The morphology, morphogenesis, and serological characterization of the rhabdoviruses Navarro, Kwatta, and Mossuril

Identification of very small open reading frames in the genomes of Holmes Jungle virus, Ord River virus, and Wongabel virus of the genus Hapavirus, family Rhabdoviridae

Viruses of the family Rhabdoviridae infect a broad range of hosts from a variety of ecological and geographical niches, including vertebrates, arthropods, and plants. The arthropod-transmitted members of this family display considerable genetic diversity and remarkable genomic flexibility that enable coding for various accessory proteins in different locations of the genome. Here, we describe the genome of Holmes Jungle virus, isolated from Culex annulirostris mosquitoes collected in northern Australia, and make detailed comparisons with the closely related Ord River and Wongabel viruses, with a focus on identifying very small open reading frames (smORFs) in their genomes. This is the first systematic prediction of smORFs in rhabdoviruses, emphasising the intricacy of the rhabdovirus genome and the knowledge gaps. We speculate that these smORFs may be of importance to the life cycle of the virus in the arthropod vector.

Reproduction of lyssaviruses: ultrastructural composition of lyssavirus and functional aspects of pathogenesis

Lyssaviruses are considerably adapted to neural tissue, although they can also be replicated in muscle and glandular cells. In neural tissue their reproduction takes place almost exclusively in neurons, and in the course of their dissemination they make use of the structural peculiarities of this highly differentiated cell type. The replication takes place completely in the cytoplasm, although rhabdovirus leader RNA enters the nucleus and by blocking host DNA and RNA synthesis promotes viral synthetic processes. In the cytoplasm the two phases of viral reproduction, the synthesis of nucleocapsids and the formation of the envelope together with the assembly of the virion, are separate in time and space. By this separation the transmission of infection by the incomplete form of the virus, i.e., by the synaptic transfer of ribonucleoprotein-transcriptase complexes is also possible. The formation of viral envelope and assembly of full viruses on the cisternal system of the host neurons is a highly complex process, as presented here in a three-dimensional analysis. Due to the high complexity of virus assembly, defects in construction are frequent, accounting for the high yield of defective interfering particles in the course of the reproduction of lyssaviruses.

Elevated levels of collagenase and prostaglandin E2 from synovium associated with erosion of cartilage and bone in a patient with chronic Lyme arthritis

A patient with chronic Lyme arthritis and roentgenographic evidence of bony erosion underwent a synovectomy; proliferative synovium (pannus), containing aggregates of small lymphocytes, was found adherent to eroded cartilage and bone. During 8 days in tissue culture, the synovial cells produced large amounts of collagenase and prostaglandin E2, but only low levels of both neutral and acid proteinases. Sixty-seven percent of the lymphocytes from the synovium were T cells; 19% were B cells. Attempts to identify agent/antigen in the synovial cells were unsuccessful. Thus, the synovium of this patient, whose disease appears to be tick-transmitted, resembles that of rheumatoid arthritis. This finding further supports the hypothesis that many possible agents, including infectious ones, trigger a common pathway in synovium, which leads to joint destruction.