CHARACTERIZATION OF TICK-BORNE ENCEPHALITIS-VIRUS AND IMMUNOGENICITY OF ITS SURFACE COMPONENTS IN MICE

  • 1 January 1977
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 21  (4) , 308-316
Abstract
Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) virus grown in chick embryo cells and purified by rate-zonal centrifugation had a density of 1.195 g/cm3 in sucrose density gradients. Under the conditions used, CsCl centrifugation caused disruption of the virus and less than 5% of input infectivity could be recovered from the virus peak at 1.23 g/cm3. As in other flaviviruses, 3 polypeptides (V1, V2, V3) were detected by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in radioactively labeled purified TBE virus. After disruption of E virus with Nonidet P-40, Tween-80/Tri-(n-butyl)-phosphate or sodium deoxycholate, a 120-130 S nucleoprotein could be separated by rate zonal centrifugation from more slowly sedimenting hemagglutinins. Immunization of mice with these hemagglutinins showed that they induced hemagglutination inhibiting, neutralizing and complement fixing antibodies. A pronounced increase in immunogenicity could be observed by the use of Al(OH3) as an adjuvant.