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Electron microscopy of hepatitis B core antigen synthesized in E. coli

Nature volume 296, pages 677–678 (1982)Cite this article

Abstract

DNA fragments from hepatitis B virus (HBV) have been inserted into plasmid vectors and cloned in Escherichia coli1, and some of these bacterial clones have been reported to synthesize hepatitis B core antigen (HBcAg)1,2. Material from a derivative of one HBcAg-synthesizing clone is being evaluated in our laboratory and elsewhere3,4 as a serological reagent for use in various assays, including immune electron microscopy, to detect anti-HBcAg antibody. It has been shown by gel exclusion chromatography that the bacterial HBcAg is in an aggregated form3. We now report that the E. coli HBcAg preparation contains Small round particles similar in appearance to the viral cores previously seen in material obtained from HBV-infected humans5–7 and chimpanzees8.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Virus Reference Laboratory, Central Public Health Laboratory, 175 Colindale Avenue, London, NW9 5HT, UK

    B. J. Cohen & J. E. Richmond

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  1. B. J. Cohen
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  2. J. E. Richmond
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Cohen, B., Richmond, J. Electron microscopy of hepatitis B core antigen synthesized in E. coli. Nature 296, 677–678 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1038/296677a0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/296677a0

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