Figure 5.

Intracellular membrane rearrangements induced by poxviruses. Vaccinia virus replicates in cytoplasmic crescent-shaped vesicle-like structures, resembling mini-nuclei. An intact membrane is observed around the replication organelle during DNA replication but disappears at the initiation of viral assembly. Vimentin is recruited to the replication organelle, and it facilitates virus assembly. This assembly gives rise to infectious IMVs in a double-membrane cisterna derived from the smooth ER, which later acquire single lipid membranes from the ERGIC and are subsequently wrapped by the TGN to form an IEV. While most of the vaccinia exits host cells by cell lysis, a small proportion of the IEV polymerizes actin tails, and they are released extracellularly as an EEV (image created in Biorender).