[The transgenic characteristics of mice with the gene for the surface antigen of human hepatitis B virus. II. The inheritance of the transgene and its expression in the liver].

The inheritance of the MT-1sAg transgene (a gene of the major envelope polypeptide of human hepatitis B virus under the control of the metallothionein I gene promoter) and its expression in mouse liver cells have been studied. The Mendel inheritance of the transgene for three generations of mice was established. The analysis of transgenic mouse F2 chromosomal DNA by the Southern hybridization revealed the tandem copy insertion of the MT-1sAg plasmid. The expression of the transgene in liver cells, both with MT-1 promoter induction by Cd++ and without it, has been observed. The decrease in mouse liver cell parts containing viral protein HBsAg was observed as well as a reliable decrease in the share of mice with detectable MT-1sAg expression in the liver during the ontogenesis. The MT-1sAg-transgenic mice may be useful for studying the human chronic HBsAg state.