Modified plant viruses as vectors
AssigneesAxis Genetics PLC, Purdue Research Foundation
InventorsGeorge Peter Lomonossoff, John Emil Johnson
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Abstract
The invention relates to assembled particles of a plant virus containing a predetermined foreign peptide as part of the coat protein of the virus, and a method for their production. The foreign peptide is preferably a biologically functional peptide, the biological application of which requires or is enhanced by presentation of the peptide in association with a larger molecule or particle.
Claims9
A method of preparing a conjugate of a biologically active peptide and a viral carrier therefor which comprises selecting as said carrier a plant virus having a structure which permits stable insertion of said peptide at an exposed part of the coat protein of the virus by manipulation of the plant viral genome;
- modifying said plant viral genome by insertion of an exogenous nucleotide sequence coding for said peptide at an insertion site corresponding to said exposed part of said coat protein;
- expressing said modified plant viral genome in plants, plant tissue, plant cells or protoplasts;
- and harvesting said conjugate comprising assembled particles of the virus, wherein said coat protein has a .beta.-barrel structure and the site of insertion of the foreign peptide is in a loop between individual strands of .beta. sheet, and wherein said virus is selected from the group consisting of Comoviruses, Tombusviruses, Sobemoviruses, and Nepoviruses.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.