       Document 0848
 DOCN  M9480848
 TI    Monoclonal antibodies to the MLV protease active site that crossreact
       with the HIV protease.
 DT    9410
 AU    Luftig RB; Calkins P; Yeh HY; Louisiana State University Medical Center,
       New Orleans.
 SO    Abstr Gen Meet Am Soc Microbiol. 1994;94:485 (abstract no. T-16). Unique
       Identifier : AIDSLINE ASM94/94313097
 AB    The retroviral proteases are essential for cleavage of gag and gag-pol
       polyproteins during the virus assembly. Inhibitors that inactivate the
       protease activity will reduce production of mature particles and, thus,
       spread of diseases. In this study, we generated mouse monoclonal
       antibodies specific to protease active site. A thyroglobulin-conjugated
       20-mer peptide of the murine leukemia virus (MLV) protease active site
       (Q-P-V-T-F-L-V-D-T-G-A-Q-H-S-V-L-T-Q-N-P) was used to immunize BALB/c
       mice. About 40 hybridomas were generated by fusion of spleen cells with
       a mouse myeloma cell line. A peptide ELISA assay confirmed that the mAbs
       reacted to the original 20-mer peptide. Further, using immunoblot
       analysis, we found 13 hybridomas where the mAbs reacted with MLV
       protease expressed in E. coli, as well with HIV protease. Currently, we
       are mapping the common epitope using short peptides (6- to 8-mer). The
       significance of these results may provide another avenue for developing
       inhibitors that bind specifically to the catalytic site.
 DE    Amino Acid Sequence  Animal  *Antibodies, Monoclonal  Antigenic
       Determinants/*ANALYSIS  Binding Sites  Cloning, Molecular  Cross
       Reactions  Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay/METHODS  Escherichia coli
       Hybridomas/ENZYMOLOGY  HIV Protease/*IMMUNOLOGY/METABOLISM  Leukemia
       Viruses, Murine/*ENZYMOLOGY  Mice  Mice, Inbred BALB C/IMMUNOLOGY
       Molecular Sequence Data  Peptide
       Peptidohydrolases/*IMMUNOLOGY/METABOLISM  Recombinant
       Proteins/IMMUNOLOGY  MEETING ABSTRACT

       SOURCE: National Library of Medicine.  NOTICE: This material may be
       protected by Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.Code).

