title: Structural elucidation of critical residues involved in binding of human monoclonal antibodies to hepatitis C virus E2 envelope glycoprotein.
abstract: Human monoclonal antibodies derived from B cells of HCV-infected individuals provide information on the immune response to native HCV envelope proteins as they are recognized during infection. Monoclonal antibodies have been useful in the determination of the function and structure of specific immunogenic domains of proteins and should also be useful for the structure/function characterization of HCV E1 and E2 envelope glycoproteins. The HCV E2 envelope glycoprotein has at least three immunodistinctive conformation domains, designated A, B, and C. Conformational epitopes within domain B and C are neutralizing antibody targets on HCV pseudoparticles as well as from infectious cell culture virus. In this study, a combination of differential surface modification and mass spectrometric limited proteolysis followed by alanine mutagenesis was used to provide insight into potential conformational changes within the E2 protein upon antibody binding. The arginine guanidine groups in the E2 protein were modified with CHD in both the affinity bound and free states followed by mass spectrometric analysis, and the regions showing protection upon antibody binding were identified. This protection can arise by direct contact between the residues and the monoclonal antibody, or by antibody-induced conformational changes. Based on the mass spectrometric data, site-directed mutagenesis experiments were performed which clearly identified additional amino acid residues on E2 distant from the site of antibody interaction, whose change to alanine inhibited antibody recognition by inducing conformational changes within the E2 protein.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Structural Biology, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA.
authors.forename: Roxana E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Iacob
authors.forename: Zhenyong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Keck
authors.forename: Oakley
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Olson
authors.forename: Steven K H
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Foung
authors.forename: Kenneth B
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Tomer
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000276:immunology; D000936:Antigen-Antibody Complex / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000276:immunology; D000937:Antigen-Antibody Reactions; D001120:Arginine / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D018604:Epitope Mapping; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D016056:Immunodominant Epitopes / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016297:Mutagenesis, Site-Directed; D011487:Protein Conformation; D014759:Viral Envelope Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D000936:Antigen-Antibody Complex; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D016056:Immunodominant Epitopes; D014759:Viral Envelope Proteins; C091015:glycoprotein E2, Hepatitis C virus; D001120:Arginine