Expression of the E2 open reading frame of papillomaviruses BPV1 and HPV6b in silkworm by a baculovirus vector

To produce and characterize the nature of the E2 protein of papillomaviruses, we have developed a system to express the DNA sequence containing an open reading frame (ORF) as a fusion protein in cultured insect cells and silkworms. The DNA fragments of the E2 ORF predicted from the DNA sequence of bovine papillomavirus type 1 and human papillomavirus type 6b were linked to the N-terminal part of polyhedrin gene of the Baculovirus Bombyx mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus (BmNPV) vector. Hybrid proteins composed of polyhedrin protein (52 amino acids) and the E2 proteins of BPV1 (410 amino acids) or HPV6b (346 amino acids) were efficiently produced in B. mori cells and silkworm larvae infected with recombinant viruses. The amount of E2 fusion proteins produced by recombinant viruses was comparable to that of polyhedrin produced by wild type BmNPV. The hybrid proteins were immunologically reactive to antiserum against polyhedrin.