Identification of neutralizing epitopes on a European strain of swine vesicular disease virus.

Six neutralizing monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) were used to isolate MAb neutralization-resistant (MAR) mutants from a recent European strain of swine vesicular disease virus (SVDV), ITL/9/93. Sequencing of MAR mutants identified two epitopes located at positions analogous to sites 2A (VP2) and 3B (VP3) on poliovirus (PV) which have been previously identified on a Japanese strain of SVDV. A third epitope near to the C terminus of VP1, not previously recognized on SVDV, was tentatively identified in a region analogous to site 1 of PV. A fourth epitope, located in the C-terminal region of VP3, has never before been recognized as a site of neutralization on picornaviruses. All four epitopes were predicted to be surface-exposed.