Designing of the pp65 recombinant antigen of human cytomegalovirus and investigation of its immunochemical properties

The primary and secondary structures of the pp65 phosphoprotein of human cytomegalovirus coded by the UL83 gene were studied by the methods of computer-aided analysis. An immunodominant protein fragment with 3 antigenic determinant was detected. The UL83 fragment coding the selected region was amplified and cloned in bacterial expressing vector. The recombinant protein was obtained and purified. On the basis of ELISA findings it was acknowledged as possible to use the pp65 recombinant protein jointly with pp150 and p52 in the diagnosis of antibodies specific to human cytomegalovirus.     

人巨细胞病毒pp150蛋白片段与MDBP蛋白片段的融合表达及初步应用

人巨细胞病毒(HCMV)感染是临床上常见的一种病毒性传播疾病,正常人群常无明显的临床症状,而对器官移植患者、免疫力低下及孕妇等人可产生严重的危害。以HCMVAD169病毒株基因为模板,经PCR扩增了编码pp150蛋白片段的UL32基因和编码MDBP蛋白片段的UL57基因,目的基因转化入pMD18-T克隆载体后再经酶切与表达载体pET-11a连接构建出融合基因表达载体,然后转入大肠杆菌BL21,重组大肠杆菌经诱导表达融合蛋白pp150/MDBP。经SDS-PAGE分析,其相对分子量约为27kD,表达量约占菌体蛋白的17.45%,Westernblot鉴定为阳性,ELISA及蛋白芯片检测表明融合蛋白具有良好的抗原性,经过初步应用表明其对血清IgG及IgM的检出率与全抗原相比一致,具有进一步开发应用的价值。     

HCMV截短UL83基因真核表达重组体的构建、转染及其免疫效力研究

为了构建人巨细胞病毒(HCMV)截短UL83基因真核表达重组体,实现其在Hep-2细胞中的稳定表达,研究该截短UL83基因真核表达重组体免疫效力,采用基因重组的方法,将HCMV AD169株截短UL83基因定向克隆到带有绿色荧光蛋白(GFP)作为报告基因的真核表达载体pEGFP-C1上,构建真核重组表达质粒pEGFP-C1-UL83;脂质体转染至Hep-2细胞中,G418筛选获得稳定表达pp65细胞表达系。经基因测序显示,重组体中截短UL83基因完全正确,RT-PCR和Western blot检测证实其可在Hep-2细胞中稳定表达。用该重组体和其表达产物在HCMV先天性感染小鼠模型上进行免疫保护试验显示,母鼠血清可检测到特异性抗HCMV pp65抗体,效价为:1∶2.51~1∶50.79;子鼠脑组织内未分离出病毒,亦未检测出病毒pp65蛋白抗原表达。初步结果表明,pEGFP-C1-UL83具有较好的免疫原性,可作为DNA疫苗刺激机体产生有效抗体,并具有阻止病毒垂直传播的保护性作用。     

Development and preparation of recombinant gD antigen of the herpes simplex type 1 (HSV-1) virus]

The most potent antigen among HSV-1 proteins are glycoproteins gB(UL27) and gD(US6). Multiple amino acid sequence alignment of these proteins shows that gD protein is the most specific for HSV-1. Analysis of gD protein epitopes detected the main antigenic determinants not cross-reactive with antigens of other viruses. Virus was isolated and genome DNA was prepared from morphological elements of a patient with herpes simplex infection. US6 gene fragment was cloned in pUC19 vector. Cloning in bacterial expression vectors helped obtain beta-galactosidase-fused recombinant HSV-1 gD protein with 6-histidines affine target for high-performance chromatography purification. ELISA with a set of HSV-1-positive and negative donor sera and a commercial panel of HSV-1 sera (Vektor-Best) showed that recombinant gD can be used as an antigen to HSV-1-specific IgG.     

The dominant phosphoprotein pp65 (UL83) of human cytomegalovirus is dispensable for growth in cell culture.

The phosphoprotein pp65 (ppUL83) of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is abundantly synthesized during lytic infection in cultured fibroblasts. As a major constituent of extracellular particles, it gains entry to infected cells immediately after adsorption and subsequently translocates to the cell nucleus. This efficient transport is mediated by unique nuclear localization signals. To study the function of pp65, a viral deletion mutant was constructed by replacing the pp65 gene with the bacterial neomycin phosphotransferase gene, driven by the simian virus 40 early promoter. The resulting virus, RVAd65, could be grown and selected on human fibroblasts without complementation. The deletion of the pp65 gene in RVAd65 was verified by using Southern blot and PCR analyses. The lack of expression from the gene was investigated by immunoblotting with pp65-specific monoclonal antibodies. Single-cycle growth analyses showed that RVAd65 grew to levels of infectivity comparable to those of the wild-type virus. Therefore, pp65 is nonessential for the growth of HCMV in human fibroblasts. Electron microscopy revealed no differences in the processes of virion morphogenesis, although the maturation appeared to be delayed. However, the kinetics of expression of the immediate-early genes UL122 and UL123, the early gene UL44, and the late gene UL32 were the same in RVAd65-infected cells as in wild-type virus-infected cells in immunoblot analyses. In vitro phosphorylation assays showed that some of the virion proteins were labelled to a markedly reduced extent by virion-associated kinases in RVAd65 compared with wild-type virus. We therefore conclude that although deletion of the pp65 gene does not abolish replication of HCMV, a recombinant virus lacking pp65 displays phenotypic alterations compared with wild-type virus during growth in cultured fibroblasts.     

Cytomegalovirus-mediated induction of antisense mRNA expression to UL44 inhibits virus replication in an astrocytoma cell line: identification of an essential gene.

We have used an antisense RNA approach in the analysis of gene function in human cytomegalovirus (HCMV). An astrocytoma cell line (U373-MG) that is permissive for virus replication was permanently transfected with a construct bearing sequence from HCMV UL44 (coding for the major late DNA-binding protein, ppUL44, also known as pp52 or ICP36) in an antisense orientation and under the control of the immediate-early enhancer-promoter element. Upon HCMV infection at a high multiplicity, we found a marked reduction in UL44 protein products (the ICP36 family of proteins) in established cell transfectants and a strong inhibition of virus yield in infected-cell supernatants at two weeks postinfection, while herpes simplex virus replication was not affected. In infected cells, viral DNA replication was strongly inhibited. While gene products such as pUS22 and pUL32 were also inhibited, pUL123 and pUL82 accumulated in the infected cells over time. Our data suggest an essential role for the UL44 family of proteins in HCMV replication and represent a model of virus inhibition by virus-induced antisense RNA synthesis in genetically modified cells.     

基于Red重组系统构建含Flag标签标记UL23基因的重组人巨细胞病毒

利用来源于λ噬菌体的Red系统,将Flag标签及两侧带有FRT位点的卡那霉素抗性基因片段插入原HCMV TowneBAC中UL23基因3 '末端区域,通过卡那抗性筛选带有抗性标记的重组菌株,并通过表达重组酶FLP的质粒pCP20去除卡那霉素抗性基因,得到带有Flag标签标记UL23基因和单一FRT位点的突变BAC.重组后的BAC分子同质粒pcDNA3.1(+)-pUL82共转染HFF细胞后重建重组HCMV.Western blotting检测证实所构建重组病毒能够表达含Flag标签标记的pUL23蛋白.此含有Flag标签标记UL23基因的重组HCMV的成功构建为了进一步研究人巨细胞病毒UL23基因及其产物的功能提供依据.     

猴B病毒被膜糖蛋白gC的原核表达及诊断价值评价

目的:原核表达猴B病毒糖蛋白gC胞外区片段,评价其在猴B病毒血清学检测中的特异性和敏感性,为猴B病毒检测奠定基础。方法:利用PCR方法扩增gC胞外区基因片段,同时合成该片段的优化密码子序列,将其插入表达载体pET-28b(+)形成重组质粒,转化至大肠杆菌BL21(DE3)并进行诱导表达;纯化蛋白先以Western印迹进行验证,再以ELISA方法和标准阳性、阴性血清评价其诊断价值。结果:直接从病毒DNA模板上获得的基因片段未能表达,而优化后的基因片段表达水平较高,表达蛋白的相对分子质量约为48×103,为包涵体形式,占菌体总蛋白的30%左右;Western印迹显示,重组蛋白能与猴B病毒阳性血清和His单克隆抗体发生免疫反应;34份标准阳性血清和25份阴性血清的ELISA检测结果显示,重组蛋白的敏感性和特异性分别为94.1%(32/34)和100%(25/25)。结论:利用原核表达系统制备的gC胞外区重组蛋白,可作为猴B病毒血清学检测抗原,其特异性和敏感性都较好。     

An acidic cluster of human cytomegalovirus UL99 tegument protein is required for trafficking and function

The human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) virion is comprised of a linear double-stranded DNA genome, proteinaceous capsid and tegument, and a lipid envelope containing virus-encoded glycoproteins. Of these components, the tegument is the least well defined in terms of both protein content and function. Several of the major tegument proteins are phosphoproteins (pp), including pp150, pp71, pp65, and pp28. pp28, encoded by the UL99 open reading frame (ORF), traffics to vacuole-like cytoplasmic structures and was shown recently to be essential for envelopment. To elucidate the UL99 amino acid sequences necessary for its trafficking and function in the HCMV replication cycle, two types of viral mutants were analyzed. Using a series of recombinant viruses expressing various UL99-green fluorescent protein fusions, we demonstrate that myristoylation at glycine 2 and an acidic cluster (AC; amino acids 44 to 57) are required for the punctate perinuclear and cytoplasmic (vacuole-like) localization observed for wild-type pp28. A second approach involving the generation of several UL99 deletion mutants indicated that at least the C-terminal two-thirds of this ORF is nonessential for viral growth. Furthermore, the data suggest that an N-terminal region of UL99 containing the AC is required for viral growth. Regarding virion incorporation or UL99-encoded proteins, we provide evidence that suggests that a hypophosphorylated form of pp28 is incorporated, myristoylation is required, and sequences within the first 57 amino acids are sufficient.     

The essential human cytomegalovirus gene UL52 is required for cleavage-packaging of the viral genome

Replication of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) produces large DNA concatemers of head-to-tail-linked viral genomes that upon packaging into capsids are cut into unit-length genomes. The mechanisms underlying cleavage-packaging and the subsequent steps prior to nuclear egress of DNA-filled capsids are incompletely understood. The hitherto uncharacterized product of the essential HCMV UL52 gene was proposed to participate in these processes. To investigate the function of pUL52, we constructed a ΔUL52 mutant as well as a complementing cell line. We found that replication of viral DNA was not impaired in noncomplementing cells infected with the ΔUL52 virus, but viral concatemers remained uncleaved. Since the subnuclear localization of the known cleavage-packaging proteins pUL56, pUL89, and pUL104 was unchanged in ΔUL52-infected fibroblasts, pUL52 does not seem to act via these proteins. Electron microscopy studies revealed only B capsids in the nuclei of ΔUL52-infected cells, indicating that the mutant virus has a defect in encapsidation of viral DNA. Generation of recombinant HCMV genomes encoding epitope-tagged pUL52 versions showed that only the N-terminally tagged pUL52 supported viral growth, suggesting that the C terminus is crucial for its function. pUL52 was expressed as a 75-kDa protein with true late kinetics. It localized preferentially to the nuclei of infected cells and was found to enclose the replication compartments. Taken together, our results demonstrate an essential role for pUL52 in cleavage-packaging of HCMV DNA. Given its unique subnuclear localization, the function of pUL52 might be distinct from that of other cleavage-packaging proteins.     

丙型肝炎病毒核心抗原高效表达及产物抗原性的研究

用含谷胱甘肽转硫酶（ＧＳＴ）基因的ｐＧｅｘ－２Ｔ为表达载体在大肠杆菌中高效表达了含ＨＣＶ核心区部分基因片段（约１２２个氢基酸）的融合蛋白,表达产物Ｃ２７经测定占菌体总蛋白的３０％,Ｃ２７纯化后,用我国ＨＣＶ诊断试剂第二代血清参考品为标准与Ｇ１１核心抗原进行比较,结果显示二者具有相同的总体检出率和近似的抗原活性。因此,推测表达的部分区段基因可能是核心区重要功能区域。另外融合蛋白对提高重组蛋白的抗原活性和分离纯化等均有一定作用。     

重组人巨细胞病毒(HCMV)优势表位嵌合抗原的构建表达以及捕获法检测IgM抗体

勘误：重组人巨细胞病毒(HCMV)优势表位嵌合抗原的构建表达以及捕获法检测 IgM 抗体     

Use of recombinant virus to assess human cytomegalovirus early and late promoters in the context of the viral genome.

We have developed a system to study human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) cis-acting promoter elements within the context of the viral genome. A recombinant HCMV (RV134) containing a marker gene (beta-glucuronidase) was used to insert HCMV promoter-chloramphenicol acetyltransferase gene constructs into the viral genome between open reading frames US9 and US10. Using this system, we have studied the promoters for the early DNA polymerase gene (UL54), the early-late lower matrix phosphoprotein gene (pp65, UL83), and the true late 28-kDa structural phosphoprotein gene (pp28, UL99). Transient-expression assays demonstrated that the pp65 and pp28 promoters are activated earlier and to higher levels than typically observed with the endogenous gene. In contrast, insertion of these promoters into the viral genome resulted in kinetics which mimicked that of the endogenous genes. In addition, we have also tested a variant of the pp28 promoter (d24/26CAT) which is deleted from -609 to -41. This promoter behaved similarly to the wild-type pp28 promoter, indicating that sequences from -40 to +106 are sufficient for conferring true late kinetics. Taken together, these data demonstrate that the viral genome affords a level of regulation on HCMV gene expression that has been previously unrealized. Therefore, these experiments provide a model system for the analysis of cis-acting promoter regulatory elements in the context of the viral genome.     

Cytomegalovirus pUL96 is critical for the stability of pp150-associated nucleocapsids

Maturation of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) initiates with nucleocapsids that egress from the nucleus and associate with a juxtanuclear cytoplasmic assembly compartment, where virion envelopment and release are orchestrated. Betaherpesvirus conserved proteins pp150 (encoded by UL32) and pUL96 are critical for HCMV growth in cell culture. pp150 is a capsid-proximal tegument protein that preserves the integrity of nucleocapsids during maturation. pUL96, although expressed as an early protein, acts late during virus maturation, similar to pp150, based on the comparable antigen distribution in UL96, UL32, or UL96/UL32 dual mutant virus-infected cells. pp150 associates with nuclear capsids prior to DNA encapsidation, whereas both pp150 and pUL96 associate with extracellular virus, suggesting that pUL96 is added after pp150. In the absence of pUL96, capsid egress from the nucleus continues; however, unlike wild-type virus infection, pp150 accumulates in the nuclear, as well as in the cytoplasmic, compartment. Ultrastructural evaluation of a UL96 conditional mutant revealed intact nuclear stages but aberrant nucleocapsids accumulating in the cytoplasm comparable to the known phenotype of UL32 mutant virus. In summary, pUL96 preserves the integrity of pp150-associated nucleocapsids during translocation from the nucleus to the cytoplasm.     

Dominance of virus over host factors in cross-species activation of human cytomegalovirus early gene expression

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) exhibits a highly restricted host range. In this study, we sought to examine the relative significance of host and viral factors in activating early gene expression of the HCMV UL54 (DNA polymerase) promoter in murine cells. Appropriate activation of the UL54 promoter at early times is essential for viral DNA replication. To study how the HCMV UL54 promoter is activated in murine cells, a transgenesis system based on yeast artificial chromosomes (YACs) was established for HCMV. A 178-kb YAC, containing a subgenomic fragment of HCMV encompassing the majority of the unique long (UL) region, was constructed by homologous recombination in yeast. This HCMV YAC backbone is defective for viral growth and lacks the major immediate-early (IE) gene region, thus permitting the analysis of essential cis-acting sequences when complemented in trans. To quantitatively measure the level of gene expression, we generated HCMV YACs containing a luciferase reporter gene inserted downstream of either the UL54 promoter or, as a control for late gene expression, the UL86 promoter, which directs expression of the major capsid protein. To determine the early gene activation pathway, point mutations were introduced into the inverted repeat 1 (IR1) element of the UL54 promoter of the HCMV YAC. In the transgenesis experiments, HCMV YACs and derivatives generated in yeast were introduced into NIH 3T3 murine cells by polyethylene glycol-mediated fusion. We found that infection of YAC, but not plasmid, transgenic lines with HCMV was sufficient to fully recapitulate the UL54 expression program at early times of infection, indicating the importance of remote regulatory elements in influencing regulation of the UL54 promoter. Moreover, YACs containing a mutant IR1 in the UL54 promoter led to reduced ( approximately 30-fold) reporter gene expression levels, indicating that HCMV major IE gene activation of the UL54 promoter is fully permissive in murine cells. In comparison with HCMV, infection of YAC transgenic NIH 3T3 lines with murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV) resulted in lower (more than one order of magnitude) efficiency in activating UL54 early gene expression. MCMV is therefore not able to fully activate HCMV early gene expression, indicating the significance of virus over host determinants in the cross-species activation of key early gene promoters. Finally, these studies show that YAC transgenesis can be a useful tool in functional analysis of viral proteins and control of gene expression for large viral genomes.     

Construction and characterization of a human cytomegalovirus mutant with the UL18 (class I homolog) gene deleted.

The UL18 open reading frame of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) (which encodes a product homologous to major histocompatibility complex class I heavy chains) has been disrupted by insertion of the beta-galactosidase gene under control of the major HCMV early promoter. The recombinant virus delta UL18 showed no phenotypic differences from wild-type HCMV in terms of single-step growth curves or particle/infectivity ratios, indicating that the UL18 gene product is dispensable for the growth of HCMV in human fibroblasts in vitro. The synthesis of the mature cellular class I heterodimer is shut down in cells infected at a high multiplicity with wild-type HCMV, and a similar effect was seen in delta UL18-infected fibroblasts, suggesting that although the UL18 gene product can associate with beta 2 microglobulin, it is not directly involved in the disruption of class I assembly.