COVID-19 Genome Surveillance: A Geographical Landscape and Mutational Mapping of SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Central India over Two Years
This study identified 104 different SARS-CoV-2 pango-lineages classified into 19 clades. We have also analysed the mutation profiles of the variants found in the study, which showed eight mutations of interest, including L18F, K417N, K417T, L452R, S477N, N501Y, P681H, P681R, and mutation of concern E484K in the spike glycoprotein region. The study was from November 2020 to December 2022, making this study the most comprehensive genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 conducted for the region.PMID:38527669 | DOI:10.1016/j.virusres.2024.199365 (Source: Virus Research)
Source: Virus Research - March 25, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Krishna Khairnar Siddharth Singh Tomar Source Type: research

COVID-19 Genome Surveillance: A Geographical Landscape and Mutational Mapping of SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Central India over Two Years
This study identified 104 different SARS-CoV-2 pango-lineages classified into 19 clades. We have also analysed the mutation profiles of the variants found in the study, which showed eight mutations of interest, including L18F, K417N, K417T, L452R, S477N, N501Y, P681H, P681R, and mutation of concern E484K in the spike glycoprotein region. The study was from November 2020 to December 2022, making this study the most comprehensive genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 conducted for the region.PMID:38527669 | DOI:10.1016/j.virusres.2024.199365 (Source: Virus Research)
Source: Virus Research - March 25, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Krishna Khairnar Siddharth Singh Tomar Source Type: research

Molecularly generated rat hepatitis E virus strains from human and rat show efficient replication in a human hepatoma cell line
Virus Res. 2024 Mar 22:199364. doi: 10.1016/j.virusres.2024.199364. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTThe hepatitis E virus (HEV) can cause acute and chronic hepatitis in humans. Whereas HEV genotypes 1-4 of species Paslahepevirus balayani are commonly found in humans, infections with ratHEV (species Rocahepevirus ratti) were previously considered to be restricted to rats. However, several cases of human ratHEV infections have been described recently. To investigate the zoonotic potential of this virus, a genomic clone was constructed here based on sequence data of ratHEV strain pt2, originally identified in a human patient wi...
Source: Virus Research - March 24, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Jessica Panajotov Alexander Falkenhagen Ashish K Gadicherla Reimar Johne Source Type: research

Molecularly generated rat hepatitis E virus strains from human and rat show efficient replication in a human hepatoma cell line
Virus Res. 2024 Mar 22:199364. doi: 10.1016/j.virusres.2024.199364. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTThe hepatitis E virus (HEV) can cause acute and chronic hepatitis in humans. Whereas HEV genotypes 1-4 of species Paslahepevirus balayani are commonly found in humans, infections with ratHEV (species Rocahepevirus ratti) were previously considered to be restricted to rats. However, several cases of human ratHEV infections have been described recently. To investigate the zoonotic potential of this virus, a genomic clone was constructed here based on sequence data of ratHEV strain pt2, originally identified in a human patient wi...
Source: Virus Research - March 24, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Jessica Panajotov Alexander Falkenhagen Ashish K Gadicherla Reimar Johne Source Type: research

Discovery of a Potent Inhibitor, D-132, Targeting AsfvPolX, via Protein-DNA Complex-Guided Pharmacophore Screening and in vitro Molecular Characterizations
In this study, a comprehensive approach involving pharmacophore-based inhibitor screening, coupled with biochemical and biophysical analyses, were implemented to identify, characterize, and validate potential inhibitors targeting AsfvPolX. The constructed pharmacophore model, Phar-PolX-S, demonstrated efficacy in identifying a potent inhibitor, D-132 (IC50 = 2.8 ± 0.2 µM), disrupting the formation of the AsfvPolX-DNA complex. Notably, D-132 exhibited strong binding to AsfvPolX (KD = 6.9 ± 2.2 µM) through a slow-on-fast-off binding mechanism. Employing molecular modeling, it was elucidated that D-132 predominantly binds...
Source: Virus Research - March 23, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Yi-Chen Wu Hui-Xiang Lai Ji-Min Li Kit-Man Fung Tien-Sheng Tseng Source Type: research

Discovery of a Potent Inhibitor, D-132, Targeting AsfvPolX, via Protein-DNA Complex-Guided Pharmacophore Screening and in vitro Molecular Characterizations
In this study, a comprehensive approach involving pharmacophore-based inhibitor screening, coupled with biochemical and biophysical analyses, were implemented to identify, characterize, and validate potential inhibitors targeting AsfvPolX. The constructed pharmacophore model, Phar-PolX-S, demonstrated efficacy in identifying a potent inhibitor, D-132 (IC50 = 2.8 ± 0.2 µM), disrupting the formation of the AsfvPolX-DNA complex. Notably, D-132 exhibited strong binding to AsfvPolX (KD = 6.9 ± 2.2 µM) through a slow-on-fast-off binding mechanism. Employing molecular modeling, it was elucidated that D-132 predominantly binds...
Source: Virus Research - March 23, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Yi-Chen Wu Hui-Xiang Lai Ji-Min Li Kit-Man Fung Tien-Sheng Tseng Source Type: research

Can inflammatory plasma proteins predict Long COVID or Fatigue severity after SARS-CoV-2 infection?
CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that certain immune response plasma proteins might play an important role in the pathophysiology of Long COVID and severity of fatigue after SARS-CoV-2 infection.PMID:38508399 | DOI:10.1016/j.virusres.2024.199363 (Source: Virus Research)
Source: Virus Research - March 20, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Timo Schmitz Dennis Freuer Yvonne Go ßlau Tobias Dominik Warm Alexander Hyhlik-D ürr Jakob Linseisen Christa Meisinger Inge Kirchberger Source Type: research

Genetic Loci Regulate Sarbecovirus Pathogenesis: A Comparison across Mice and Humans
Virus Res. 2024 Mar 18:199357. doi: 10.1016/j.virusres.2024.199357. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTCoronavirus (CoV) cause considerable morbidity and mortality in humans and other mammals, as evidenced by the emergence of Severe Acute Respiratory CoV (SARS-CoV) in 2003, Middle East Respiratory CoV (MERS-CoV) in 2012, and SARS-CoV-2 in 2019. Although poorly characterized, natural genetic variation in human and other mammals modulate virus pathogenesis, as reflected by the spectrum of clinical outcomes ranging from asymptomatic infections to lethal disease. Using multiple human epidemic and zoonotic Sarbecoviruses, coupled wi...
Source: Virus Research - March 20, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Alexandra Sch äfer Lisa E Gralinski Sarah R Leist Brea K Hampton Michael A Mooney Kara L Jensen Rachel L Graham Sudhakar Agnihothram Sophia Jeng Steven Chamberlin Timothy A Bell D Trevor Scobey Colton L Linnertz Laura A VanBlargan Larissa B Thackray Pabl Source Type: research

An evolutionary theory on virus mutation in COVID-19
Virus Res. 2024 Mar 21;344:199358. doi: 10.1016/j.virusres.2024.199358. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTWith the rapid evolution of SARS-CoV-2, the emergence of new strains is an intriguing question. This paper presents an evolutionary theory to analyze the mutations of the virus and identify the conditions that lead to the generation of new strains. We represent the virus variants using a 4-letter sequence based on amino acid mutations on the spike protein and employ an n-distance algorithm to derive a variant phylogenetic tree. We show that the theoretically-derived tree aligns with experimental data on virus evolution. Ad...
Source: Virus Research - March 20, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Liaofu Luo Jun Lv Source Type: research

Revisiting a pollen-transmitted ilarvirus previously associated with angular mosaic of grapevine
We report the characterization of a novel tri-segmented RNA virus infecting Mercurialis annua, a common crop weed and model species in plant science. The virus, named "Mercurialis latent virus" (MeLaV) was first identified in a mixed infection with the recently described Mercurialis orthotospovirus 1 (MerV1) on symptomatic plants grown in glasshouses in Lausanne (Switzerland). Both viruses were found to be transmitted by Thrips tabaci, which presumably help the inoculation of infected pollen in the case of MeLaV. Complete genome sequencing of the latter revealed a typical ilarviral architecture and close phylogenetic relat...
Source: Virus Research - March 20, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Mathieu Mahillon Justine Brodard Ruben Schoen Marleen Botermans Nathalie Dubuis Rapha ël Groux John R Pannell Arnaud G Blouin Olivier Schumpp Source Type: research

Can inflammatory plasma proteins predict Long COVID or Fatigue severity after SARS-CoV-2 infection?
CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that certain immune response plasma proteins might play an important role in the pathophysiology of Long COVID and severity of fatigue after SARS-CoV-2 infection.PMID:38508399 | DOI:10.1016/j.virusres.2024.199363 (Source: Virus Research)
Source: Virus Research - March 20, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Timo Schmitz Dennis Freuer Yvonne Go ßlau Tobias Dominik Warm Alexander Hyhlik-D ürr Jakob Linseisen Christa Meisinger Inge Kirchberger Source Type: research

Genetic Loci Regulate Sarbecovirus Pathogenesis: A Comparison across Mice and Humans
Virus Res. 2024 Mar 18:199357. doi: 10.1016/j.virusres.2024.199357. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTCoronavirus (CoV) cause considerable morbidity and mortality in humans and other mammals, as evidenced by the emergence of Severe Acute Respiratory CoV (SARS-CoV) in 2003, Middle East Respiratory CoV (MERS-CoV) in 2012, and SARS-CoV-2 in 2019. Although poorly characterized, natural genetic variation in human and other mammals modulate virus pathogenesis, as reflected by the spectrum of clinical outcomes ranging from asymptomatic infections to lethal disease. Using multiple human epidemic and zoonotic Sarbecoviruses, coupled wi...
Source: Virus Research - March 20, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Alexandra Sch äfer Lisa E Gralinski Sarah R Leist Brea K Hampton Michael A Mooney Kara L Jensen Rachel L Graham Sudhakar Agnihothram Sophia Jeng Steven Chamberlin Timothy A Bell D Trevor Scobey Colton L Linnertz Laura A VanBlargan Larissa B Thackray Pabl Source Type: research

An evolutionary theory on virus mutation in COVID-19
Virus Res. 2024 Mar 18:199358. doi: 10.1016/j.virusres.2024.199358. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTWith the rapid evolution of SARS-CoV-2, the emergence of new strains is an intriguing question. This paper presents an evolutionary theory to analyze the mutations of the virus and identify the conditions that lead to the generation of new strains. We represent the virus variants using a 4-letter sequence based on amino acid mutations on the spike protein and employ an n-distance algorithm to derive a variant phylogenetic tree. We show that the theoretically-derived tree aligns with experimental data on virus evolution. Additi...
Source: Virus Research - March 20, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Liaofu Luo Jun Lv Source Type: research

Revisiting a pollen-transmitted ilarvirus previously associated with angular mosaic of grapevine
We report the characterization of a novel tri-segmented RNA virus infecting Mercurialis annua, a common crop weed and model species in plant science. The virus, named "Mercurialis latent virus" (MeLaV) was first identified in a mixed infection with the recently described Mercurialis orthotospovirus 1 (MerV1) on symptomatic plants grown in glasshouses in Lausanne (Switzerland). Both viruses were found to be transmitted by Thrips tabaci, which presumably help the inoculation of infected pollen in the case of MeLaV. Complete genome sequencing of the latter revealed a typical ilarviral architecture and close phylogenetic relat...
Source: Virus Research - March 20, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Mathieu Mahillon Justine Brodard Ruben Schoen Marleen Botermans Nathalie Dubuis Rapha ël Groux John R Pannell Arnaud G Blouin Olivier Schumpp Source Type: research

Can inflammatory plasma proteins predict Long COVID or Fatigue severity after SARS-CoV-2 infection?
CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that certain immune response plasma proteins might play an important role in the pathophysiology of Long COVID and severity of fatigue after SARS-CoV-2 infection.PMID:38508399 | DOI:10.1016/j.virusres.2024.199363 (Source: Virus Research)
Source: Virus Research - March 20, 2024 Category: Virology Authors: Timo Schmitz Dennis Freuer Yvonne Go ßlau Tobias Dominik Warm Alexander Hyhlik-D ürr Jakob Linseisen Christa Meisinger Inge Kirchberger Source Type: research