Studies on Structural Proteins of Chikungunya Virus

Abstract
Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) was purified and subjected to sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in discontinuous buffer systems. Three bands were revealed by staining with Coomassie blue; two of them (E1 and E2) were associated with the membrane, and one (C) with the core. Their molecular weights were estimated to be 56,000 (E1), 52,000 (E2), and 36,000 (C), irrespective of the concentration of acrylamide in the gels. The molar ratios of E1, E2, and C were almost equal when the sample buffer was Tris-HCl, whereas they were different when phosphate buffer was used.