Recombinant baculoviruses and their uses in detecting arthropod-borne virus

Abstract

Disclosed herein are recombinant baculoviruses suitable for detecting the presence of arthropod-borne viruses in a biological sample of a test subject. The information derived from the detection may also be used to render a diagnosis on whether the test subject is infected with the arthropod-borne viruses or not, so that proper course of treatment may be assigned to the subject.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A recombinant baculovirus having a viral protein of an arthropod born virus expressed thereon, wherein the arthropod born virus is any one of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV), Zika virus (ZIKV), or Chikungunya virus (CHIKV). 
     
     
         2 . The recombinant baculovirus of  claim 1 , wherein the viral protein of JEV or ZIKV is selected from the group consisting of Pre-M, E and a combination thereof. 
     
     
         3 . The recombinant baculovirus of  claim 2 , wherein
 the arthropod born virus is JEV; and   the recombinant baculovirus has the viral proteins pre-M and E of JEV expressed thereon.   
     
     
         4 . The recombinant baculovirus of  claim 2 , wherein
 the arthropod born virus is ZIKV; and   the recombinant baculovirus has the viral proteins pre-M and E of ZIKV expressed thereon.   
     
     
         5 . The recombinant baculovirus of  claim 1 , wherein the viral protein of CHIKV comprises E1, E2, and E3. 
     
     
         6 . A method of detecting an antibody of an arthropod born virus in a biological sample comprising:
 mixing the biological sample with the recombinant baculovirus of  claim 2 ; and   detecting a complex formed between the antibody and the recombinant baculovirus of  claim 2 , in an immunological assay.   
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein
 the arthropod born virus is JEV; and   the recombinant baculovirus has the viral proteins pre-M and E of JEV expressed thereon.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein
 the arthropod born virus is ZIKV; and   the recombinant baculovirus has the viral proteins pre-M and E of ZIKV expressed thereon.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the antibody is an IgM or IgG. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the immunological assay is an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the biological sample is selected from the group consisting of a whole blood sample, a plasma sample, a serum sample, a urine sample, a mucus sample, and purified or filtered forms thereof.