Antibodies for Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus Protect Embryoid Bodies from Chikungunya Virus
Department of Biology, Baylor University, Waco, TX 76798, USA
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Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Viruses 2020, 12(3), 262; https://doi.org/10.3390/v12030262
Received: 5 February 2020
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Revised: 25 February 2020
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Accepted: 26 February 2020
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Published: 27 February 2020
(This article belongs to the Section Animal Viruses)
Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is an alphavirus that causes febrile illness punctuated by severe polyarthralgia. After the emergence of CHIKV in the Western Hemisphere, multiple reports of congenital infections were published that documented neurological complications, cardiac defects, respiratory distress, and miscarriage. The Western Hemisphere is endemic to several alphaviruses, and whether antigenic cross-reactivity can impact the course of infection has not been explored. Recent advances in biomedical engineering have produced cell co-culture models that replicate the cellular interface at the maternal fetal axis. We employed a trans-well assay to determine if cross-reactive antibodies affected the movement and replication of CHIKV across placental cells and into an embryoid body. The data showed that antibodies to Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus significantly reduced CHIKV viral load in embryoid bodies. The data highlighted the fact that viral pathogenesis can be cell-specific and that exploiting antigenic cross-reactivity could be an avenue for reducing the impact of congenital CHIKV infections.
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MDPI and ACS Style
Schultz, E.M.; Jones, T.J.; Barr, K.L. Antibodies for Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus Protect Embryoid Bodies from Chikungunya Virus. Viruses 2020, 12, 262. https://doi.org/10.3390/v12030262
AMA Style
Schultz EM, Jones TJ, Barr KL. Antibodies for Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus Protect Embryoid Bodies from Chikungunya Virus. Viruses. 2020; 12(3):262. https://doi.org/10.3390/v12030262
Chicago/Turabian StyleSchultz, Emily M., TyAnthony J. Jones, and Kelli L. Barr. 2020. "Antibodies for Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus Protect Embryoid Bodies from Chikungunya Virus" Viruses 12, no. 3: 262. https://doi.org/10.3390/v12030262
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