BIOSENSOR CHARACTERIZATION OF ANTIGENIC SITE-A OF FOOT-AND-MOUTH-DISEASE VIRUS PRESENTED IN DIFFERENT VECTOR SYSTEMS

The region 141-160 of the VP1 protein of foot-and-mouth disease virus known as site A is an immunodominant region that has been extensively studied for the purpose of developing a synthetic vaccine. In the pres ent study. site A of foot-and-mouth disease virus was inserted in thre e different loops of the maltose-binding protein and its antigenicity was compared with site A presented as a conjugated synthetic peptide o r inserted in beta-galactosidase. The affinity of antibodies elicited against the site A synthetic peptide was also compared with that of an tibodies raised against the site A inserted within the two carrier pro teins. Using biosensor technology it was possible to estimate the conc entration of sire A antibodies present in the various antisera and to show that site A fused to maltose-binding protein was a slightly bette r mimic of the epitope present in the virus particle than the syntheti c peptide or the beta-galactosidase recombinant construct. (C) 1998 Fe deration of European Microbiological Societies. Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.