Ultrastructural characterization of arterivirus replication structures: reshaping the endoplasmic reticulum to accommodate viral RNA synthesis.

ABSTRACT: Virus-induced membrane structures support the assembly and function of positive-strand RNA virus replication complexes. The replicase proteins of arteriviruses are associated with double-membrane vesicles (DMVs), which were previously proposed to derive from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Using electron tomography, we performed an in-depth ultrastructural analysis of cells infected with the prototypic arterivirus equine arteritis virus (EAV). We established that the outer membranes of EAV-induced DMVs are interconnected with each other and with the ER, thus forming a reticulovesicular network (RVN) resembling that previously described for the distantly related severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronavirus. Despite significant morphological differences, a striking parallel between t

SUBMITTER: Knoops K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3302280 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature