Open AccessThe Major Determinant of Attenuation in Mice of the Candid1 Vaccine for Argentine Hemorrhagic Fever Is Located in the G2 Glycoprotein Transmembrane Domain
Author(s) -
César G. Albariño,
Brian H. Bird,
Ayan K. Chakrabarti,
Kimberly A. Dodd,
Mike Flint,
Éric Bergeron,
David M. White,
Stuart T. Nichol
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
journal of virology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.617
H-Index - 292
eISSN - 1070-6321
pISSN - 0022-538X
DOI - 10.1128/jvi.00856-11
Subject(s) - junin virus , biology , arenavirus , virology , transmembrane domain , glycoprotein , attenuated vaccine , virulence , virus , transmembrane protein , flavivirus , recombinant dna , lymphocytic choriomeningitis , amino acid , immunology , microbiology and biotechnology , genetics , immune system , gene , receptor , cd8
Candid1, a live-attenuated Junin virus vaccine strain, was developed during the early 1980s to control Argentine hemorrhagic fever, a severe and frequently fatal human disease. Six amino acid substitutions were found to be unique to this vaccine strain, and their role in virulence attenuation in mice was analyzed using a series of recombinant viruses. Our results indicate that Candid1 is attenuated in mice through a single amino acid substitution in the transmembrane domain of the G2 glycoprotein. This work provides insight into the molecular mechanisms of attenuation of the only arenavirus vaccine currently available.