Urine proteins cross-reacting with antiserum against virus-like particles from cultured psoriatic epithelial cells.

Subcellular particles resembling enveloped viruses were isolated from the urine of a psoriatic male. The particles were located at densities between 1.15 and 1.18 g/cc after sucrose gradient centrifugation. The fraction containing purified particles possessed proteins that cross-reacted with an antiserum raised against virus-like particles from a cell culture established from a psoriatic lesion. Analysis of the cross-reacting antigens by concanavalin A fractionation and SDS-PAGE revealed a glycoprotein with Mr 70,000 (gp70) and three smaller molecules with apparent molecular weights of 30,000, 18,000, and 15,000, respectively. These values were identical to those obtained for the virus-like particles isolated from the cell culture with an envelope glycoprotein with molecular weight of 70,000 and three inner proteins. Estimation of the molecular weights for the three smaller molecules by gel filtration in 6M guanidine-hydrochloride gave Mr 27,000, 15,000, and 12,000, respectively, for the three proteins. The designations p27 p15, and p12 are based on the molecular weight estimation by the chromatographic method.