The Roles of prM-E Proteins in Historical and Epidemic Zika Virus-mediated Infection and Neurocytotoxicity.

ABSTRACT: The Zika virus (ZIKV) was first isolated in Africa in 1947. It was shown to be a mild virus that had limited threat to humans. However, the resurgence of the ZIKV in the most recent Brazil outbreak surprised us because it causes severe human congenital and neurologic disorders including microcephaly in newborns and Guillain-Barré syndrome in adults. Studies showed that the epidemic ZIKV strains are phenotypically different from the historic strains, suggesting that the epidemic ZIKV has acquired mutations associated with the altered viral pathogenicity. However, what genetic changes are responsible for the changed viral pathogenicity remains largely unknown. One of our early studies suggested that the ZIKV structural proteins contribute in part to the observed virologic differences. The ob

SUBMITTER: Li G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6409645 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature