Requirements for cell rounding and surface protein down-regulation by Ebola virus glycoprotein.

ABSTRACT: Ebola virus causes an acute hemorrhagic fever that is associated with high morbidity and mortality. The viral glycoprotein is thought to contribute to pathogenesis, though precise mechanisms are unknown. Cellular pathogenesis can be modeled in vitro by expression of the Ebola viral glycoprotein (GP) in cells, which causes dramatic morphological changes, including cell rounding and surface protein down-regulation. These effects are known to be dependent on the presence of a highly glycosylated region of the glycoprotein, the mucin domain. Here we show that the mucin domain from the highly pathogenic Zaire subtype of Ebola virus is sufficient to cause characteristic cytopathology when expressed in the context of a foreign glycoprotein. Similarly to full length Ebola GP, expression of the muc

SUBMITTER: Francica JR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2654768 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature