In vitro study of the interactions between bovine herpesvirus 4 and the bovine host cells

This work was devoted to the study of the interactions between bovine herpesvirus 4 (BHV-4) and bovine cells in vitro. It led to the discovery of two interesting properties of BVH-4 replication cycle: first, the cellular receptor heparan sulfate was proven to mediate BVH-4 binding to target cells. This is the first description of the implication of heparan sulfate in the binding process of a gammaherpesvirus. Second, using synchronised cells, the replication of BVH-4 DNA was proven to be dependent on the S phase of the cell cycle. This dependence could explain some properties of BVH-4 infection in vitro and could play an important role in the biology of the infection in vivo. Finally, in order to produce monoclonal antibodies against BVH-4 IE1 and IE2 proteins, the genes coding for these proteins were cloned and expressed in prokaryotic cells.