Fig. 5.

Mouse total ZE3-specific antibody titers. BALB/c mice (6 per group) were immunized subcutaneously with ZE3 N-RICs, ZE3 C-RICs, HBche-ZE3 VLPs, or HBc-ZE3 either alone or in various combinations of RICs and VLPs mixed 1:1. Two groups, HBche-ZE3 alone and the HBche-ZE3/C-RIC, were not given alum as an adjuvant in order to test the effect of an adjuvant on the antibody titers elicited by the experimental groups. Except for the PBS control group, each dose delivered 4 µg total ZE3. Blood samples, collected after the (A) second dose or (B) third dose, were analyzed for ZE3-specific antibodies by endpoint titer ELISA. The y-axis shows the geometric mean titers (GMT). The PBS control group had no signal above background at the lowest dilution tested (1:100) and is therefore not shown to improve readability. Non-parametric one-way ANOVA was used to evaluate significance between the groups indicated.