Open AccessBiological and phylogenetic characteristics of West African lineages of West Nile virus
Author(s) -
Gamou Fall,
Nicholas Di Paola,
Martin Faye,
Moussa Dia,
Caio César de Melo Freire,
Cheikh Loucoubar,
Paolo Marinho de Andrade Zanotto,
Ousmane Faye,
Amadou Alpha Sall
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
plos neglected tropical diseases
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.99
H-Index - 135
eISSN - 1935-2735
pISSN - 1935-2727
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pntd.0006078
Subject(s) - biology , arbovirus , virology , tropism , phylogenetic tree , lineage (genetic) , virus , virulence , host (biology) , genetic diversity , phylogenetics , west nile virus , tissue tropism , flavivirus , vero cell , genome , zoology , genetics , gene , population , demography , sociology
The West Nile virus (WNV), isolated in 1937, is an arbovirus (arthropod-borne virus) that infects thousands of people each year. Despite its burden on global health, little is known about the virus’ biological and evolutionary dynamics. As several lineages are endemic in West Africa, we obtained the complete polyprotein sequence from three isolates from the early 1990s, each representing a different lineage. We then investigated differences in growth behavior and pathogenicity for four distinct West African lineages in arthropod (Ap61) and primate (Vero) cell lines, and in mice. We found that genetic differences, as well as viral-host interactions, could play a role in the biological properties in different WNV isolates in vitro , such as: ( i ) genome replication, ( ii ) protein translation, ( iii ) particle release, and ( iv ) virulence. Our findings demonstrate the endemic diversity of West African WNV strains and support future investigations into ( i ) the nature of WNV emergence, ( ii ) neurological tropism, and ( iii ) host adaptation.