Transforming cells with hepatitis virus DNA - so they express surface antigen but not core antigen or entire Dane particles

摘要

Method for transforming (or determining the possibility of transformating) a cell culture, pref. eucaryotic, with DNA from hepatitis virus or its genome used a vector (esp. a plasmid) contg. an insertion sequence (IS). (IS) includes at least a part of the viral DNA coding for the immunogenic protein which induces in vivo prodn. of antibodies against the whole virus, as well as the viral promoter which normally controls transcription and translation, partic. in a host infected by the virus. Pref. (IS) consists of two entire hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA fragments forming a 'tandem' sequence, esp. one fragment contains the S-gene sequence (coding for the polypeptide responsible for the immunological properties of HBS), and the other is long enough to include the S-gene promoter. Also new are (IS) themselves; vectors modified with them, and compsns. (A) contg. proteins with the characteristic immunogenic properties of HBs but completely free of Dane particles, HBc, all human serum components and pref. also of DNA- polymerase. Compsns. (A) are useful as vaccines and laboratory reagents. They can be prepd. in purer form than is possible by known methods.