Murine T and B cell responses to natural and recombinant hornet venom allergen Dol m 5.02 and its recombinant fragments.
White-face hornet venom allergen, Dol m 5.02, is a protein of 204 amino acid residues. This protein and its overlapping fragments, of 53-114 residues in size, containing the N-terminal, middle, and C-terminal regions of the molecule, can be expressed in high yield in bacteria by using the plasmid vector pQE12. Natural (n) and recombinant (r) Dol m 5.02s and the r-fragments are about equally immunogenic for IgG Ab response in BALB/c mice. n-Dol m 5.02 induces mainly murine IgG Abs specific for its discontinuous B cell epitopes and, to a lesser extent, Abs specific for its continuous epitopes. r-Dol m 5.02 and the r-fragments induce only Abs specific for continuous B cell epitopes that are common with those of the n-protein. Abs specific for the discontinuous epitopes show higher affinity than those specific for the continuous epitopes. r-Dol m 5.02 and the r-fragments are as efficient as n-Dol m 5.02 in inducing murine T cell responses specific for the n-protein. The differences in the immunogenicity of n- and r-proteins or r-peptide fragments for B and T cell responses are related to their conformations, inasmuch as only the n-protein is cross-linked by four disulfide bonds. These findings are relevant to the potential use of r-fragments as immunotherapeutic reagents in humans.
King
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Rockefeller University, New York, NY 10021.
Kochoumian
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D000485:Allergens / Q000276:immunology*; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D001483:Base Sequence; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000276:immunology; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000276:immunology; D013154:Spleen / Q000166:cytology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D014862:Wasp Venoms / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology*
D000485:Allergens; D010446:Peptide Fragments; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D014862:Wasp Venoms; C040583:white-faced hornet venom antigen 5