Internally deleted WNV genomes isolated from exotic birds in New Mexico: function in cells, mosquitoes, and mice.

ABSTRACT: Most RNA viruses exist in their hosts as a heterogeneous population of related variants. Due to error prone replication, mutants are constantly generated which may differ in individual fitness from the population as a whole. Here we characterize three WNV isolates that contain, along with full-length genomes, mutants with large internal deletions to structural and nonstructural protein-coding regions. The isolates were all obtained from lorikeets that died from WNV at the Rio Grande Zoo in Albuquerque, NM between 2005 and 2007. The deletions are approximately 2kb, in frame, and result in the elimination of the complete envelope, and portions of the prM and NS-1 proteins. In Vero cell culture, these internally deleted WNV genomes function as defective interfering particles, reducing the pro

SUBMITTER: Pesko KN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3312038 | biostudies-literature | 2012 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature