BGPT: Virology

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Virology

Evidence layer · Updated November 08, 2026

🦠 H5N1 2.3.4.4b & Host Adaptation

Constellation-aware H5N1 surveillance assay — The strongest measurable HA-binding signal (bovine Ohio KD 18.55 nM) comes from an isolate retaining avian-like PB2 E627, showing receptor affinity and polymerase adaptation are decoupled dimensions of host range.
PB2 627K in non-zoonotic duck H7N9 — One mutation increased mammalian pathogenicity in mice, but 591K/701N showed no effect, suggesting PB2 markers are lineage-dependent epistatic readouts rather than universal switches.
RfxCas13d avian influenza antiviral — Positive-sense crRNAs gave ~4.39-log TCID50 reduction against H5N1 2.3.4.4b in chicken cells, but the strand-orientation claim lacks key minus-controls and collateral-effects testing.
Swine-like H1N2 from a wild duck (US) — A swine triple-reassortant found in migratory waterfowl implies the swine–human–avian mixing-vessel boundary is bidirectional, though based on a single isolate.

🧬 HIV & Lentiviruses

Gene editing for functional HIV cure (review) — Natural controllers achieve lifelong control with wild-type CCR5, so the dominant editing target captures only a minority of control biology; the review adds no new data.
HIV coreceptor complexity in entry — CCR5's cholesterol-dependent membrane mobility, not just its presence, appears to be the kinetic bottleneck for HIV fusion; review evidence, no primary data.
CEM-GFP reporter cell line — Stable LTR-GFP T-cell line enabled one-round HIV infectivity titration via a saquinavir freeze trick, but is confined to X4-tropic strains and immortalized cells.
SIV adaptation to alveolar macrophages — Macrophyte restriction of SIVmac239 reflects a quantitative CD4-density barrier (>99% cells below detection), with Env variants crossing it; evidence from only two donor animals.
STRL33 coreceptor species restriction — A single N-terminal Ser→Arg substitution invalidates rhesus STRL33 as a coreceptor, correcting overestimates of alternative-coreceptor use in macaque AIDS models.

🫁 Coronaviruses

SARS-CoV-2 variant entry checkpoints (single-particle tracking) — An RBD aptamer suppressed G614 internalization but enhanced BA.5 uptake in TMPRSS2-negative cells, hinting entry-blocking ligands could paradoxically aid Omicron-class entry; preprint with VLP surrogates.
Coronavirus receptor glycosylation (hAPN/CD13) — Adding one N-glycan site to human APN erased HCoV-229E receptor function, showing cross-species jumps can hinge on single glycosylation-site changes.
Canine respiratory coronavirus in China — An HE-lectin mutation (L161F) mirrors one fixed during the BCoV→HCoV-OC43 zoonotic jump; genomic findings are solid but mechanistic claims rely on docking only.

🔮 Herpesviruses

VZV luciferase reporters for in vivo imaging — Only duplicated ORF63/70 loci tolerated stable reporter insertion, implying VZV's repeat architecture is both recombination risk and engineering solution.
HSV-1 ICP27/UL47 and PABP redistribution — HSV-1 decouples PABP from translation initiation, exploiting its nuclear roles; contested by later ICP27-independent relocalization findings.
Cholesterol efflux blocks herpesvirus egress — 22-hydroxycholesterol impaired nuclear egress across alpha- and gammaherpesviruses in cell lines, but may paradoxically boost reactivation while blocking packaging; preprint.
PRV ROS–mitophagy immune evasion — Pseudorabies virus triggers Ca²⁺ overload → ROS → AMPK-ULK1 mitophagy that degrades MAVS; evidence rests on pharmacological inhibitors in one cell line.
HSV-1 treatment landscape (2015 review) — Progress has come from shifted targets (host pathways, latency elements, vaccines) rather than better nucleoside analogues, consistent with resistance data.

🚪 Viral Entry, Receptors & Tropism

DAF–Coxsackievirus B3 cryoEM complex — DAF binds across the virion surface outside the canyon, occupying ~60 of 60 sites and blocking CAR; entry-model assumptions remain hypothesis-level at 14 Å resolution.
Dengue virus entry steps — Attachment and penetration were separated kinetically; some neutralizing antibodies block only attachment, anticipating separable E-domain antibody design; single strain, few MAbs.
Papillomavirus entry kinetics — Authentic HPV-11/40 and CRPV stay capsid-neutralizable for 24–72 h after adsorption, implying most EM-visualized particles are dead ends; transcriptional readout only.
CCHFV entry via LDL-R and apoE — Virion-incorporated apolipoprotein E enhances CCHFV entry through LDL-R, confirmed with wild-type BSL-4 virus; species and producer-cell dependencies limit generalization.

🧩 Other Viruses & Platforms

Toscana virus NSs degrades PKR — PKR degradation is genetically separable from host-transcription shutoff among phleboviruses; no in vivo or neuronal model yet.
c-Abl1 kinase regulates Ebola egress — c-Abl1 phosphorylates VP40 Y13, and kinase inhibition cuts live virus replication up to ~4 logs in vitro only; patent conflicts disclosed.
Dengue NS5 pH-sensitive nucleolar targeting — NS5 accumulation in the nucleolus is reversible and extracellular-pH dependent, mapped to Leu-165/167/Val-168; mechanism unexplained, DENV-specific.
Ivermectin against porcine deltacoronavirus — Post-entry inhibition of viral RNA synthesis in vitro; the proposed polymerase mechanism lacks direct evidence and no EC50/CC50 values reported.
Borna disease virus vertical transmission (mouse) — First experimental placental crossing in mammals, but only 6 dams and 9 neonates; a day-10 PCR-positive/IHC-negative window flags detection-threshold caveats.
White spot syndrome virus miRNAs — First miRNA catalog for an invertebrate DNA virus (40 miRNAs, Drosha/Dicer1-dependent); target assignments remain mostly computational.
Canine parvovirus VP2 fitness mutations — VP2 substitutions alter replication in a backbone-dependent way, with qPCR/IF divergence suggesting egress-level effects; CRFK-cell data only.
Rotavirus VP4–VP7 epitope masking — A VP4 neutralizing epitope is expressed or masked depending on the co-assembled VP7, a caution for epitope typing on soluble antigen alone.
Hantaan virus polymerase TNTase activity — Bunyaviricetes L proteins add non-templated nucleotides at genome ends via the RdRp active site; class-wide conservation claimed from only three families.
SSV1 archaeal virion composition — The spindle-shaped archaeal virus carries glycosylated capsid proteins, a host chromatin protein, and selectively imported tetraether lipids; functions remain unresolved.

📈 Evolution, Taxonomy & Author Profiles

Rafael Sanjuán (author profile) — Quantitatively defined viral mutation rates and reframed virions as collective infectious units; laboratory evolution work sometimes rests on n = 3 replicate lines.
Robert P. de Vries (author profile) — Leading glycovirologist whose negative results (patient HA mutations abolishing binding) correct over-interpretation of minority variants; several works remain preprints.
Peter M. Howley (author profile) — E6-AP cloning and Brd4 tethering launched E3-ligase and episome-maintenance fields; some stoichiometry and overexpression limitations remain.
Phage Proteomic Tree — First genome-based phage taxonomy abandoned single markers for whole-proteome distance, prefiguring modern vConTACT/VirClust tools; validation partly circular.
Citrus chlorotic dwarf-associated virus — First geminivirus found in a woody perennial, detectable only via combined sRNA and total-DNA libraries; causality is association-level pending infectious-clone work.
Where does EBV persist (introspection) — Recent spatial data localize EBV reservoirs, but only older perturbation studies establish causal necessity; recency bias and serology skepticism are distinct pitfalls.
Orthohantavirus protease drug targets — Computational proposal targeting host SPP for glycoprotein maturation relies on an SPPL2A surrogate without experimental validation — a central transfer-assumption risk.

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Explore by Goal

Virology

🦠 H5N1 2.3.4.4b & Host Adaptation

🧬 HIV & Lentiviruses

🫁 Coronaviruses

🔮 Herpesviruses

🚪 Viral Entry, Receptors & Tropism

🧩 Other Viruses & Platforms

📈 Evolution, Taxonomy & Author Profiles

Stay current without chasing every paper.

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