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Cheng-Hao Huang,
Quan Yuan,
Pei-Jer Chen,
Ya-Li Zhang,
Chang-Rong Chen,
Qing-Bing Zheng,
Shiou-Hwei Yeh, Hai Yu,
Yu Xue,
Yi-Xin Chen,
Ping-Guo Liu,
Sheng-Xiang Ge,
Jun Zhang,
Ning-Shao Xia
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ABSTRACT: This study aimed at investigating mutations in the hepatitis B surface protein (HBsAg) in occult hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection (OBI) and their influence on viral antigenicity and phenotype.
The characteristics of 61 carriers with OBI (OBI group), 153 HBsAg(+) carriers with serum HBsAg ⩽100IU/ml (HBsAg-L group) and 54 carriers with serum HBsAg >100IU/ml (HBsAg-H group) from 38,499 blood donors were investigated. Mutations in the major hydrophilic region (MHR) of the viral sequences were determined. Thirteen representative MHR mutations observed in OBI sequences were antigenically characterized with a panel of monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) and commercial HBsAg immunoassays and functionally characterized in HuH7 cells and hydrodynamically injected mice.
Of 61 OBI sequences, 34 (55.7%) harbored MHR mutations, which was significantly higher than the frequency in either the HBsAg-L (34.0%, p=0.003) or the HBsAg-H group (17.1%, p<0.001). Alterations in antigenicity induced by the 13 representative MHR mutations identified in the OBI group were assessed by reacting recombinant HBV mutants with 30 different MAbs targeting various epitopes. Four out of the 13 mutations (C124R, C124Y, K141E, and D144A) strongly decreased the analytical sensitivity of seven commercial HBsAg immunoassays, and 10 (G119R, C124Y, I126S, Q129R, S136P, C139R, T140I, K141E, D144A, and G145R) significantly impaired virion and/or S protein secretion in both HuH7 cells and mice.
MHR mutations alter antigenicity and impair virion secretion, both of which may contribute to HBsAg detection failure in individuals with OBI.
Journal of Hepatology 05/2012; 57(4):720-9. · 9.26 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: P239, a truncated construct of the hepatitis E virus (HEV) ORF2 protein, has been proven able to bind with a chaperone, Grp78, in both an in vitro co-immune precipitation test and an in vivo cell model. We previously solved the crystal structure of E2s--the C-terminal domain of p239 involved in host interactions. In the present study, we built a 3D structure of Grp78 using homology modeling methods, and docked this molecule with E2s using the Zdockpro module of the InsightII software package. The modeled Grp78 structure was deemed feasible by profile 3D evaluation and molecular dynamic simulations. The docking result consists of six clusters of distinct complexes and C035 was selected as the most reasonable. The interacting interface of the predicted complex is comprised of the Grp78 linker region and nucleotide binding domain along with the E2s groove region and surrounding loops. Using energy, hydrogen bond and solvent accessible surface analyses, we identified a series of key residues that may be involved in the Grp78:E2s interaction. By comparing with the known structure of the Hsp70:J complex, we further concluded that the interaction of Grp78 and E2s could interrupt binding of Grp78 with the J domain, and in turn diminish or even eliminate the binding ability of the Grp78 substrate binding domain. The predicted series of key residues also provides clues for further research that should improve our understanding of the fundamental molecular mechanisms of HEV infection.
Journal of Molecular Modeling 05/2011; 17(5):987-95. · 1.80 Impact Factor
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Qingbing Zheng,
Lin Xia,
Wai Lan Wu,
Zhenhua Zheng,
Yongting Huo,
Jun Wu,
Yanning Liu, Hai Yu,
Yixin Chen,
Siu-Ying Lau,
Honglin Chen,
Wenxin Luo,
Ningshao Xia
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ABSTRACT: Highly pathogenic H5N1 virus infection causes severe disease and a high rate of fatality in humans. Development of humanized monoclonal antibodies may provide an efficient therapeutic regime for H5N1 virus infection. In the present study, broadly cross-reactive monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) derived from mice were humanized to minimize immunogenicity. One chimeric antibody (cAb) and seven humanized antibodies (hAbs) were constructed. These antibodies retained broad-spectrum reactivity to H5N1 viruses, binding to recombinant H5-subtype HA1 molecules expressed in CHO cells in a dose-dependent manner and exhibiting similar reactivities against antigenically distinct H5N1 viruses in hemagglutination inhibition (HI) assays. One humanized antibody, 37 hAb, showed HI and neutralization activities comparable to that of the parental murine antibody, 13D4 MAb, while the other six antibodies were less reactive to H5N1 viruses. Analysis of amino acid sequences in the variable region frameworks of the seven humanized antibodies found that Q5 and Y27 in the VH region are highly conserved murine residues. Comparison of the three-dimensional structures derived from the variable regions of MAbs 37 hAb, H1202-34, and 13D4 revealed that residue substitutions at sites 70 and 46 may be the major cause for the observed differences in binding affinity. Examination of the chimeric antibody and one of the humanized antibodies, 37 hAb, showed that both antibodies offered postinfection protection against lethal challenge with antigenically diverse H5N1 viruses in the mouse model. Chimeric and humanized antibodies which retain the broadly reactive and protective properties of murine H5-specific monoclonal antibodies have great potential for use in the treatment of human H5N1 infection.
Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy 01/2011; 55(4):1349-57. · 4.84 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: p239 is a virus-like particle constituted from hepatitis E virus (HEV) recombinant proteins. It can be used as a surrogate for HEV and as an investigative tool to study cellular interactions because of its ability to adsorb to and penetrate HepG2 cellular membranes. Our objective was to use p239 to define the role of HEV capsid proteins during the early stages of infection. Pull-down and MALDI-TOF MS experiments identified three host-cell proteins, Grp 78/Bip, alpha-tubulin and heat-shock protein 90 (HSP90), and the latter was investigated further. Antibodies to p239 alone or HSP90 alone could detect p239 or HSP90, suggesting the formation of a complex between p239 and HSP90. In the HepG2 cell, geldanamycin (GA), an HSP90-specific inhibitor, blocked intracellular transportation of p239, but had no effect on the binding and cellular entry of p239, suggesting that HSP90 was important for HEV capsid intracellular transportation. RT-PCR results showed that the efficiency of wild-type HEV infection was inhibited significantly by GA treatment, suggesting the importance of HSP90 in virus infectivity. It was concluded that HSP90 plays a crucial role in the intracellular transportation of viral capsids in the early stage of HEV infection.
Journal of General Virology 03/2010; 91(Pt 7):1728-36. · 3.36 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: A novel hepatitis B virus (HBV) strain (W29) was isolated from serum samples in the northwest of China. Phylogenetic and distance analyses indicate that this strain is grouped with a series of distinct strains discovered in Vietnam and Laos that have been proposed to be a new genotype I. TreeOrderScan and GroupScan methods were used to study the intergenotype recombination of this special group. Recombination plots and tree maps of W29 and these putative genotype I strains exhibit distinct characteristics that are unexpected in typical genotype C strains of HBV. The amino acids of P gene, S gene, X gene, and C gene of all genotypes (including subtypes) were compared, and eight unique sites were found in genotype I. In vitro and in vivo experiments were also conducted to determine phenotypic characteristics between W29 and other representative strains of different genotypes obtained from China. Secretion of HBsAg in Huh7 cells is uniformly abundant among genotypes A, B, C, and I (W29), but not genotype D. HBeAg secretion is low in genotype I (W29), whose level is close to genotype A and much lower than genotypes B, C, and D. Results from the acute hydrodynamic injection mouse model also exhibit a similar pattern. From an overview of the results, the viral markers of W29 (I1) in Huh7 cells and mice had a more similar level to genotype A than genotype C, although the latter was closer to W29 in distance analysis. All evidence suggests that W29, together with other related strains found in Vietnam and Laos, should be classified into a new genotype.
PLoS ONE 01/2010; 5(2):e9297. · 4.09 Impact Factor
