TMEM106B-mediated SARS-CoV-2 infection allows for robust ACE2-independent infection in vitro but not in vivo.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is the primary entry receptor for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), but ACE2-independent entry has been observed in vitro for strains with the spike-E484D substitution. Here, we conduct a whole-genome CRISPR-Cas9 knockout screen using SARS-CoV-2 mouse adapted 1 (SARS-CoV-2), which carries spike-E484D, to identify the ACE2-independent entry mechanisms. SARS-CoV-2 infection in HEK293T cells relies on heparan sulfate and endocytic pathways, with TMEM106B, a transmembrane lysosomal protein, the most significant contributor.

The effects of iron deficient and high iron diets on SARS-CoV-2 lung infection and disease.

Introduction: The severity of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is often dictated by a range of comorbidities. A considerable literature suggests iron deficiency and iron overload may contribute to increased infection, inflammation and disease severity, although direct causal relationships have been difficult to establish.

Methods: Here we generate iron deficient and iron loaded C57BL/6 J mice by feeding standard low and high iron diets, with mice on a normal iron diet representing controls.

A chimeric vaccine derived from Australian genotype IV Japanese encephalitis virus protects mice from lethal challenge.

In 2022, a genotype IV (GIV) strain of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) caused an unprecedented and widespread outbreak of disease in pigs and humans in Australia. As no veterinary vaccines against JEV are approved in Australia and all current approved human and veterinary vaccines are derived from genotype (G) III JEV strains, we used the recently described insect-specific Binjari virus (BinJV) chimeric flavivirus vaccine technology to produce a JEV GIV vaccine candidate. Herein we describe the production of a chimeric virus displaying the structural prM and E proteins of a JEV GIV isolate obtained from a stillborn piglet (JEV) in the genomic backbone of BinJV (BinJ/JEVprME).

A getah virus-like-particle vaccine provides complete protection from viremia and arthritis in wild-type mice.

Getah virus (GETV) is an emerging mosquito-borne virus with economic impact on the livestock industry in East Asia. In this study, we successfully produced GETV virus-like particles (VLPs) in insect cells using the baculovirus expression vector system. We show that the GETV envelope glycoproteins were successfully expressed at the surface of the insect cell and were glycosylated.