Construction of and evaluation of the immune response to two recombinant pseudorabies viruses expressing the B119L and EP364R proteins of African swine fever virus

In this study, two recombinant pseudorabies virus (PRV) strains, rGXGG-2016- ΔgI/ΔgE-EP364R and rGXGG-2016-ΔgI/ΔgE-B119L, expressing the EP364R and B119L protein, respectively, of ASFV, were constructed by homologous recombination technology. Western blotting and immunofluorescence analysis showed that these foreign proteins were expressed in cells infected with the reco mbinant strains. The strains showed good genetic stability and proliferative characteristics for 20 passages in BHK-21 cells. Both of these strains were immunogenic in mice, inducing the production of specific antibodies against the expressed ASFV proteins while providing protection against lethal c hallenge with PRV. Thus, the recombinant strains rGXGG-2016-ΔgI/ΔgE-EP364R and rGXGG-2016-ΔgI/ΔgE-B119L could be used as candidate vaccines for both ASFV and PRV. In addition, our study identifies two potential target genes for the development of safe and efficient ASFV vaccines, provides a refe rence for the construction of bivalent ASFV and PRV vaccines, and demonstrates the feasibility of developing a live ASFV vector vaccine.
Source: Archives of Virology - Category: Virology Source Type: research