title: Maize rayado fino virus virus-like particles expressed in tobacco plants: A new platform for cysteine selective bioconjugation peptide display.
abstract: Maize rayado fino virus (MRFV) virus-like-particles (VLPs) produced in tobacco plants were examined for their ability to serve as a novel platform to which a variety of peptides can be covalently displayed when expressed through a Potato virus X (PVX)-based vector. To provide an anchor for chemical modifications, three Cys-MRFV-VLPs mutants were created by substituting several of the amino acids present on the shell of the wild-type MRFV-VLPs with cysteine residues. The mutant designated Cys 2-VLPs exhibited, under native conditions, cysteine thiol reactivity in bioconjugation reactions with a fluorescent dye. In addition, this Cys 2-VLPs was cross-linked by NHS-PEG4-Maleimide to 17 (F) and 8 (HN) amino acid long peptides, corresponding to neutralizing epitopes of Newcastle disease virus (NDV). The resulting Cys 2-VLPs-F and Cys 2-VLPs-HN were recognized in Western blots by antibodies to MRFV as well as to F and HN. The results demonstrated that plant-produced MRFV-VLPs have the ability to function as a novel platform for the multivalent display of surface ligands.
authors.affiliation: United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Plant Sciences Institute, Molecular Plant Pathology Laboratory, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. angela.natilla@ars.usda.gov
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Natilla
authors.forename: Rosemarie W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Hammond
mesh_terms: D019943:Amino Acid Substitution; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000378:metabolism; D003545:Cysteine / Q000235:genetics; D005822:Genetic Vectors; D010455:Peptides / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D017863:Potexvirus / Q000235:genetics; D011485:Protein Binding; D014026:Nicotiana / Q000821:virology*; D046830:Tymoviridae / Q000235:genetics*; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D022701:Virosomes / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D010455:Peptides; D014764:Viral Proteins; D022701:Virosomes; D003545:Cysteine