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Biomedical subjects

T H Turpen

Publications and source records attributed to T H Turpen.

12 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2000

Rapid production of the major birch pollen allergen Bet v 1 in Nicotiana benthamiana plants and its immunological in vitro and in vivo characterization.

Type I allergies are immunological disorders that afflict a quarter of the world's population. Improved diagnosis of allergic diseases and the formulation of new therapeutic approaches are based on the use of recombinant allergens. We describe here for the first time the application of a rapid plant-based expression system for a plant-derived allergen and its immunological characterization. We expressed our model allergen Bet v 1, the major birch pollen allergen, in the tobacco-related species Nicotiana benthamiana using a tobacco mosaic virus vector. Two weeks postinoculation, plants infected with recombinant viral RNA containing the Bet v 1 coding sequence accumulated the allergen to levels of 200 microg/g leaf material. Total nonpurified protein extracts from plants were used for immunological characterizations. IgE immunoblots and ELISA (enzyme-linked immunoassay) inhibition assays showed comparable IgE binding properties for tobacco recombinant (r) Bet v 1 and natural (n) Bet v 1, suggesting that the B cell epitopes were preserved when the allergen was expressed in N. benthamiana plants. Using a murine model of type I allergy, mice immunized with crude leaf extracts containing Bet v 1 with purified rBet v 1 produced in E. coli or with birch pollen extract generated comparable allergen-specific IgE and IgG1 antibody responses and positive type I skin test reactions. These results demonstrate that nonpurified Bet v 1 overexpressed in N. benthamina has the same immunogenicity as purified Bet v 1 produced in E. coli or nBet v 1. We therefore conclude that this plant expression system offers a viable alternative to fermentation-based production of allergens in bacteria or yeasts. In addition, there may be a broad utility of this system for the development of new and low-cost vaccination strategies against allergy.

Allergens↗
PubMed1999

Tobacco mosaic virus and the virescence of biotechnology.

There is a growing realization that a modern combination of molecular biology and agriculture will provide a photosynthetic basis for the biosynthesis of an increasing variety of complex and valuable molecules. This 'greening' of biotechnology may impact on the global environment in many beneficial ways, but will perhaps have its most significant impact on human health. In the past decade, the capacity to use plants as an expanded source of therapeutics has grown through the accelerated development of effective viral transfection vectors for gene transfer to cultivated crops. Recombinant vectors based on tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) and other members of the Tobamovirus genus are now used to transfect commercially meaningful quantities of plant biomass cultivated in enclosed greenhouses and multiacre fields. Viral RNA promoters are effectively manipulated for the synthesis of recombinant messenger RNAs in whole plants. Chimeric plant virus and virus-like particles are designed for peptide production and display from recombinant structural protein-gene fusions. Gene functions are assessed and modified by either virus-mediated expression or cytosolic inhibition of expression at the RNA level. Recombinant virus populations, propagated by inoculating plants with infectious RNA transcripts or recombinant virions, have proved to be genetically stable over product-manufacturing cycles. Large volumes of highly purified protein products isolated from transfected foliage conform reproducibly to the specifications required for well-characterized biologics. In some cases, they exceed the specific activities of molecules purified from alternative recombinant and native sources. The resulting products are then formulated according to the developing national regulatory guidelines appropriate for agriculture-based manufacturing. Each of these innovations was first realized by researchers using clones of tobamovirus genes and recombinant genomes. This progress is founded on the heritage of a century of fundamental TMV research.

Genetic Vectors↗
PubMed1999

Rapid production of specific vaccines for lymphoma by expression of the tumor-derived single-chain Fv epitopes in tobacco plants.

Rapid production of protein-based tumor-specific vaccines for the treatment of malignancies is possible with the plant-based transient expression system described here. We created a modified tobamoviral vector that encodes the idiotype-specific single-chain Fv fragment (scFv) of the immunoglobulin from the 38C13 mouse B cell lymphoma. Infected Nicotiana benthamiana plants contain high levels of secreted scFv protein in the extracellular compartment. This material reacts with an anti-idiotype antibody by Western blotting, ELISA, and affinity chromatography, suggesting that the plant-produced 38C13 scFv protein is properly folded in solution. Mice vaccinated with the affinity-purified 38C13 scFv generate >10 micrograms/ml anti-idiotype immunoglobulins. These mice were protected from challenge by a lethal dose of the syngeneic 38C13 tumor, similar to mice immunized with the native 38C13 IgM-keyhole limpet hemocyanin conjugate vaccine. This rapid production system for generating tumor-specific protein vaccines may provide a viable strategy for the treatment of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1999

Plant viral vectors based on tobamoviruses.

The potential of plant virus-based transient expression vectors is substantial. One objective is the production of large quantities of foreign peptides or proteins. At least one commercial group (Biosource Technologies) is producing large quantities of product in the field, has built factories to process truck-loads of material and soon expects to market virus-generated products. In the laboratory, large amounts of protein have been produced for structural or biochemical analyses. An important aspect of producing large amounts of a protein or peptide is to make the product easily purifiable. This has been done by attaching peptides or proteins to easily purified units such as virion particles or by exporting proteins to the apoplast so that purification begins with a highly enriched product. For plant molecular biology, virus-based vectors have been useful in identifying previously unknown genes by overexpression or silencing or by expression in different genotypes. Also, foreign peptides fused to virions are being used as immunogens for development of antisera for experimental use or as injected or edible vaccines for medical use. As with liposomes and microcapsules, plant cells and plant viruses are also expected to provide natural protection for the passage of antigen through the gastrointestinal tract. Perhaps the greatest advantage of plant virus-based transient expression vectors is their host, plants. For the production of large amounts of commercial products, plants are one of the most economical and productive sources of biomass. They also present the advantages of lack of contamination with animal pathogens, relative ease of genetic manipulation and the presence eukaryotic protein modification machinery.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Malarial epitopes expressed on the surface of recombinant tobacco mosaic virus.

Using malaria as a model disease, we engineered the surface of tobacco mosaic tobamovirus (TMV) for presentation of selected epitopes to the mammalian immune system. The TMV coat protein is a well-characterized and abundant self-assembling polymer previously shown to be a highly immunogenic carrier. Selected B-cell epitopes were either inserted into the surface loop region of the TMV coat protein or fused to the C terminus using the leaky stop signal derived from the replicase protein reading frame. Tobacco plants systemically infected with each of these constructs contained high titers of genetically stable recombinant virus, enabling purification of the chimeric particles in high yield. Symptoms induced in tobacco ranged from a normal mosaic pattern similar to that induced by the parental U1 strain to a unique bright yellow mosaic. As measured by quantitative ELISA against synthetic peptide standards, wild type TMV coat protein and fusion protein synthesized by the leaky stop mechanism coassembled into virus particles at the predicted ratio of approximately 20:1. Recombinant plant viruses have the potential to meet the need for scalable and cost effective production of subunit vaccines that can be easily stored and administered.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1993

Rapid, high-level expression of biologically active alpha-trichosanthin in transfected plants by an RNA viral vector.

alpha-Trichosanthin, a eukaryotic ribosome-inactivating protein from Trichosanthes kirilowii, inhibits the replication of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in vitro. The alpha-trichosanthin gene was placed under the transcriptional control of a tobamovirus subgenomic promoter in a plant RNA viral vector. Two weeks after inoculation, transfected Nicotiana benthamiana plants accumulated alpha-trichosanthin to levels of at least 2% of total soluble protein. The recombinant alpha-trichosanthin was purified and its structural and biological properties were analyzed. The 23-amino acid signal peptide was recognized by N. benthamiana and the processed enzyme caused a concentration-dependent inhibition of protein synthesis in vitro. The high level of heterologous gene expression observed in these studies is due to the unique features of the RNA viral-based transfection system.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1993

Transfection of whole plants from wounds inoculated with Agrobacterium tumefaciens containing cDNA of tobacco mosaic virus.

We engineered cDNA of tobacco mosaic tobamovirus (TMV) into Agrobacterium tumefaciens for inoculation of plant cells. The resulting bacterial strains were used to transfect tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum cv. Xanthi and Xanthi/nc) with wild type and a defective virus. Lesion formation on Xanthi/nc tobacco was used to measure the timing and efficiency of transfection. Infections mediated by Agrobacterium produced lesions an average of two days later than infections produced by inoculation with virions. The addition of approximately 80 bp of non-viral sequences to the 5'-end of TMV transcripts abolished transfection. Transcripts with non-viral sequences at the 3'-end initiated infections, while precise transcript termination with a synthetic ribozyme sequence increased transfection frequencies two-fold. Culture conditions reported to induce genes of the vir region of the Agrobacterium Ti plasmid also increased the transfection frequency approximately two-fold. Therefore, in addition to the pararetroviruses and geminiviruses previously described, 'agroinoculation' may be used to infect plants with plus-sense RNA viruses.

Agrobacterium tumefaciens↗
PubMed1992

The complete nucleotide sequence of pepper mottle virus genomic RNA: comparison of the encoded polyprotein with those of other sequenced potyviruses.

The complete nucleotide sequence of a pepper mottle virus isolate from California (PepMoV C) has been determined from cloned viral cDNAs. The PepMoV C genomic RNA is 9640 nucleotides excluding the poly(A) tail and contains a long open reading frame starting at nucleotide 168 and potentially encoding a polyprotein of 3068 amino acids. Comparison of the PepMoV C presumptive polyprotein with those of other sequenced members of the potyvirus group, including tobacco etch virus (TEV), tobacco vein mottling virus (TVMV), plum pox virus (PPV), and potato virus Y (PVY), allowed localization of putative protein cleavage sites. A similar analysis was used to determine the position of conserved viral protein-coding regions along the viral genomic RNA. These analyses confirm previous work indicating that genome organization is conserved among members of the genus Potyvirus. The localization of one PepMoV C gene product, the nuclear inclusion body protein a (NIa protein), was analyzed by expressing PepMoV cDNA deletion clones in bacteria and assaying for appearance of mature-sized coat protein, a cleavage product of the NIa protease. Comparative sequence analyses of the putative PepMoV polyprotein with those of TEV, TVMV, PPV, and PVY served to identify regions of the potyviral polyproteins which have diverged within the genus, as well as highly conserved protein features which may play an important functional role in the potyviral life cycle.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1990

Melanin production in Escherichia coli from a cloned tyrosinase gene.

We have cloned and functionally expressed a tyrosinase gene from Streptomyces antibioticus in Escherichia coli under the control of an inducible bacteriophage T7 promoter. Recombinant E. coli cells containing the induced tyrosinase gene produced melanin pigments on agar plates and in liquid culture when supplemented with copper and tyrosine. The expression of an additional open reading frame from the mel gene locus of S. antibioticus was required for high-level melanin production in E. coli. Our results also show that it is possible to screen other classes of precursor compounds for incorporation into melanin pigments with unique colors and other biochemical features. In addition, it may be possible to screen for enhanced melanin production in the absence of added precursors to identify overproducing mutants in the amino acid biosynthetic pathways of E. coli. The ability to screen for a melanin phenotype in recombinant E. coli provides new opportunities for production of novel melanins and for protein engineering of tyrosinases with altered catalytic properties.

Cloning, Molecular↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Broad resistance to tobamoviruses is mediated by a modified tobacco mosaic virus replicase transgene.

Tobacco plants made transgenic to express the wild type tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) 183-kDa replicase gene were not resistant to TMV. However, transgenic plants containing essentially the same sequences, but with an additional insertion that would terminate translation in the middle of the 183-kDa gene, were highly resistant to systemic infection by TMV and other tobamoviruses. The 1.4-kbp insertion in the replicase open reading frame (ORF) of the resistant plants was shown by DNA sequencing to be an IS10-like transposable element, which apparently inserted itself into the TMV sequence at nucleotide 2875 sometime during the propagation of this replicase ORF plasmid (pREP21). Because of four stop codons, in frame with the TMV replicase ORF on the immediate 5' border of the IS insertion, REP21 effectively represents domain 1 (putative methylase domain) and a portion of domain 2 (putative helicase domain) of the TMV replicase ORF. REP21 Xanthi tobacco plants had a level of resistance to TMV similar to other reported transgenic replicase plants. No TMV was detected in upper leaves of these plants at 1-mo postinoculation. In addition, REP21 plants were resistant to an unusually broad range of tobamoviruses including tomato mosaic virus, tobacco mild green mosaic virus, TMV-U5, green tomato atypical mosaic virus, and ribgrass mosaic virus. These plants were not resistant to cucumber mosaic cucumovirus. The lack of systemic infection by TMV was due to reduced multiplication in inoculated leaves rather than complete prevention of replication.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Base Sequence↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Rapid production of recombinant allergens in Nicotiana benthamiana and their impact on diagnosis and therapy.

BACKGROUND: Type I allergies are immunological disorders that afflict a quarter of the world's population. Recombinant allergens have improved the diagnosis of allergic diseases and allow the formulation of new therapeutic approaches. Over 50% of all allergens are of plant origin. OBJECTIVE: We have applied a novel method of overexpressing plant allergens in the tobacco-related species Nicotiana benthamiana. METHOD: This method is based on the use of a chimeric tobacco mosaic virus that harbors a foreign gene sequence and directs its transcription after the infection of the host plant. RESULTS: We have expressed the model allergen Bet v 1, the major birch pollen allergen, and two Hevea brasiliensis latex allergens, the spina-bifida-associated allergens Hev b 1 and Hev b 3, in N. benthamiana using such a viral vector. Bet v 1, Hev b 1 and Hev b 3 produced by this method were recognized by patients' IgE suggesting that the plant-produced allergens were properly folded. Nonpurified Bet v 1 expressed in N. benthamiana leaves had the same immunogenicity as purified Bet v 1 expressed in Escherichia coli or natural Bet v 1 when tested in a murine model of type I allergy. CONCLUSION: We conclude that this plant expression system offers a viable alternative to fermentation-based production of allergens in bacteria or yeasts.

Allergens↗