J Gen Virol Email Content Delivery
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

Published online ahead of print on 4 November 2009 as doi:10.1099/vir.0.016063-0
J Gen Virol (2009), DOI 10.1099/vir.0.016063-0
© 2009 Society for General Microbiology
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (Papers in Press[PDF])
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Serruys, B.
Right arrow Articles by Vanlandschoot, P.
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Serruys, B.
Right arrow Articles by Vanlandschoot, P.
Agricola
Right arrow Articles by Serruys, B.
Right arrow Articles by Vanlandschoot, P.

Production, characterization and in vitro testing of HBcAg-specific VHH-intrabodies

Benedikte Serruys, Freya Van Houtte, Ali Farhoudi-Moghadam, Geert Leroux-Roels1 and Peter Vanlandschoot

Center for Vaccinology, Ghent University and Hospital

1 E-mail: geert.lerouxroels{at}ugent.be

Infections with the Hepatitis B virus represent a global health problem since these account for 350 million chronic infections worldwide that result in 500,000 to 700,000 deaths each year. Control of viral replication and HBV-related disease and mortality are of utmost importance. Because the currently available antiviral therapies all have major limitations, new strategies to treat chronic HBV infection are eagerly awaited. Six single-domain antibodies (VHHs) targeting the nucleocapsid protein of HBV (HBcAg) have been generated and three of these bound strongly to HBcAg of both subtype ayw and adw. These three VHHs were studied as intrabodies directed towards the nucleus or the cytoplasm of a hepatoma cell line that was co-transfected with HBV. A speckled staining of HBcAg was observed in the cytoplasm of cells transfected with nucleotropic VHH-intrabodies. Moreover, an increased intracellular accumulation of Hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) and a complete disappearance of intracellular HBcAg signal were observed with nuclear targeted HBcAg-specific VHHs. These results suggest that HBcAg-specific VHHs targeted to the nucleus affect HBcAg and HBeAg expression and trafficking in HBV transfected hepatocytes.

Received 26 August 2009; accepted 4 November 2009.




HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH
INT J SYST EVOL MICROBIOL MICROBIOLOGY J GEN VIROL
J MED MICROBIOL ALL SGM JOURNALS
Copyright © 2009 by the Society for General Microbiology.