Complete genome analysis and virulence characteristics of the Louisiana West Nile virus strain LSU-AR01.
West Nile virus (WNV) is a member of the Flaviriridae family, which can cause significant morbidity and mortality in birds, horses, and humans. The WNV-LSU-AR01 strain was isolated from a dead blue jay in Louisiana in 2001. Phylogenetic analysis using 75 full WNV genomes revealed that the LSU-AR01 strain belongs to a distinct subclade among the North American strains. The LSU-AR01 strain differed from the NY-99 prototypic strain by 26 nucleotides causing six amino acid changes. An asparagine-to-lysine change was located immediately proximal to a known CD8(+)T cell epitope in NS4B, while a glutamine-to-lysine change was located within a predicted CD8(+)T cell epitope in NS5. The LSU-AR01 strain caused pronounced neuronal necrosis, perivascular cuffing and gliosis in comparison to the NY-99-infected mice. These results suggest that the previously identified Connecticut strains may contain highly neurovirulent strains such as the LSU-AR01 that have spread in North America.
Iyer
Arun V
AV
Division of Biotechnology and Molecular Medicine, Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine (LSU SVM), Baton Rouge, LA, 70803, USA.
Boudreaux
Marc J
MJ
Wakamatsu
Nobuko
N
Roy
Alma F
AF
Baghian
Abolghasem
A
Chouljenko
Vladimir N
VN
Kousoulas
Konstantin G
KG
D000818:Animals; D001715:Bird Diseases / Q000821:virology; D001717:Birds; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D005260:Female; D016679:Genome, Viral; D008145:Louisiana; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D020125:Mutation, Missense; D010802:Phylogeny; D017354:Point Mutation; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D014774:Virulence; D014901:West Nile Fever / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology*; D014902:West Nile virus / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000472:pathogenicity*
D012367:RNA, Viral