title: A synthetic gag p24 epitope chemically coupled to BSA through a decaalanine peptide enhances HIV type 1 serodiagnostic ability by several folds.
abstract: p24 is an immunodominant gag core protein of HIV-1. The synthetic immunodominant epitope of p24 and the recombinant p24 show poor immunoreactivity and specificity, respectively. Their application is, therefore, severely limited in the serodiagnosis of HIV-1, although it is an important marker for early diagnosis. These limitations have been overcome by conjugating the synthetic p24 to BSA through a decaalanine peptide spacer. The engineered p24 shows about 5-fold more efficient immunoreactivity than the synthetic p24, and, at the same time, shows a several fold reduction in nonspecific cross-reactivity as compared to recombinant p24. Our strategy to conjugate the p24 peptide epitope to BSA worked well as a consistent and reliable immunodiagnostic marker. This strategy may also prove useful for the diagnosis of other diseases.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology, JC Bose Institute of Life Sciences, Bundelkhand University, Jhansi 284128, UP, India.
authors.forename: Sanjay K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.forename: Nand K
authors.initials: NK
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.forename: Prakash S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Bisen
mesh_terms: D000409:Alanine / Q000737:chemistry*; D003429:Cross Reactions; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D000939:Epitopes / Q000276:immunology; D016655:HIV Core Protein p24 / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000276:immunology*; D010455:Peptides / Q000737:chemistry*; D015202:Protein Engineering; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D000939:Epitopes; D016655:HIV Core Protein p24; D010455:Peptides; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine; D000409:Alanine