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THE HEPATITIS B VIRUS AS A MOLECULAR MODEL FOR CHRONIC INFECTION: SYNTHESIS OF HEPATITIS B SURFACE AND E ANTIGENS IN MOUSE L CELLS TRANSFECTED WITH CLOSED CIRCULAR VIRAL DNA
Author(s) -
Hirschman Shalom Z.,
Garfinkel Esther,
Sugrue Stanley
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
annals of the new york academy of sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.712
H-Index - 248
eISSN - 1749-6632
pISSN - 0077-8923
DOI - 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1984.tb37130.x
Subject(s) - virology , transfection , hepatitis b virus , antigen , hepatitis b virus dna polymerase , circular dna , virus , chronic hepatitis , dna , viral transformation , hepatitis b , biology , chemistry , gene , immunology , genome , genetics
Linear hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA, excised from a recombinant plasmid with EcoR1, was purified by preparative electrophoresis on agarose gels and incubated with phage T4 ligase to form either monomeric or dimeric closed circles. Thymidine kinase deficient mouse L cells were cotransfected with thymidine kinase (tk) and circular HBV DNAs and grown in hypoxanthine medium. Colonies of tk-transformed cells, selected after 3-4 weeks of incubation and subcultured in HAT medium, synthesized either hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) alone or HBsAg in combination with hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg). The various cell colonies differed in plating efficiency, growth rates, cellular appearance, and extent of viral antigen synthesis. Southern hybridization analysis showed the presence of HBV-related sequences in high molecular weight DNA prepared from cells expressing viral antigens. Digestion of cellular DNAs with restriction endonucleases indicated integration of the entire viral genome.