Preparation and identification of a novel monoclonal antibody against African swine fever virus p15 protein

Background African swine fever (ASF) is a highly lethal infectious disease caused by the African swine fever virus (ASFV). Due to the absence of effective vaccines and antiviral drugs, the slaughter of infected and exposed pigs is a current prevention and control measure. Early diagnosis is crucial for the management of ASFV, and the p15 protein plays a critical role in the maturation of ASFV particles. Results In this study, a prokaryotic expression system obtained highly pure soluble p15 protein, and four monoclonal antibodies (3 C, 4B, 5D, 8 F) were prepared. These antibodies demonstrated the specific recognition of exogenously expressed p15. Antigenic epitopes were initially mapped using six overlapping p15 truncated proteins. Results showed that the epitopes of 3 C, 5D, and 8 F were all located in P49-N65, which is highly conserved among genotypes I, II, VII, IX, X, and XX. In contrast, 4B identified an epitope located at K105-R132, which was conserved only in genotypes I, II, and XX ASFV. Conclusions This study identified two novel conserved epitopes, P49-N65 and K105-R132. This provided valuable insights into the antigenic epitopes of ASFV p15 protein, contributing to a better understanding of its functional properties and demonstrating potential utility for the development of ASFV diagnostic tools. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12917-025-04954-y.