Key Residue in the Precursor Region of M Protein Contributes to the Neurovirulence and Neuroinvasiveness of the African Lineage of Zika Virus.

ABSTRACT: The Zika virus (ZIKV) represents an important global health threat due to its unusual association with congenital Zika syndrome. ZIKV strains are phylogenetically grouped into the African and Asian lineages. However, the viral determinants underlying the phenotypic differences between the lineages remain unknown. Here, multiple sequence alignment revealed a highly conserved residue at position 21 of the premembrane (prM) protein, which is glutamic acid and lysine in the Asian and African lineages, respectively. Using reverse genetics, we generated a recombinant virus carrying an E21K mutation based on the genomic backbone of the Asian lineage strain FSS13025 (termed E21K). The E21K mutation significantly increased viral replication in multiple neural cell lines with a higher ratio of M to

SUBMITTER: He MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10062131 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature