IDENTIFYING AND INVESTIGATING SURFACE GLYCOPROTEINS E1-E2 OF
ALPHAVIRUSES ON EARTH AND IN SPACE (GLIKOPROTEID)
Research Area: Macromolecular Crystal Growth
Expedition(s): 11-13 and 16- 17
Principle Investigator(s): ● Grigoriy Y. Shcherbakov, MD, PhD, Biopreparat,
Moscow, Russia
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
The Identifying and Investigation Surface Glycoproteins E1-E2 of Alphaviruses on Earth and in
Space (Glikoproteid) obtains data on the atomic structure of glycoprotein biomolecules with
the highest possible resolution to create effective and safe new generation vaccines and to
develop new antiviral medications and diagnostic systems.
EARTH BENEFITS
The surface glycoprotein Е of the West Nile virus is the main target
for virus neutralizing antibodies. The accurate spatial mapping of
neutralizing virus epitopes is of fundamental importance for the
development of antiviral medications, vaccines, and diagnostic
tests. The project implementation provided fundamentally new
information on the structure of a new type of viral proteins and
combined the accumulated information on the organization of the
virions of an entire family of warm-blooded animal viruses.SPACE BENEFITS
The space grown crystals will be used to determine the 3-
dimensional structure of the protein. This will facilitate the
continuation of the refinement of the technology for obtaining
bio-crystals in microgravity and the development of
crystallographic research in space in order to obtain high-quality
protein crystals.RESULTS
As a result of the Glikoproteid experiment, in most cases, the presence of small prism-shaped
crystals was identified with a maximum size of approximately, 100 micron in the presence of
amorphous deposits. The development relates to the following aspects. First, to the principal
role of the Е1 and Е2 glycoproteins in the development of the infection process and the
generation of an immune response to an alphavirus infection. Second, to the prevalence of
alphavirus infections among pets and humans. Third, to the structural specifics of viral proteins,
which as a rule, are typical for a group of viruses and usually differ greatly from other proteins.
This investigation is complete; however additional results are pending publication.
Results of the experiment
during ISS-13. Microscopic
video imagery of the contents
of the crystallization cells in
chamber 4 of bio-
crystallization cassette No.5
containing glycoprotein. The
linear dimensions of the
largest crystals are 35 - 85
micron. Roscosmos image.