Archives of Virology (2007) 152, 915-928

M. Nuzzaci, G. Piazzolla, A. Vitti, M. Lapelosa, C. Tortorella, I. Stella, A. Natilla, S. Antonaci and P. Piazzolla (2007)
Cucumber mosaic virus as a presentation system for a double hepatitis C virus-derived epitope
Archives of Virology 152 (5), 915-928
Abstract: Chimeric plant viruses are emerging as promising vectors for use in innovative vaccination strategies. In this context, cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) has proven to be a suitable carrier of the hepatitis C virus (HCV)-derived R9 mimotope. In the present work, a new chimeric CMV, expressing on its surface the HCV-derived R10 mimotope, was produced but lost the insert after the first passage on tobacco. A comparative analysis between R10- and R9-CMV properties indicated that R9-CMV stability was related to structural features typical of the foreign insert. Thus, in order to combine high virus viability with strong immuno-stimulating activity, we doubled R9 copies on each of the 180 coat protein (CP) subunits of CMV. One of the chimeras produced by this approach (2R9-CMV) was shown to systemically infect the host, stably maintaining both inserts. Notably, it was strongly recognized by sera of HCV-infected patients and, as compared with R9-CMV, displayed an enhanced ability to stimulate lymphocyte IFN-γ production. The high immunogen levels achievable in plants or fruits infected with 2R9-CMV suggest that this chimeric form of CMV may be useful in the development of oral vaccines against HCV.
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Link to article at publishers website

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
molecular biology - genes

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Cucumber mosaic virus