Herpes simplex viruses utilize glycoproteins displayed on the viral envelope to perform a variety of functions in the viral infectious cycle. Structural and functional studies of these viral glycoproteins can benefit from biochemical, biophysical, and structural analysis of purified proteins. Here, we describe a general protocol for expression and purification of viral glycoproteins from insect cells based on those developed for the HSV-1 gB and HSV-2 gH/gL ectodomains as well as the protocol for crystallization of these glycoproteins. This protocol can be used for generating milligram amounts of wild-type (WT) or mutant gB and gH/gL ectodomains or can be adapted to produce purified ectodomains of glycoproteins from HSV or other herpesviruses for biochemical and structural studies.
Keywords: Crystallography; Ectodomain; Glycoproteins; Herpes simplex viruses; Protein purification; Viral entry.