异性抗原VP7蛋白进行了原核表达,制备了单克隆抗体(McA b),并分析其特性。将BTV 8型VP7蛋白基因分别克隆至p ET-28a-c(+)和p MAL-c5x载体中,在大肠杆菌中诱导表达分别带组氨酸标签(His)和麦芽糖结合蛋白(MBP)标签的的融合蛋白His-VP7和MBP-VP7。用纯化的His-VP7免疫BALB/c小鼠制备McA b,以MBP-VP7为包被抗原筛选分泌McA b的杂交瘤细胞。筛选出的1株抗BTV的McA b命名为3F4,亚类鉴定为IgG 1型;该单抗既能与重组BTV VP7蛋白发生反应,又能识别BTV,为BTV的血清学检测提供了工具。     

O型口蹄疫病毒VP1基因的体外表达鉴定与蛋白结构分析

口蹄疫病毒为小RNA病毒科属的成员。其基因组为一约含8500个核苷酸的正链RNA，只有1个开放阅读框，编码1个原始翻译产物，该产物可被蛋白水解酶裂解为几个分子量较大的前体，包括P1、P2、P3、P4等。P1又可被病毒编码的蛋白水解酶裂解为VP1、VP2、VP3和VP4四个结构蛋白单位。由于VP1暴露于病毒颗粒的表面，所以研究工作最多的是VP1。该基因位于FMDV基因组的2977～3615核苷酸，编码213个氨基酸。     

Production and characterization of monoclonal antibodies to budgerigar fledgling disease virus major capsid protein VP.

Eleven hybridoma cell lines producing monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against intact budgerigar fledgling disease (BFD) virions were produced and characterized. These antibodies were selected for their ability to react with BFD virions in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Each of these antibodies was reactive in the immunofluorescent detection of BFD virus-infected cells. These antibodies immunoprecipitated intact virions and specifically recognized the major capsid protein, VP1, of the dissociated virion. The MAbs were found to preferentially recognize native BFD virus capsid protein when compared with denatured virus protein. These MAbs were capable of detecting BFD virus protein in chicken embryonated cell-culture lysates by dot-blot analysis.     

Isolation and preliminary characterization of an orbivirus of the Palyam serogroup from biting midge Culicoides oxystoma in Japan

An orbivirus of the Palyam serogroup was isolated from Culicoides oxystoma collected in a cowshed in Kagoshima, Southern Kyushu Island, Japan. This is the first isolation of an orbivirus of the Palyam serogroup in Japan. The virus was a spherical non-enveloped RNA virus, approximately 60 nm in diameter. The virus was resistant to ethyl ether, sodium deoxycholate and freezing-thawing, but readily inactivated by trypsin. The virus was not stabilized by 1 M MgCl2, was labile at pH 3.0 and was not precipitated by protamine sulfate. Indirect immunofluorescent staining of infected Vero cells indicated the virus to be antigenically related to D'Aguilar and Bunyip Creek viruses of the Palyam serogroup. Neutralization tests showed the virus to have no relationship with D'Aguilar virus, but to have a one-way cross-reaction with Bunyip Creek virus. The virus was tentatively designated as Kagoshima virus. A serological survey indicated dissemination of the virus in cattle populations in Kagoshima Prefecture.     

Molecular cloning, expression and first antigenic characterization of human astrovirus VP26 structural protein and a C-terminal deleted form

The open reading frame 2 (ORF2) of human astrovirus (HAstV) encodes the structural VP26 protein that seems to be the main antigenic viral protein. However, its functional role remains unclear. Bioinformatic predictions revealed that VP29 and VP26 proteins could be involved in virus-cell interaction. In this study, we describe for the first time the cloning and expression in Escherichia coli (E. coli) of a recombinant VP26 (rVP26) protein and a VP26 C-terminal truncated form (VP26 Delta C), followed by purification by NTA-Ni(2+) agarose affinity chromatography. Protein expression and purification were evaluated by sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and Western blot (WB). Then, the purified proteins were evaluated for antigenic properties in enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using a polyclonal antibody (PAb) and a neutralizing monoclonal antibody (nMAb) named PL2, both of them directed to HAstV. The results presented herein indicate that the C-terminal end of the VP26 protein is essential to maintain the neutralizing epitope recognized by nMAb PL2 and that the N-terminus of VP26 protein may contain antigenic lineal-epitopes recognized by PAb. Thus, these recombinant proteins can be ideal tools for further antigenic, biochemical, structural and functional VP26 protein characterization, in order to evaluate its potential role in immunodiagnosis and vaccine studies.     

The complete nucleotide sequences of L3 and S7 segments of Ibaraki virus encoding for the major inner capsid proteins, VP3 and VP7

The complete nucleotide sequences of the genes encoding two of the major inner capsid proteins of Ibaraki virus (IBAV), belonging to epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus serotype 2 (EHDV-2) were determined. The L3 RNA segment is 2768 nucleotides in length which encodes VP3 polypeptides of 899 amino acid residues (M.W. 103 kDa). The S7 RNA segment, which encodes the VP7 core protein, is 1162 nucleotides in length and encodes 349 amino acids (M.W. 38 kDa). These RNA segments had the characteristic consensus motifs of Orbivirus RNA segments in termini, namely 5'-GUUAAA... and ...ACUUAC-3'. The comparison of the IBAV L3 and S7 sequences with those of other two EHDV-2 isolates revealed the higher homologies of 93% and 92% against EHDV-2 Australia isolate (EHDV-2AUS) and lower homologies of 80% and 81% against EHDV-2 North America isolate, respectively. The phylogenetic analysis based on L3 and S7 genes also indicated close relationships between IBAV and EHDV-2AUS. KEY WORDS: dsRNA gene, lbaraki virus, inner capsid, VP3, VP7.     

非洲猪瘟病毒VP73结构蛋白表达及鉴定

根据GenBank登录的非洲猪瘟病毒(ASFV) VP73基因序列,人工合成VP73主要抗原表位区基因片段,克隆至pUC57载体中.设计1对引物,PCR扩增获得429 bp的VP73基因片段;将VP73基因片段使用EcoRI和SalI酶切后亚克隆至表达载体pGEX-KG,经PCR、酶切、测序鉴定挑选阳性克隆,转化至表达菌株BL21 (DM3)中,进行体外诱导表达,SDS-PAGE和Western blot分析蛋白表达及其活性.结果显示,成功构建表达重组载体pGEX-KG-VP73,对该重组载体进行诱导,有效表达了41 ku重组蛋白,表达量约占菌体总蛋白的17％,Western blot分析证实该蛋白具有良好反应原性.     

Isolation of Fukuoka virus, a member of the Kern Canyon serogroup viruses of the family Rhabdoviridae, from cattle.

Four virus strains with identical antigenic properties were isolated from blood samples of 4 sentinel calves having a fever and leukopenea in cultures of HmLu-1 cells derived from baby hamster lung. The virus was identified as Fukuoka virus, classified as a member of the Kern Canyon serogroup viruses of the family Rhabdoviridae, on the basis of its antigenic properties.     

Partial characterization of a Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1 immunodominant antigenic determinant recognized by a monoclonal antibody. Legionella specific antigenic determinant

A monoclonal antibody was used to characterize a serogroup 1 specific Legionella pneumophila Philadelphia strain 1 antigenic determinant. A quantitative fluorometric assay was developed to quantitate the antibody sites (2.7 +/- 0.4 X 10(5)) on Legionella bacteria and to determine the physico-chemical parameters of the antibody-antigen interaction (at 4 degrees C: delta G = -10.9 Kcal X mol-1, delta H = 1.7 Kcal X mol-1, delta S = 45 cal X K-1 X mol-1). The same method was used to study the modification or the removal of the antigen by chemical and enzymatic means (trypsin, papain, lysozyme, acetone, chloroform-methanol and Tris-EDTA); only Tris-EDTA extraction resulted in a significant decrease in antibody binding sites. Inhibition studies of the fluorescein-labelled antibody binding were performed with different sugars of which only L-fucosylamine was inhibitory, and with other monoclonal antibodies to Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1 in order to compare their fine specificity and affinity. The results indicate that the epitope recognized was an immunodominant carbohydrate including an aminodideoxyhexose and carried by the lipopolysaccharide.     

Evaluating the protective efficacy of a trivalent vaccine containing Akabane virus,Aino virus and Chuzan virus against Schmallenberg virus infection

Schmallenberg virus (SBV), an arthropod borne pathogen, spread rapidly throughout the majority of Europe since 2011. It can cause a febrile disease, milk drop, diarrhea, and fetal malformation in ruminants. SBV, a member of the Simbu serogroup within the genus Orthobunyavirus, is closely related to Akabane virus (AKAV) and Aino virus (AINOV) among others. In the present study, 4 Holstein-Friesian calves were immunized twice four weeks apart with a multivalent, inactivated vaccine against AKAV and AINOV. Another 4 calves were kept as unvaccinated controls. All animals were clinically, serologically and virologically examined before and after challenge infection with SBV. AKAV- and AINOV-specific neutralizing antibodies were detected one week before challenge infection, while SBV-specific antibodies were detectable only thereafter. SBV genome was detected in all vaccinated animals and 3 out of 4 controls in serum samples taken after challenge infection. In conclusion, the investigated vaccine was not able to prevent an SBV-infection. Thus, vaccines for other related Simbu serogroup viruses can not substitute SBV-specific vaccines as an instrument for disease control.     

Development and characterization of a potential diagnostic monoclonal antibody against capsid protein VP1 of the chicken anemia virus

Chicken anemia virus (CAV) is an important viral pathogen that causes anemia and severe immunodeficiency syndrome in chickens worldwide. In this study, a potential diagnostic monoclonal antibody against the CAV VP1 protein was developed which can precisely recognize the CAV antigen for diagnostic and virus recovery purposes. The VP1 gene of CAV encoding the N-terminus-deleted VP1 protein, VP1Nd129, was cloned into an Escherichia (E.) coli expression vector. After isopropyl-β-D-thiogalactopyronoside induction, VP1Nd129 protein was shown to be successfully expressed in the E. coli. By performing an enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent assay using two coating antigens, purified VP1Nd129 and CAV-infected liver tissue lysate, E3 monoclonal antibody (mAb) was found to have higher reactivity against VP1 protein than the other positive clones according to the result of limiting dilution method from 64 clones. Using immunohistochemistry, the presence of the VP1-specific mAb, E3, was confirmed using CAV-infected liver and thymus tissues as positive-infected samples. Additionally, CAV particle purification was also performed using an immunoaffinity column containing E3 mAb. The monoclonal E3 mAb developed in this study will not only be very useful for detecting CAV infection and performing histopathology studies of infected chickens, but may also be used to purify CAV particles in the future.     

茨城病病毒S7基因的截短表达及间接ELISA检测方法的建立

为建立以茨城病病毒(IBAV)VP7蛋白为诊断抗原的茨城病(IBAD)血清学检测方法,本研究克隆了VP7蛋白抗原性、亲水性较强部分的编码基因,并在原核表达系统中表达了可溶性截短VP7蛋白。用截短VP7蛋白建立了IBAV间接ELISA检测方法。确定的阳性血清的判定标准为不低于0.32。特异性试验表明建立的ELISA方法可以特异性检测IBAV阳性血清。建立的ELISA方法与中和试验结果比较,符合率为77%。用建立的ELISA方法检测70份来自云南的牛血清样品进行检测,IBAV血清阳性率为45.7%。该方法的建立为IBAD的诊断提供了一种简单快速的辅助手段。     

1株鸡传染性支气管炎病毒变异株的分子特征和抗原性分析

从山东省发病商品鸡群分离鉴定了1株鸡传染性支气管炎病毒,命名为CK/CH/SD09/005.S1基因序列分析发现,该株和同期分离的16个IBV流行株与疫苗株H120和491同源性分别为65.2％和66.0％.BLAST发现,CK/CH/SD09/005株仅与GenBank中3个广东分离株同源性较高(98.6％～98.8％),并形成独立的进化群.分别以H120和491为参考株,除了广泛的点突变,CK/CH/SD09/005 S1基因在多个位点发生了插入和缺失,CK/CH/SD09/005 N基因仅发生了点突变,没有基因插入和缺失;M基因除了发生点突变之外,分别在16～18和7～18位发生了碱基插入.鸡胚中和试验结果显示,CK/CH/SD09/005与H120和491均有交叉中和性,抗原相关性分别为0.18和0.09,应属于Mass和793/B之外新的血清型.结果表明,IBV S1基因可同时通过点突变、插入和缺失产生变异株,增加了免疫预防的难度.     

蓝舌病病毒血清Ⅰ型VP2与VP5、VP3与VP7两组蛋白在杆状病毒系统中的表达与鉴定

为表达具有天然构象的蓝舌病病毒血清1型(BTV1)主要结构蛋白VP2、VP3、VP5和VP7,研制针对流行于我国的BTV1型毒株的病毒样颗粒(virus-like particles,VLP)疫苗提供基础,将编码BTV1 VP2和VP5蛋白的基因分别克隆到双表达载体pFastBacDual的启动子pPH和pP10下游,构建重组质粒pFastBacDualBTV1-VP2-VP5,将重组质粒转化DH10Bac感受态细胞,获得重组穿梭质粒rBacmidBTV1-VP2-VP5,转染Sf9昆虫细胞,获得重组杆状病毒rBacBTV1-VP2-VP5;按照同样策略,制备重组杆状病毒rBacBTV1-VP3-VP7。使用兔抗BTV1-VP5蛋白多克隆抗体和鼠抗BTV-VP7蛋白单克隆抗体,分别对rBacBTV1-VP2-VP5和rBacBTV1-VP3-VP7感染的Sf9细胞进行间接免疫荧光试验(IFA)检测,结果病毒感染细胞可见特异性荧光出现;使用兔抗BTV1-VP2蛋白多克隆抗体和兔抗BTV1-VP3蛋白多克隆抗体,分别对rBacBTV1-VP2-VP5和r BacBTV1-VP3-VP7感染的Sf9细胞进行Western-blot检测,可见相对分子质量约100 kDa左右的条带,大小与预期相符。IFA检测和Western Blot检测结果显示,BTV1 VP2、VP3、VP5和VP7蛋白均得以表达,且具有良好的反应原性。