RECOMBINANT EXPRESSION OF LASSA VIRAL PROTEINS FOR DIAGNOSTIC ASSAYS

Abstract

Lassa virus is the cause of a hemorrhagic fever endemic to West Africa and Nigeria. Lassa virus affects 500,000 people annually and causes 5,000-10,000 deaths. With no vaccine and limited treatment for Lassa fever, rapid and accurate diagnosis is essential. Diagnostic methods which utilize molecular and immune techniques are preferred for early detection. Preparation of diagnostic reagents for Lassa virus requires the use of high level biocontainment which is expensive, dangerous and laborious. Recombinant proteins produced in a bacterial expression system provide a safer alternative to live or inactivated reagents. Lassa nucleoprotein (NP) and glycoproteins (GP) 1 and 2 were expressed in E. coli and characterized with Western blot and Coomassie stained gels. The recombinant proteins were evaluated for antigenic authenticity and reactivity in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). All three recombinant proteins were positive in direct ELISAs and the recombinant NP was successful in detecting anti-Lassa IgM and IgG antibodies.