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Using Reverse Genetics to Manipulate the NSs Gene of the Rift Valley Fever Virus MP-12 Strain to Improve Vaccine Safety and Efficacy
Published on: November 1, 2011
Immune Evasion by the NSs Protein of Rift Valley Fever Virus: A Viral Houdini Act
Kaylee Petraccione1,2, James G Omichinski3, Kylene Kehn-Hall1,2
1Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA.
Abstract:
Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) is a negative-sense arbovirus that causes several severe diseases, including hemorrhagic fever in ruminants and humans. There are currently no FDA-approved vaccines or therapeutics for RVFV. The viral nonstructural protein NSs acts like a molecular Harry Houdini, the world-famous escape artist, to help the virus evade the host's innate immune response and serves as the main virulence factor of RVFV. In this review, we discuss the molecular mechanisms by which NSs interacts with multiple factors to modulate host processes, evade the host immune response, and facilitate viral replication. The impact of NSs mutations that cause viral attenuation is also discussed. Understanding the molecular mechanisms by which NSs evades the host innate immune response is crucial for developing novel therapeutics and vaccines targeting RVFV.
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