DIFFERENCES IN BIOLOGICAL-ACTIVITY OF THE V3 ENVELOPE PROTEIN OF 2 JAPANESE ENCEPHALITIS-VIRUS STRAINS

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  • 1 January 1982
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 26  (5) , 321-327
Abstract
Two strains, Nakayama-NIH and JaGAr-01, of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) distinctly differ in their virulence. Amino acid analysis of the V3 viral protein revealed different serine and tyrosine contents in JaGAr-01 V3 as compared to Nakayama-NIH V3. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis purified renatured JaGAr- and Nakayama-V3 proteins could absorb cross-reactive neutralizing antibodies present in anti-Nakayama and anti-JaGAr hyperimmune sera. They also absorbed strain specific antibodies of anti-JaGAr and anti-Nakayama sera, respectively. Evidently, both JEV strain specific and cross reactive antigenic determinants are present on V3 protein neutralized Nakayama-NIH virus, but had little neutralizing activity against JaGAr-01 virus. The phenomenon is less pronounced when antibodies against Nakayama-NIH virions are used rather than those against purified homologous V3. This suggests that the antigenicity of the purified V3 protein differs from that of the intact virus envelope.