Expression, purification and antibody preparation of PCV2 Rep and ORF3 proteins

Rep and ORF3 proteins are important functional proteins of porcine circovirus 2 (PCV2). Here, Rep and ORF3 genes were cloned, expressed and used to raise polyclonal antibodies. The result showed the recombinant plasmids of Rep and ORF3 genes constructed in this study were expressed efficiently in the prokaryotic system, and the recombinant proteins had antigenicity and immunogenicity. Furthermore, reactivity and specificity of the antiserums were characterized by western blot and indirect immunofluorescent assays. The results elucidated that polyclonal antiserum prepared with Rep or ORF3 had good reactivity and specificity against PCV2, or the Rep and ORF3 expressed in PK-15 cells, respectively. The Rep protein is promising for PCV2 antibody and vaccine development. These results will be helpful for further studies focusing on pathogenesis of PCV2 and serology diagnostic test or vaccine development against PCV2.