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Monoclonal antibodies raised against the ORF3 protein of hepatitis E virus (HEV) can capture HEV particles in culture supernatant and serum but not those in feces

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Abstract

Ten murine monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against a synthetic peptide corresponding to the well-conserved, C-terminal 24-amino acid portion of ORF3 protein of hepatitis E virus (HEV) were produced and characterized. Immunofluorescent assays using the anti-ORF3 MAbs revealed accumulation of ORF3 protein in the cytoplasm of PLC/PRF/5 cells transfected with ORF3-expressing plasmid or inoculated with cell-culture-generated HEV. The anti-ORF3 MAbs could capture HEV particles in culture medium and serum at variable efficiency of up to 61 and 49%, respectively, but not those in feces. By sandwiching between immobilized and enzyme-labeled anti-ORF3 MAbs in ELISA, ORF3 antigen was detected in the culture media with an HEV RNA titer of >106 copies/ml and increased in parallel with the increase in HEV load. HEV progenies in the culture supernatant, with ORF3 protein on the surface, banded at a low buoyant density of 1.15 g/cm3 in sucrose. A representative anti-ORF3 MAb (TA0536) could partially neutralize the infection of cell-culture-generated HEV in a cell culture system. These results indicate that ORF3 protein, at least its C-terminal portion, is present on the surface of HEV virions released from infected cells and support a previously proposed assumption that ORF3 protein is associated with virus release from infected cells.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported in part by grants from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan, and the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare of Japan.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Virology, Department of Infection and Immunity, Jichi Medical University School of Medicine, 3311-1 Yakushiji, Shimotsuke-Shi, Tochigi-Ken, 329-0498, Japan

    Masaharu Takahashi, Kentaro Yamada, Yu Hoshino, Hideyuki Takahashi, Koji Ichiyama, Toshinori Tanaka & Hiroaki Okamoto

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  1. Masaharu Takahashi
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  2. Kentaro Yamada
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  3. Yu Hoshino
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  4. Hideyuki Takahashi
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Correspondence to Hiroaki Okamoto.

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Takahashi, M., Yamada, K., Hoshino, Y. et al. Monoclonal antibodies raised against the ORF3 protein of hepatitis E virus (HEV) can capture HEV particles in culture supernatant and serum but not those in feces. Arch Virol 153, 1703–1713 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00705-008-0179-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00705-008-0179-6

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