Zika Virus Envelope Protein

Zika virus Envelope protein (E protein) has been manufactured in response to the unmet need for highly purified, concentrated protein for use in serological based diagnostic assays. Our Zika proteins are engineered in human cells, using state-of-the-art expression and purification techniques. The soluble domain of the Zika virus Envelope protein is expressed in HEK293 cells, and purified by IMAC and IEX chromatography.

Zika virus is an emerging disease that is spread by Aedes mosquitoes. The virus was first isolated in Central Africa, and has since been spread to South Asia and recently to South America. Outbreaks were reported in Micronesia in 2007 and in Brazil in 2015, confirming at least 13 autochthonous infections.The Zika virus outbreak in Brazil in 2016 has gained world-wide attention, and has been linked to an increasing number of microcephaly cases. In April 2016 the Centers for Disease Control, in the USA, confirmed the link between Zika virus infection of the fetus with microcephaly.

Zika virus can cause mild fever, rash, myalgia, arthralgia and headaches, with one in four infected individuals being asymptomatic. Due to similar symptoms Zika virus infected individuals can easily be mis-diagnosed as a dengue infection and vice-versa. In addition, Zika virus has been implicated in causing microcephaly through transmission in utero. There is no vaccine or specific treatment available for Zika virus.

Analysis of Zika virus sequences from infected patients have shown that the strain circulating in South America in 2015 differs to the strain originally isoloated in 1947 in Uganda (the “Uganda” strain). The South American strain was first isolated and sequenced from a patient in Suriname, and hence is known as the Zika Suriname strain.

Zika virus Envelope protein has been produced to the same standards as our other mammalian expressed recombinant proteins, and is presented as a highly purified liquid protein.