The presence of antibodies to p27, the product of gene Nef, may be an important diagnostic sign since some sera from subjects of the risk groups negative to HIV-1 structural proteins may contain antibody to p27. The study resulted in construction of a hybrid plasmid determining in E coli bacteria the synthesis of a hybrid protein the N-terminus part of which is represented by full-size beta-galactosidase and the C-terminus by a part of protein p27 with the main immunoreactive epitopes. The resulting polypeptide specifically interacts with sera of the infected subjects and may be used for detection of antibodies to the protein Nef in the blood of virus-carriers.