Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 1100 South Grand Boulevard, St. Louis, MO 63104, USA
Leonardo Camilo de Oliveira
Grupo de Transdução de Sinal do Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Avenida Antônio Carlos 6627, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
Elliot J. Lefkowitz
Department of Microbiology, BBRB 276/11, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
Robert Curtis Hendrickson
Department of Microbiology, BBRB 276/11, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
Cláudio A. Bonjardim
Grupo de Transdução de Sinal do Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Avenida Antônio Carlos 6627, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
William S. M. Wold
Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 1100 South Grand Boulevard, St. Louis, MO 63104, USA
Hollyce Hartzler
Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 1100 South Grand Boulevard, St. Louis, MO 63104, USA
Ryan Crump
Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 1100 South Grand Boulevard, St. Louis, MO 63104, USA
Robert Mark Buller
Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 1100 South Grand Boulevard, St. Louis, MO 63104, USA
Taterapox virus (TATV) is phylogenetically the closest related virus to variola—the etiological agent of smallpox. Despite the similarity, few studies have evaluated the virus. In vivo, TATV can infect several animals but produces an inapparent infection in wild-type mice; however, TATV does cause morbidity and mortality in some immunocompromised strains. We employed in vitro techniques to compare TATV to ectromelia (ECTV) and vaccinia (VACV) viruses. Both ECTV and TATV replicate efficiently in primate cell lines but TATV replicates poorly in murine cells lines. Furthermore, TATV induces cytopathic effects, but to a lesser extent than ECTV, and changes cytoskeletal networks differently than both ECTV and VACV. Bioinformatic studies revealed differences in several immunomodulator open reading frames that could contribute to the reduced virulence of TATV, which were supported by in vitro cytokine assays.
