The study, published December 7 in PLoS Pathogens, explains how the virus has increased its ability to infect and be transmitted by the Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus.

CHIKV is an emerging arbovirus associated with several recent large-scale epidemics of arthritic disease. The virus has formerly been known to be carried primarily by the mosquito Aedes aegypti. However, a recent epidemic in the Indian Ocean islands suggested that something else was carrying the virus, as Ae. aegypti are not found there. In fact the relative Asian tiger mosquito, Ae. albopictus, was present. This prompted the team, led by Dr. Stephen Higgs, to look further into the virus.

In an earlier study it had been found that the epidemics on islands in the Indian Ocean were associated with a strain of CHIKV with a mutation in the envelope protein gene (E1-A226V). Therefore, the researchers investigated the role of the E1-A226V mutation on the fitness of CHIKV in both types of mosquitoes. The team infected mosquitoes with two genetically-engineered clones of the virus, one with the mutation and the other without.

The team found the mutant virus out-competed the other virus with respect to transmission by the tiger mosquito. This proved that EI-A226V is directly responsible for CHIKV adaptation to the Asian tiger mosquito, explaining why the virus was found in an area which lacks the typical vector mosquito.

The Asian tiger mosquito is present in many countries. Both mosquito species are currently present in the U.S. and the Asian tiger mosquito is spreading in Europe. The findings suggest that, especially with the global climate warming, CHIKV could expand to new geographic locations.

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With the discovery of the CF gene in 1989, many scientists began searching for ways to repair the DNA or repair the faulty protein encoded by the DNA.

The new Journal of Biological Chemistry study shows that future research should look at other molecules not directly linked to CF but are involved in the disease process and its side effects, Berdiev said.

Also, the new pictures add to an ever-changing biophysical map of CF used to design future research.

The new pictures were done through collaboration between UAB's departments of Cell Biology, Physiology & Biophysics, High Resolution Imaging Facility and the Gregory Fleming James Cystic Fibrosis Research Center at UAB. Other collaborators are from Ohio State University, the University of Toronto, Ontario, the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute in Bethesda, Maryland and Lambert Instruments in the Netherlands.

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