Formation of Pseudorabies virus glycoprotein E/I complex in baculovirus recombinant system

Glycoproteins E (gE) and I (gI) of Pseudorabies virus (PRV) form a non-covalently bound complex to which a number of functions have been attributed. The gE/gI complex formation was studied using a series of full-length and truncated forms of gE and gI expressed in baculovirus recombinant system. Both glycoproteins were truncated by stepwise removal of their C-terminal parts and their ability to form the complex was studied by radioimmunoprecipitation. It was found that N-terminal domains of gE and gI containing first 122 and 106 aa, respectively, were sufficient for the complex formation.