title: A Linear Surface Epitope in a Proline-Rich Region of ORF3 Product of Genotype 1 Hepatitis E Virus.
abstract: Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is one of the viral pathogens causing hepatitis in humans. HEV open reading frame 3 (ORF3) encodes a small multifunctional protein (VP13), which is essential for HEV infection. In this study, a linear epitope was identified in a polyproline (PXXP) motif from VP13 of genotype 1 HEV by using a monoclonal antibody. The epitope was detected in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), immunoblotting and immunofluorescence assays. Epitope mapping showed that the epitope locates in a proline-rich region containing a PXXP motif in amino acid residues 66-75 of VP13. The epitope was also detected in HEV-infected liver cells and reacted with genotype 1-specific antibodies in an HEV-positive human serum sample. The results demonstrated that the epitope in the PXXP motif of the genotype 1 VP13 is linear and surface-oriented, which should facilitate in-depth studies on the viral protein and HEV biology.
authors.affiliation: Molecular Virology Laboratory, VA-MD College of Veterinary Medicine and Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA. easing@163.com.|Nanjing Red Cross Blood Center, Nanjing 210003, Jiangsu, China. easing@163.com.
authors.forename: Yonglin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Molecular Virology Laboratory, VA-MD College of Veterinary Medicine and Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA. lsl1990@umd.edu.
authors.forename: Shaoli
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.affiliation: Molecular Virology Laboratory, VA-MD College of Veterinary Medicine and Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA. nanyuchen2015@nwsuaf.edu.cn.|College of Veterinary Medicine, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Xi'an 712100, Shaanxi, China. nanyuchen2015@nwsuaf.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Yuchen
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nan
authors.affiliation: Molecular Virology Laboratory, VA-MD College of Veterinary Medicine and Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA. zexuma@umd.edu.
authors.forename: Zexu
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: Molecular Virology Laboratory, VA-MD College of Veterinary Medicine and Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA. ylp521@umd.edu.
authors.forename: Liping
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Molecular Virology Laboratory, VA-MD College of Veterinary Medicine and Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA. zhangyj@umd.edu.
authors.forename: Yanjin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000276:immunology; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000276:immunology; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D018604:Epitope Mapping; D000939:Epitopes / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D005838:Genotype; D016752:Hepatitis E virus / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D015151:Immunoblotting; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D000939:Epitopes; C400973:ORF3 protein, Hepatitis E virus; D014764:Viral Proteins
keywords: HEV; ORF3; PXXP motif; VP13; hepatitis E virus; linear epitope; monoclonal antibody