Positively charged amino acid substitutions in the e2 envelope glycoprotein are associated with the emergence of venezuelan equine encephalitis virus.

ABSTRACT: Epidemic-epizootic Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) viruses (VEEV) have emerged repeatedly via convergent evolution from enzootic predecessors. However, previous sequence analyses have failed to identify common sets of nucleotide or amino acid substitutions associated with all emergence events. During 1993 and 1996, VEEV subtype IE epizootics occurred on the Pacific Coast of the states of Chiapas and Oaxaca in southern Mexico. Like other epizootic VEEV strains, when inoculated into guinea pigs and mice, the Mexican isolates were no more virulent than closely related enzootic strains, complicating genetic studies of VEE emergence. Complete genomic sequences of 4 of the Mexican strains were determined and compared to those of closely related enzootic subtype IE isolates from Guatemala. T

SUBMITTER: Brault AC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC135911 | biostudies-literature | 2002 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature