We recently reported the enhanced immunogenicity of a peptide epitope when it was presented as a fusion protein with hepatitis B core antigen. In those experiments the fusion protein was expressed in vaccinia virus. We have now refined the system so that large amounts of highly immunogenic particles can be produced using a simple bacterial expression system. We describe the expression of three ...

Leukocyte trafficking involves specific recognition between P-selectin and L-selectin and PSGL-1 containing core 2-based O-glycans expressing sialyl Lewis x (SLe(x)) antigen. However, the structural identity of the glycan component(s) displayed by murine neutrophil PSGL-1 that contributes to its P-selectin counter-receptor activity has been uncertain, since these cells express little if any SLe...

The complexity and cost of current diagnostics for hepatitis C virus (HCV) may act as a prevention to the scale-up of treatment in the developing world. Currently, ribonucleic acid (RNA)-polymerase chain reaction tests are the gold standard. However, there is potential for the use of simpler and cheaper antigen tests to confirm HCV infection in different clinical settings. We evaluated the sens...

A field isolate of Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae, the causative agent of porcine fibrinohemorrhagic necrotizing pleuropneumonia, was sent to the diagnostic laboratory for serotyping. The isolate presented a clear reaction, with both polyclonal antibodies against serotype 1 and monoclonal antibodies against the capsular polysaccharide of serotype 1. It also exhibited a PCR profile of Apx toxin...

Genetic characterization of the genotype 3a (GT3a) hepatitis C virus (HCV) core region from HCV core antigen (HCVcAg)-negative/RNA-positive cases and HCVcAg-positive/RNA-positive controls identified significant associations between the substitutions A48T and T49A/P and failure to detect HCVcAg (P < 0.05). Polymorphisms at residues 48 and 49 in the core protein are present across all major epide...

Vibrio fischeri exists in a symbiotic relationship with the Hawaiian bobtail squid, Euprymna scolopes, where the squid provides a home for the bacteria, and the bacteria in turn provide camouflage that helps protect the squid from night-time predators. Like other gram-negative organisms, V. fischeri expresses lipopolysaccharide (LPS) on its cell surface. The structure of the O-antigen and the c...