Here we present complete genome sequences, including a comparative analysis, of 103 isolates of foot-andmouth disease virus (FMDV) representing all seven serotypes and including the first complete sequences of the SAT1 and SAT3 genomes. The data reveal novel highly conserved genomic regions, indicating functional constraints for variability as well as novel viral genomic motifs with likely biological relevance. Previously undescribed invariant motifs were identified in the 5 and 3 untranslated regions (UTR), as was tolerance for insertions/deletions in the 5 UTR. Fifty-eight percent of the amino acids encoded by FMDV isolates are invariant, suggesting that these residues are critical for virus biology. Novel, conserved sequence motifs with likely functional significance were identified within proteins L pro , 1B, 1D, and 3C. An analysis of the complete FMDV genomes indicated phylogenetic incongruities between different genomic regions which were suggestive of interserotypic recombination. Additionally, a novel SAT virus lineage containing nonstructural proteinencoding regions distinct from other SAT and Euroasiatic lineages was identified. Insights into viral RNA sequence conservation and variability and genetic diversity in nature will likely impact our understanding of FMDV infections, host range, and transmission.

Bovine papular stomatitis virus (BPSV) and orf virus (ORFV), members of the genus

Here we present the complete genomic sequence of bovine herpesvirus 5 (BHV-5), an alphaherpesvirus responsible for fatal meningoencephalitis in cattle. The 138,390-bp genome encodes 70 putative proteins and resembles the ␣2 subgroup of herpesviruses in genomic organization and gene content. BHV-5 is very similar to BHV-1, the etiological agent of infectious bovine rhinotracheitis, as reflected by the high level of amino acid identity in their protein repertoires (average, 82%). The highest similarity to BHV-1 products (>95% amino acid identity) is found in proteins involved in viral DNA replication and processing (UL5, UL15, UL29, and UL39) and in virion proteins (UL14, UL19, UL48, and US6). Among the least conserved (<75%) are the homologues of immediate-early (IE) proteins BICP0, BICP4, and BICP22, the three proteins being longer in BHV-5 than in BHV-1. The structure of the BHV-5 latency-related (LR) region departs markedly from that of BHV-1 in both coding and transcriptional regulatory regions. Given the potential significance of IE genes and the LR region in virus-neuron interactions, it is likely these differences contribute to BHV-5 neuropathogenicity.

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is a large, intracytoplasmicallyreplicating DNA arbovirus and the sole member of the family Asfarviridae . It is the etiologic agent of a highly lethal hemorrhagic disease of domestic swine and therefore extensively studied to elucidate the structures, genes, and mechanisms affecting viral replication in the host, virus-host interactions, and viral virulence. Increasingly apparent is the complexity with which ASFV replicates and interacts with the host cell during infection. ASFV encodes novel genes

Zika virus (ZIKV), a mosquito-transmitted flavivirus responsible for sporadic outbreaks of mild and febrile illness in Africa and Asia, reemerged in the last decade causing serious human diseases, including microcephaly, congenital malformations, and Guillain-Barré syndrome. Although genomic and phylogenetic analyses suggest that genetic evolution may have led to the enhanced virulence of ZIKV, experimental evidence supporting the role of specific genetic changes in virulence is currently lacking. One sequence motif, VNDT, containing an N-linked glycosylation site in the envelope (E) protein, is polymorphic; it is absent in many of the African isolates but present in all isolates from the recent outbreaks. In the present study, we investigated the roles of this sequence motif and glycosylation of the E protein in the pathogenicity of ZIKV. We first constructed a stable full-length cDNA clone of ZIKV in a novel linear vector from which infectious virus was recovered. The recombinant ZIKV generated from the infectious clone, which contains the VNDT motif, is highly pathogenic and causes lethality in a mouse model. In contrast, recombinant viruses from which the VNDT motif is deleted or in which the N-linked glycosylation site is mutated by single-amino-acid substitution are highly attenuated and nonlethal. The mutant viruses replicate poorly in the brains of infected mice when inoculated subcutaneously but replicate well following intracranial inoculation. Our findings provide the first evidence that N-linked glycosylation of the E protein is an important determinant of ZIKV virulence and neuroinvasion.IMPORTANCE The recent emergence of Zika virus (ZIKV) in the Americas has caused major worldwide public health concern. The virus appears to have gained significant pathogenicity, causing serious human diseases, including microcephaly and Guillain-Barré syndrome. The factors responsible for the emergence of pathogenic ZIKV are not understood at this time, although genetic changes have been shown to facilitate virus transmission. All isolates from the recent outbreaks contain an N-linked glycosylation site within the viral envelope (E) protein, whereas many isolates of the African lineage virus lack this site. To elucidate the functional significance of glycosylation in ZIKV pathogenicity, recombinant ZIKVs from infectious clones with or without the glycan on the E protein were generated. ZIKVs lacking the glycan were highly attenuated for the ability to cause mortality in a mouse model and were severely compromised for neuroinvasion. Our studies suggest glycosylation of the E protein is an important factor contributing to ZIKV pathogenicity.

The genus Orthopoxvirus includes members of the family Poxviridae historically relevant to human health-variola virus (VARV), the etiologic agent of smallpox, and vaccinia virus (VACV), the vaccine virus used to eradicate smallpox (32). Other orthopoxviruses (OPVs), similar to VACV, are zoonotic and significant for human health, including monkeypox virus (MPXV) and cowpox virus (CPXV) (33). Still others, similar to VARV, remain restricted to specific, albeit nonhuman, hosts, including camelpox virus (CMLV) in camels and ectromelia virus (ECTV) in mice. Recent developments have heightened interest in OPV virulence and host range, including the threats of deliberate VARV reintroduction, virulence associated with preemptive smallpox vaccination and use of VACV-based recombinant vaccines, and the introduction of MPXV into the United States (16,28,69,83). Isolation of OPV from infected animals and humans during limited disease outbreaks or from animals in the wild suggests that additional OPVs circulating in nature could represent an emerging disease threat (24,25,27,32,46,49,50,90).Given their importance, OPVs have been extensively studied as models of poxviral molecular biology, genomics, genetics, and virus-host interaction (19,33,59). Research has revealed that OPVs contain approximately 170 to 230 genes, with those in central genomic regions generally involved in poxviral intracytoplasmic replication and those in terminal genomic regions involved or potentially involved in virus-host interactions, including manipulation of host immune or cellular apoptotic responses (4,19,59,60,82,87).Comparative analysis of completely sequenced OPV genomes, including most known OPV species and several strains of VARV, VACV and the closely related rabbitpox virus (RPXV), MPXV, CMLV, and CPXV has begun to reveal the degree of variability within the genus Orthopoxvirus, verifying that terminal genomic regions are the most variable and thus likely to contribute to the virulence and host range characteristics of different OPVs (2,9,21,22,36,39,51,52,54,58,78,80,81). The precise roles and contributions of many variable genes and gene complements in OPV virulence and host range, however, remain to be fully characterized. It is likely that complete genomic data from uncharacterized OPV isolates will aid in OPV gene identification and functional characterization, while also providing information regarding the pathogenic potential of the virus.

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myocarditis, affected individuals can develop dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) [4]. Approximately half of patients with DCM undergo heart transplantations due to the lack of effective chemotherapy. Enteroviruses are commonly suspected in DCM patients because the genomic material can be detected in up to 70% of patients, and serologically, virus-reactive neutralizing antibodies can be found in 50% of patients [2]. The question to be addressed is how virus infection can promote DCM. Auto immunity is one possible mechanism, as evidenced in patients with myocarditis/DCM by the presence of autoantibodies to various cardiac antigens, such as cardiac myosin heavy chain (Myhc)-α, adenine nucleotide translocator (ANT), β-adrenergic receptor-1, branched chain α-ketoacid dehydrogenase (BCKD), laminin, and muscarinic receptor; Myhc-α is a well-characterized antigen [5,6]. Based on cellular infiltrations, forms of myocarditis have been classified as lymphocytic, giant cell, and eosinophilic, and various infectious (viruses, bacteria, protozoa, helminthes) and noninfectious (drugs, metals, chemicals) agents