BackgroundThe VP1 protein of duck hepatitis A virus (DHAV) is a major structural protein that induces neutralizing antibodies in ducks; however, B-cell epitopes on the VP1 protein of duck hepatitis A genotype 1 virus (DHAV-1) have not been characterized.Methods and ResultsTo characterize B-cell epitopes on VP1, we used the monoclonal antibody (mAb) 2D10 against Escherichia coli-expressed VP1 of DHAV-1. In vitro, mAb 2D10 neutralized DHAV-1 virus. By using an array of overlapping 12-mer peptides, we found that mAb 2D10 recognized phages displaying peptides with the consensus motif LPAPTS. Sequence alignment showed that the epitope 173LPAPTS178 is highly conserved among the DHAV-1 genotypes. Moreover, the six amino acid peptide LPAPTS was proven to be the minimal unit of the epitope with maximal binding activity to mAb 2D10. DHAV-1–positive duck serum reacted with the epitope in dot blotting assay, revealing the importance of the six amino acids of the epitope for antibody-epitope binding. Competitive inhibition assays of mAb 2D10 binding to synthetic LPAPTS peptides and truncated VP1 protein fragments, detected by Western blotting, also verify that LPAPTS was the VP1 epitope.Conclusions and SignificanceWe identified LPAPTS as a VP1-specific linear B-cell epitope recognized by the neutralizing mAb 2D10. Our findings have potential applications in the development of diagnostic techniques and epitope-based marker vaccines against DHAV-1.

In 2010, a pathogenic flavivirus termed duck Tembusu virus (DTMUV) caused widespread outbreak of egg-drop syndrome in domesticated ducks in China. Although the glycoprotein E of DTMUV is an important structural component of the virus, the B-cell epitopes of this protein remains uncharacterized. Using phage display and mutagenesis, we identified a minimal B-cell epitope, 374EXE/DPPFG380, that mediates binding to a nonneutralizing monoclonal antibody. DTMUV-positive duck serum reacted with the epitope, and amino acid substitutions revealed the specific amino acids that are essential for antibody binding. Dot-blot assays of various flavivirus-positive sera indicated that EXE/DPPFG is a cross-reactive epitope in most flaviviruses, including Zika, West Nile, Yellow fever, dengue, and Japanese encephalitis viruses. These findings indicate that the epitope sequence is conserved among many strains of mosquito-borne flavivirus. Protein structure modeling revealed that the epitope is located in domain III of the DTMUV E protein. Together, these results provide new insights on the broad cross-reactivity of a B-cell binding site of the E protein of flaviviruses, which can be exploited as a diagnostic or therapeutic target for identifying, studying, or treating DTMUV and other flavivirus infections.

The E protein of flaviviruses is the primary antigen that induces protective immunity, but a monoclonal antibody (mAb) against the E protein of duck Tembusu virus (DTMUV) has never been characterized. Six hybridoma cell lines secreting DTMUV anti-E mAbs were prepared and designated 2A5, 1F3, 1G2, 1B11, 3B6, and 4F9, respectively. An immunofluorescence assay indicated that the mAbs could specifically bind to duck embryo fibroblast (DEF) cells infected with DTMUV and that the E protein was distributed in the cytoplasm of the infected cells. Immunoglobulin isotyping differentiated the mAbs as IgG1 (1G2, 1B11, 4F9, 1F3, and 2A5) and IgG2b (3B6). The mAbs were used to identify three epitopes, A (2A5, 1F3, and 1G2), B (1B11 and 4F9), and C (3B6) on the E protein on the basis of a competitive binding assay. By using mAbs 1F3 and 3B6, we developed an antigen-capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (AC-ELISA) to detect E antigen from clinical samples. The AC-ELISA did not react with other known pathogens, indicating that the mAbs are specific for DTMUV. Compared to RT-PCR, the specificity and sensitivity of the AC-ELISA was 94.1 % and 98.0 %, respectively. This AC-ELISA thus represents a sensitive and rapid method for detecting DTMUV infection in birds.