FIG 9.

Modifications of HVD in wVEEV (VEEV ZPC738) differentially affect viral pathogenesis in adult mice. (A) Schematic presentation of HVDs encoded by recombinant viral genomes. Open boxes indicate wt amino acid sequences; the black box indicates a mutated, artHVD-derived fragment; and the gray box indicates CHIKV HVD. VEEV repeats are shown in red, and the CHIKV-specific element of G3BP-binding repeats is shown in green. (B) Four- to five-week-old CD1 mice were infected s.c. with 1 × 10³ PFU of each indicated viral variant. Panels show the levels of viremia and brain titers (means with standard deviations where applicable), weight changes (means with standard deviations), survival, and titers of neutralizing Abs measured at day 18 p.i. (means with standard deviations) in surviving mice. Viral titers were assessed by a plaque assay on BHK-21 cells. The dashed lines indicate the limits of detection.