The evaluation of Hepatitis C virus core antigen in immunized Balb/C mice

Abstract

Background: Hepatitis infection represents one of the important causes of morbidity and mortality in developing countries, however there is not any effective vaccine against hepatitis C which is one of the significant problems in vaccine project. Material and Methods: Our previous cloned plasmid (HCV Core gene into pETDuet-1) applied for protein expression in bacteria. The expressed and purified recombinant protein together with Freund's adjuvant was injected to 15 Balb/c mice. The total IgG and IgG2a of immunized mice sera were evaluated after a week. Two weeks after booster injection, we studied the proliferation and IFNγ secretion of spleens, inguinal and popliteal lymph nodes lymphocytes by ELISA and ELISPOT. Results: The FSFC (Frequency of spot forming cells) of secreting cells of immunized mice with HCV/Core protein and sera IgG2a were considerably higher than the control groups. Conclusion: The core protein together with proper adjuvant can be a candidate vaccine against of HCV infection. © 2012 Kowsar Corp. All rights reserved.