Multigenic Relation to the Attenuation of Rabies Virus

Abstract

Rabies virus Nishigahara strain causes lethal infection in adult mice after intracerebral inoculation. On the other hand, the RC-HL strain, derived from the Nishigahara strain, does not cause lethal infection in adult mice. We previously demonstrated that a chimeric virus, R(G), with the open reading frame of the G gene (G-ORF) from the Nishigahara strain in the background of the RC-HL genome, is virulent. Reversely, in order to demonstrate that the G gene of the RC-HL strain is related to the attenuated phenotype, we established a reverse genetics system of the Nishigahara strain and generated a chimeric virus, Ni(G), with the G-ORF from RC-HL in the background of the Nishigahara genome. Contrary to our prediction, Ni(G) killed adult mice after intracerebral inoculation with neuropathic symptoms like those of Nishigahara strain infection. Therefore, the G-ORF of the RC-HL strain is not the sole determinant of the attenuated phenotype. In additional investigation, we examined other genes, including N, P, M and L genes, and generated chimeric viruses exhaustively. We found that chimeric viruses with a single gene from the RC-HL were not attenuated and that chimeric viruses with the G-ORF and at least one other ORF from the RC-HL were attenuated. In conclusion, attenuation from the Nishigahara to RC-HL strain is multigenic.