Immunogenicity of HBeAg in the New York Blood Center hepatitis B vaccine.
A new hepatitis B vaccine has been developed which contains both HBsAg and HBeAg since evidence suggests that anti-HBe may have useful biologic activities. It was thus important to determine whether HBeAg is immunogenic in this type of a preparation. We now report data indicating that highly purified HBsAg particles, derived from HBeAg containing plasma, release a proportion of their contained cryptic HBeAg following the detergent treatment used in the preparation of this vaccine. Both the soluble and the residual particle associated HBeAg are immunogenic in guinea pigs. There was no detectable anti-HBe response in animals injected with similar HBsAg particles which had not been exposed to detergent.
D000818:Animals; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies / Q000032:analysis; D006511:Hepatitis B Antigens / Q000276:immunology*; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines; D006513:Hepatitis B e Antigens / Q000276:immunology*; D008297:Male; D011136:Polysorbates / Q000494:pharmacology; D014765:Viral Vaccines / Q000276:immunology*
D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies; D006511:Hepatitis B Antigens; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines; D006513:Hepatitis B e Antigens; D011136:Polysorbates; D014765:Viral Vaccines