Expression of a processed and a non-processed form of the integrase protein of HIV-1 in the baculovirus system.

The integrase (IN) protein of HIV-1 was expressed as a processed and a non-processed protein in the eucaryotic baculovirus expression system. In immunoblots we could demonstrate that recombinant baculoviruses containing the complete gag and pol reading frames of HIV-1 expressed a gag/pol precursor polyprotein. The specific proteolytic activity of the recombinant protease on the gag and pol precursor proteins was used for the generation of processed gag (p 17, p 24, p 16) and pol (RT/RNaseH, IN) proteins. The non-processed IN protein, expressed as a polyhedrin fusion protein, was produced at much higher level than the processed protein.