ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The objective of this study was to clone a c-DNA fragment of hepatitis C virus in a eukaryotic expression vector and to measure the efficacy of humoral immune responses in mice inoculated with this recombinant plasmid. This study was an attempt to lay a foundation for HCV nucleic acid vaccine development in the future. METHODS: A c-DNA fragment of BK146, a clone of HCV type 1b, was sub-cloned into an eukaryotic expression vector pMT3. HepG2 and COS cells were transfected with this construct, named pMT3-BK146. The expression of HCV mRNA and proteins was studied by reverse transcribed polymerase chain reaction, radio Immunoprecipitation (RIPA) and immunofluorescence (IFA). The DNA of this construct was injected into the footpad of BALB/c mice and antibody response was tested by enzyme immunoassay and indirect immunofluorescence. RESULTS: COS and HepG2 cells transiently transfected with the recombinant plasmid pMT3-BK146 showed the expression of HCV proteins by RT-PCR, RIPA and immunofluorescence. This DNA clone when injected into Balb/c mice was able to generate specific antibody response to hepatitis C virus by ELISA and IFA. CONCLUSIONS: A c-DNA fragment of HCV cloned in an eukaryotic expression vector was able to express core protein. This DNA clone was also able to elicit antibody response in mice. This can be an initial step towards the development of a potential DNA vaccine for hepatitis C virus infection.