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Journal of Virology, August 2009, p. 7612-7618, Vol. 83, No. 15
0022-538X/09/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JVI.02080-08
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Viruses in the Anopheles A, Anopheles B, and Tete Serogroups in the Orthobunyavirus Genus (Family Bunyaviridae) Do Not Encode an NSs Protein{triangledown}

Maizan Mohamed,{dagger} Angela McLees, and Richard M. Elliott*

Centre for Biomolecular Sciences, University of St. Andrews, North Haugh, St. Andrews, Fife KY16 9ST, Scotland, United Kingdom

Received 3 October 2008/ Accepted 7 May 2009

Viruses in the genus Orthobunyavirus, family Bunyaviridae, have a genome comprising three segments (called L, M, and S) of negative-sense RNA. Serological studies have classified the >170 named virus isolates into 18 serogroups, with a few additional as yet ungrouped viruses. Until now, molecular studies and full-length S-segment nucleotide sequences were available for representatives of eight serogroups; in all cases, the S segment encodes two proteins, N (nucleocapsid) and NSs (nonstructural), in overlapping open reading frames (ORFs) that are translated from the same mRNA. The NSs proteins of Bunyamwera virus (BUNV) and California serogroup viruses have been shown to play a role in inhibiting host cell mRNA and protein synthesis, thereby preventing induction of interferon (IFN). We have determined full-length sequences of the S segments of representative viruses in the Anopheles A, Anopheles B, and Tete serogroups, and we report here that these viruses do not show evidence of having an NSs ORF. In addition, these viruses have rather longer N proteins than those in the other serogroups. Most of the naturally occurring viruses that lack the NSs protein behaved like a recombinant BUNV with the NSs gene deleted in that they failed to prevent induction of IFN-β mRNA. However, Tacaiuma virus (TCMV) in the Anopheles A serogroup inhibited IFN induction in a manner similar to that of wild-type BUNV, suggesting that TCMV has evolved an alternative mechanism, not involving a typical NSs protein, to antagonize the host innate immune response.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Centre for Biomolecular Sciences, University of St Andrews, North Haugh, St. Andrews, Fife KY16 9ST, Scotland, United Kingdom. Phone: 44 1334 463396. Fax: 44 1334 462595. E-mail: rme1{at}st-andrews.ac.uk

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 13 May 2009.

{dagger} Present address: Veterinary Research Institute, 59 Sultan Azlan Shah Road, 31340 Ipoh, Perak, West Malaysia.

Journal of Virology, August 2009, p. 7612-7618, Vol. 83, No. 15
0022-538X/09/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JVI.02080-08
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.





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