STABLE EXPRESSION AND SECRETION OF THE B-CELL EPITOPE OF RODENT MALARIA FROM MYCOBACTERIUM-BOVIS BCG AND INDUCTION OF LONG-LASTING HUMORAL RESPONSE IN MOUSE

The live bacterial vaccine Mycobacterium bovis BCG (BCG) is a vehicle worth noticing for various protective antigens. The gene encoding the B-cell epitope of the oligopeptide repeating in the circumsporozoite p rotein (C.S. protein) of the rodent malaria parasite, Plasmodium yoeli i, was inserted into the plasmid vector under the control of an expres sion cassette carrying the promoter and signal sequence of the a antig en derived from Mycobacterium kansasii (k-a). The B-cell epitope was s uccessfully expressed and secreted from BCG as a fusion protein with k -a. This recombinant BCG was administered subcutaneously into BALB/c m ice and the antibody production was measured by the enzyme-linked immu nosorbent assay (ELISA). Long lasting humoral response was found in on e of seven mice.