Lassa Fever Virus Binds Matriglycan-A Polymer of Alternating Xylose and Glucuronate-On α-Dystroglycan.

ABSTRACT: Lassa fever virus (LASV) can cause life-threatening hemorrhagic fevers for which there are currently no vaccines or targeted treatments. The late Prof. Stefan Kunz, along with others, showed that the high-affinity host receptor for LASV, and other Old World and clade-C New World mammarenaviruses, is matriglycan-a linear repeating disaccharide of alternating xylose and glucuronic acid that is polymerized uniquely on α-dystroglycan by like-acetylglucosaminyltransferase-1 (LARGE1). Although α-dystroglycan is ubiquitously expressed, LASV preferentially infects vascular endothelia and professional phagocytic cells, which suggests that viral entry requires additional cell-specific factors. In this review, we highlight the work of Stefan Kunz detailing the molecular mechanism of LASV binding and

SUBMITTER: Joseph S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8473316 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature