Replication properties of a contemporary Zika virus from West Africa

• Published in: PLoS neglected tropical diseases Vol. 18; no. 7; p. e0012066
• Main Authors: Machmouchi, Dana, Courageot, Marie-Pierre, El-Kalamouni, Chaker, Kohl, Alain, Desprès, Philippe
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 05.07.2024; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: A549 Cells; Africa, Western - epidemiology; Animals; Biology and Life Sciences; Cell Line; Chlorocebus aethiops; Humans; Medicine and Health Sciences; Research and Analysis Methods; Vero Cells; Virus Replication; Virus research; Zika Virus - genetics; Zika Virus - physiology; Zika Virus Infection - virology; Africa, Western; Sub-Saharan Africa
• ISSN: 1935-2735; 1935-2727; 1935-2735
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0012066

Zika virus (ZIKV) has become a global health problem over the past decade due to the extension of the geographic distribution of the Asian/American genotype. Recent epidemics of Asian/American ZIKV have been associated with developmental disorders in humans. There is mounting evidence that African ZIKV may be associated with increased fetal pathogenicity necessitating to pay a greater attention towards currently circulating viral strains in sub-Saharan Africa. Here, we generated an infectious molecular clone GUINEA-18 of a recently transmitted human ZIKV isolate from West Africa, ZIKV-15555. The available infectious molecular clone MR766 MC of historical African ZIKV strain MR766-NIID was used for a molecular clone-based comparative study. Viral clones GUINEA-18 and MR766 MC were compared for their ability to replicate in VeroE6, A549 and HCM3 cell lines. There was a lower replication rate for GUINEA-18 associated with weaker cytotoxicity and reduced innate immune system activation compared with MR766 MC . Analysis of chimeric viruses between viral clones stressed the importance of NS1 to NS4B proteins, with a particular focus of NS4B on GUINEA-18 replicative properties. ZIKV has developed strategies to prevent cytoplasmic stress granule formation which occurs in response to virus infection. GUINEA-18 was greatly efficient in inhibiting stress granule assembly in A549 cells subjected to a physiological stressor, with NS1 to NS4B proteins also being critical in this process. The impact of these GUINEA-18 proteins on viral replicative abilities and host-cell responses to viral infection raises the question of the role of nonstructural proteins in the pathogenicity of currently circulating ZIKV in sub-Saharan Africa.