Vesicular Stomatitis Virus

Vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) has been extensively studied as a prototype of the nonsegmented negative-strand RNA viruses. The relative safety of the virus combined with its abundant replication in a broad range of cultured cells have favored the use of VSV in research laboratories. Studies with VSV have led to understanding of fundamental host cell processes, molecular details of viral gene expression, and the pathogenesis of viral infection. The demonstration that purified virus particles contain a functional RNA-dependent RNA polymerase that synthesizes mRNA in vitro has led to major advances in our understanding of viral gene expression. The development of a robust reverse genetic system and, most recently, the determination of crystal structures of the N-RNA template, a portion of the P and M proteins, and the pre- and postfusion forms of the G protein, now permit the detailed structure-function analysis of much of the viral genome. In addition to serving as a prototype of nonsegmented negative-strand viruses, studies of VSV have also been used to illustrate fundamental principles in evolutionary biology and population genetics. Finally, VSV causes an economically important disease of livestock that is transmitted through insect vectors. Studies on the ecology and evolution of VSV in nature have revealed details of transmission and an unusually broad host range.