75
Views
0
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Original Article

Determination of viral neuraminidase specificity for membrane-bound sialic acids by cell electrophoresis

&
Pages 87-90 | Received 17 Mar 1997, Published online: 09 Jul 2009
 

Abstract

The ability of the influenza virus neuraminidase (NA) to cleave specific sialic acids was measured by cell electrophoresis. Most of the surface charge of human erythrocytes can be attributed to sialic acids. Therefore cleavage of sialic acids reduces the surface charge density which is measurable as a reduced cell electrophoretic mobility (EPM). For experiments specifically sialylated, erythrocytes were used. Their EPM was significantly decreased after incubation with virus strains possessing the corresponding NA specificity, even when the viral haemagglu-tinin (HA) was unable to bind to the erythrocyte's surface. Thus, the limited applicability of elution experiments, which requires virus binding, is overcome. An additional advantage of this procedure is that it is non-radioactive. In our model system the erythrocyte's surface resembles the natural situation of viral interaction with membrane-bound receptors.

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.