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. 2023 Nov 15;228(Suppl 7):S536-S547.
doi: 10.1093/infdis/jiad136.

Fluorescent and Bioluminescent Reporter Mouse-Adapted Ebola Viruses Maintain Pathogenicity and Can Be Visualized in Vivo

Katherine A Davies  1 , Stephen R Welch  1 , Shilpi Jain  1 , Teresa E Sorvillo  1 , JoAnn D Coleman-McCray  1 , Joel M Montgomery  1 , Christina F Spiropoulou  1 , César Albariño  1 , Jessica R Spengler  1
Affiliations

Fluorescent and Bioluminescent Reporter Mouse-Adapted Ebola Viruses Maintain Pathogenicity and Can Be Visualized in Vivo

Katherine A Davies et al. J Infect Dis. .

Abstract

Ebola virus (EBOV) causes lethal disease in humans but not in mice. Here, we generated recombinant mouse-adapted (MA) EBOVs, including 1 based on the previously reported serially adapted strain (rMA-EBOV), along with single-reporter rMA-EBOVs expressing either fluorescent (ZsGreen1 [ZsG]) or bioluminescent (nano-luciferase [nLuc]) reporters, and dual-reporter rMA-EBOVs expressing both ZsG and nLuc. No detriment to viral growth in vitro was seen with inclusion of MA-associated mutations or reporter proteins. In CD-1 mice, infection with MA-EBOV, rMA-EBOV, and single-reporter rMA-EBOVs conferred 100% lethality; infection with dual-reporter rMA-EBOV resulted in 73% lethality. Bioluminescent signal from rMA-EBOV expressing nLuc was detected in vivo and ex vivo using the IVIS Spectrum CT. Fluorescent signal from rMA-EBOV expressing ZsG was detected in situ using handheld blue-light transillumination and ex vivo through epi-illumination with the IVIS Spectrum CT. These data support the use of reporter MA-EBOV for studies of Ebola virus in animal disease models.

Keywords: filovirus; in vivo imaging; mouse-adapted Ebola virus; reporter viruses; viral hemorrhagic fever.

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Conflict of interest statement

Potential conflicts of interest. No reported conflicts of interest. All authors have submitted the ICMJE Form for Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest. Conflicts that the editors consider relevant to the content of the manuscript have been disclosed.

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