The Evaluation of Hepatitis C Virus Core Antigen in Immunized Balb/C Mice

Hepatitis infection represents one of the important causes of morbidity and mortality in developing countries, however there is not any effective vaccine against hepatitis C which is one of the significant problems in vaccine project. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the role of HCV core protein in inducing IFN-Gamma secretion and TCL activities as a vaccine in Balb/C mice. Our previous cloned plasmid (HCV Core gene into pETDuet-1) applied for protein expression in bacteria. The expressed and purified recombinant protein together with Freund’s adjuvant was injected to 15 Balb/c mice. The total IgG and IgG2a of immunized mice sera were evaluated after a week. Two weeks after booster injection, we studied the proliferation and IFNγ secretion of spleens, inguinal and popliteal lymph nodes lymphocytes by ELISA and ELISPOT. The FSFC (Frequency of spot forming cells) of secreting cells of immunized mice with HCV/Core protein and sera IgG2a were considerably higher than the control groups. The core protein together with proper adjuvant can be a candidate vaccine against of HCV infectionBalb/C Mice. Hepat Mon. 2012;12(6): 391-397. DOI: 10.5812/hepatmon.6141.