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Updated: Feb 22, 2026
In Vitro Analysis of Myd88-mediated Cellular Immune Response to West Nile Virus Mutant Strain Infection
Published on: November 27, 2014
Virulence determinants of West Nile virus: how can these be used for vaccine design?
Jaclyn A Kaiser1,1, Tian Wang1,2,3,1,2,3, Alan Dt Barrett1,2,3,1,2,3
1Department of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555, USA.
Abstract:
West Nile virus (WNV), a neurotropic mosquito-borne flavivirus, has become endemic in the USA and parts of Europe since 1999. There is no licensed WNV vaccine for humans. Considering the robust immunity from immunization with live, attenuated vaccines, a live WNV vaccine is an ideal platform for disease control. Animal and mosquito studies have identified a number of candidate attenuating mutations, including the structural proteins premembrane/membrane and envelope, and the nonstructural proteins NS1, NS2A, NS3, NS4A, NS4B and NS5, and the 3' UTR. Many of the mutations that have been examined attenuate WNV using different mechanisms, thus providing a greater understanding of WNV virulence while also identifying specific mutations as candidates to include in a WNV live vaccine.
