Abstract
Lassa fever (LF), caused by Lassa virus (LASV), is one of the most dangerous diseases to public health. Homologous recombination (HR) is a basic genetic power driving biological evolution. However, as a negative-stranded RNA virus, it is unknown whether HR occurs between LASVs and its influence on the outbreak of LF. In this study, after analyzing 575 S and 433 L segments of LASV collected in Africa, we found that LASV can achieve HR in both of its segments. Interestingly, although the length of S segment is less than half of the L segment, the proportion of LASVs with S recombinants is significantly higher than that with L recombinants. These results suggest that HR may be a feature of LASV, which can be set by natural selection to produce beneficial or eliminate harmful mutations for the virus, so it plays a role in LASV evolution during the outbreak of LF.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
