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At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

[Study of the structure-activity organization of the variola virus genome. II. Analysis of the nucleotide sequence of the HindIII region (C,E,R,Q,K and H)-DNA fragments of the India-1967 strain].

Sequencing of variola virus (VAR) genome region of 43069 bp was carried out. This area contains 42 potential genes. Computer analysis of proteins coding for these viral genes was done. We compared VAR proteins with the those of vaccinia virus. The region studied is conservative for orthopoxviruses.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1972

Assay of neutralizing antibody against variola virus by the degree of focus reduction on HeLa cell cultures and its application to revaccination with smallpox vaccines of various potencies.

A method for assaying neutralizing antibody against variola virus was established by focus counting on HeLa cell cultures. The ND(50) titre, i.e., the serum dilution endpoint to give a 50% reduction in the number of foci, was determined with excellent reproducibility.Groups of students 19-20 years of age were revaccinated by the multiple pressure method with serial 10-fold dilutions of a smallpox vaccine and their neutralizing antibody response was assayed by the focus counting assay system and was related to the local skin reactions on the seventh day after inoculation and to the potency of the vaccine administered. There was a significant rise in the antibody level even after inoculation with a vaccine whose potency was as low as 1.3 x 10(5) pock-forming units/ml. In general, the rise in the log antibody level was proportional to the diameter of the reddening, but a significant rise was found among individuals who had no detectable skin reaction. The skin reaction was greater among individuals with a lower initial antibody level when the vaccine administered had a potency lower than 1.3 x 10(6) pock-forming units/ml.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Detection and identification of Variola virus in fixed human tissue after prolonged archival storage.

Smallpox disease has been eradicated from the human population since 1979, but is again a concern because of its potential use as an agent of bioterrorism or biowarfare. World Health Organization-sanctioned repositories of infectious Variola virus are known to occur in both Russia and the United States, but many believe other undeclared and unregulated sources of the virus could exist. Thus, validation of improved methods for definitive identification of smallpox virus in diagnostic specimens is urgently needed. In this paper, we describe the discovery of suspected Variola infected human tissue, fixed and preserved for decades in largely unknown solutions, and the use of routine histology, electron microscopy, and ultimately DNA extraction and fluorogenic 5' nuclease (TaqMan) assays for its identification and confirmation.

Archives↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Study of the structure-function organization of the variola virus genome. IV. Sequencing and analysis of the nucleotide sequence of the right terminus of the India-1967 strain genome].

Sequencing and computer analysis of the variola major virus strain India-1967 (VAR-IND) genome segment (53,018 bp) from the right terminal region have been carried out. Fifty nine potential open reading frames (ORFs) of over 60 amino acid residues have been identified. Structure-function organization of VAR-IND DNA segment under study was compared with the previously reported sequences from the analogous genomic regions of vaccinia virus strains Copenhagen (VAC-COP) and Western Reserve (VAC-WR) and variola virus strain Harvey (VAR-HAR). Multiple distinctions in the genetic map of VAR-IND from VAC-COP and VAC-WR have been revealed along with the high similarity to the corresponding VAR-HAR segment. Possible functions of the predicted viral proteins and the effect of their differences on the features of orthopoxviruses are discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2006

Variola virus IL-18 binding protein interacts with three human IL-18 residues that are part of a binding site for human IL-18 receptor alpha subunit.

Interleukin-18 (IL-18) plays an important role in host defense against microbial pathogens. Many poxviruses encode homologous IL-18 binding proteins (IL-18BP) that neutralize IL-18 activity. Here, we examined whether IL-18BP neutralizes IL-18 activity by binding to the same region of IL-18 where IL-18 receptor (IL-18R) binds. We introduced alanine substitutions to known receptor binding sites of human IL-18 and found that only the substitution of Leu5 reduced the binding affinity of IL-18 with IL-18BP of variola virus (varvIL-18BP) by more than 4-fold. The substitutions of Lys53 and Ser55, which were not previously known to be part of the receptor binding site but that are spatially adjacent to Leu5, reduced the binding affinity to varvIL-18BP by approximately 100- and 7-fold, respectively. These two substitutions also reduced the binding affinity with human IL-18R alpha subunit (hIL-18Ralpha) by 4- and 2-fold, respectively. Altogether, our data show that varvIL-18BP prevents IL-18 from binding to IL-18R by interacting with three residues that are part of the binding site for hIL-18Ralpha.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Terminal region sequence variations in variola virus DNA.

Genome DNA terminal region sequences were determined for a Brazilian alastrim variola minor virus strain Garcia-1966 that was associated with an 0.8% case-fatality rate and African smallpox strains Congo-1970 and Somalia-1977 associated with variola major (9.6%) and minor (0.4%) mortality rates, respectively. A base sequence identity of > or = 98.8% was determined after aligning 30 kb of the left- or right-end region sequences with cognate sequences previously determined for Asian variola major strains India-1967 (31% death rate) and Bangladesh-1975 (18.5% death rate). The deduced amino acid sequences of putative proteins of > or = 65 amino acids also showed relatively high identity, although the Asian and African viruses were clearly more related to each other than to alastrim virus. Alastrim virus contained only 10 of 70 proteins that were 100% identical to homologs in Asian strains, and 7 alastrim-specific proteins were noted.

Africa↗
PubMed1961

Air sampling to recover variola virus in the environment of a smallpox hospital.

The view is widely held that variola is highly infectious, and it was therefore thought of interest to obtain precise information on the amount of virus disseminated in the air by smallpox patients at various stages of their illness. To this end, measured samples of air in and around the smallpox wards of the Infectious Diseases Hospital, Madras, were tested for the presence of variola virus. Surprisingly, virus was recovered on one occasion only by the air sampling device used. All other tests were negative although large volumes of air were sampled in close proximity to patients at various stages of the disease. The authors consider that further observations should be made with more sensitive air sampling methods.

Air Pollution↗
PubMed1995

Comparison of the genome DNA sequences of Bangladesh-1975 and India-1967 variola viruses.

The nucleotide sequences of genome DNAs and the deduced amino acid sequences of proteins from potential open reading frames (ORFs) of variola smallpox viruses from outbreaks in India in 1967 and in Bangladesh in 1975 have been compared and the analyses of the sequences are updated. Alignment of the DNAs revealed 99.3% base sequence identity. Of the 200 potential encoded proteins of each virus, 122 were identical, 42 showed substitution of a single amino acid, 11 showed two residues changes, and the remainder were more diverged. The variant proteins were encoded mainly in the near-terminal regions of each genome. The most conserved region between the variola DNAs included ORFs A33L to A49R, which is a relatively poorly conserved region compared with vaccinia virus.

Bangladesh↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Structure-activity organization of the variola virus genome. III. Sequencing and analysis of the nucleotide sequence of the conserved region of HindIII-F, -N-, and -A-fragments of the India 1967 strain genome].

Computer analysis of variola major virus (VAR) genomic fragment bounded by open reading frames (ORFs) D1R and A33L which is 47,961 bp long revealed 46 potential ORFs. The VAR proteins were compared with the analogous proteins of vaccinia virus strain Copenhagen. The subunits of DNA-dependent RNA polymerase, as well as the transcription factors, mRNA capping enzymes, and proteins necessary for the virion morphogenesis proved to be highly conservative within orthopoxviruses. The most pronounced differences between the VAR genome fragment under study and the corresponding vaccinia virus fragment were revealed in the vicinity of the gene encoding the A-type inclusion body protein. The possible functions of the analyzed viral proteins are discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗