title: Localization of a T-cell epitope within the nucleocapsid protein of avian coronavirus.
abstract: In a previous study, two murine T-cell hybridomas generated after immunization with infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) were shown to be responsive to the internally localized viral nucleocapsid protein. In the present study, the antigenic determinants were mapped using recombinant expression products and synthetic peptides. Both hybridomas recognized the region spanning amino acid residues 71 to 78 of the nucleocapsid protein. The experimentally determined epitope corresponded with predicted motifs. Both an I-Ed binding motif and a predicted cleavage site for the aspartyl protease cathepsin D were contained within the sequence. The epitope was shown to prime cellular immune responses to IBV in the chicken.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Molecular Biology and Medical Biotechnology, University of Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Boots
authors.forename: J G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Kusters
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: van Noort
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Zwaagstra
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rijke
authors.forename: B A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: van der Zeijst
authors.forename: E J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Hensen
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000938:Antigen-Presenting Cells / Q000276:immunology; D002213:Capsid / Q000276:immunology*; D002645:Chickens; D000939:Epitopes / Q000032:analysis*; D005260:Female; D001351:Infectious bronchitis virus / Q000276:immunology*; D007963:Leukocytes, Mononuclear / Q000276:immunology; D008938:Mitosis; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000939:Epitopes