Figure 2.

A simple diagrammatic representation of various steps in the EBOV life cycle. 1. Attachment—EBOV can interact with different host cell receptors, and none of the receptors is indispensable for attachment. In the Figure, DC-SIGN receptor is shown as an example. 2. Uptake—Uptake mainly occurs by micropinocytosis, as shown, though other methods such as clathrin-mediated endocytosis and caveolin-mediated endocytosis are also contemplated. 3. Entry—GP1 proteolysis inside endosome enables viral interaction with obligate host receptor cholesterol transporter Niemann-Pick C1 (NPC1; shown in red color). 4. Release—After membrane fusion, the viral genome is released in the host cell cytoplasm. 5. Transcription and Replication—Primary transcription occurs in the host cell cytoplasm followed by a translation. Antigenome is used as a template for synthesis of progeny genomes. 6. Transport—Various proteins are transported near the plasma membrane. 7. Assembly and Budding—VP40 plays a crucial role in assembly, virus-like particle (VLP) formation and budding.