Expression of vp7 protein of bluetongue virus and its characterization

Bluetongue is a disease of ruminants mainly confined to sheep caused by bluetongue virus which belongs to the genus Orbivirus of Reoviridae family. It was transmitted by arthropod vector Culicoides species. It causes severe economic losses with high morbidity and mortality and placed in erstwhile List-A by OIE. The virus is composed of 10 linear ds-RNA segments surrounded by core and outer capsid. Outer capsid composed of VP2 and VP5; whereas outer core is composed of two major structural proteins VP7 and VP3; inner core composed with VP1,VP4, VP6 and nonstructural proteins NS1, NS2, NS3, NS3A and NS4. The present study deals with the expression and immune characterization of the BTV-VP7 upper domain which is exposed on the surface of the virion. BTV-9 was taken for study; the VP7 upper domain was amplified by reverse transcription and RT-PCR. Cloned in PQE-30 and expressed in E.coli M15 cells. Expression was checked by using SDS-PAGE with expected molecular weight.