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Infectious cDNA Clone of Chikungunya Virus 181/25 for Antiviral Assay Development
Shruti Gautam1,2, Muskan Singhal1,2, Siddharth Singh1,2
1Division of Virus Research and Therapeutics, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh 226031, India.
ACS Omega
|January 1, 2026
Summary
Researchers developed a Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) infectious clone and a GFP-expressing variant. This tool enables high-throughput screening for new antiviral drugs and vaccine development against CHIKV.
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Molecular Biology
- Immunology
Background:
- Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) causes mosquito-borne illness with potential chronic joint pain.
- The CHIKV vaccine strain 181/25 is crucial for developing new vaccines.
- Effective antiviral therapies and vaccines are needed to combat CHIKV infections.
Purpose of the Study:
- To construct an infectious cDNA clone of CHIKV strain 181/25.
- To engineer a GFP-expressing CHIKV variant for antiviral screening.
- To develop a high-throughput cell-based assay for antiviral compound discovery.
Main Methods:
- Cloning of the full-length CHIKV-181/25 genome downstream of the SP6 RNA polymerase promoter.
- Recovery of infectious virus via electroporation of in vitro transcribed RNA.
- Engineering of a GFP-expressing CHIKV variant by inserting GFP under a duplicated subgenomic promoter.
Main Results:
- Successful recovery of infectious CHIKV-181/25 with high titers.
- Stable GFP expression and genomic integrity of the recombinant virus over serial passages.
- Development and validation of a reliable, high-throughput antiviral screening assay using the reporter virus.
Conclusions:
- The infectious CHIKV-181/25 cDNA clone serves as a valuable platform for drug discovery and vaccine development.
- The GFP-expressing CHIKV variant facilitates robust antiviral compound screening.
- This platform supports research into CHIKV replication and evolutionary dynamics.
