A novel Zika virus mouse model reveals strain specific differences in virus pathogenesis and host inflammatory immune responses (original) (raw)
Fig 1
Stat2 -/- mice support ZIKV infection and recapitulate ZIKV pathogenesis and disease.
Five to six week old female WT, Stat2 -/- and Ifnar1 -/- C57BL/6 mice (n = 5) were injected with 1,000 PFU of ZIKV strain MR766 by the subcutaneous route in the footpad. (A) Mice were weighed daily and weights are expressed as percentage of body weight prior to infection. Results shown are the mean ± standard error of the mean (SEM). Data are censored at 6 days after infection, as mice in the Stat2 -/- group succumbed to infection. (B) In a parallel set of mice (n = 5) lethality was monitored for 14 days. (C) Clinical signs of ZIKV infection were monitored every day in the group of animals used for survival analysis (n = 5). Clinical signs are abbreviated as HB (hunched back, reduced motility), HL1 (one hind limb paralysis), HL2 (both hind limbs paralyzed), FL (one or both front limbs paralyzed), Endpoint (loss of 25% of initial body weight or dead). The percentage of each group of mice displaying the indicated signs is shown. (D) From the group of mice used to monitor body weight loss (n = 5, day 6 post infection), indicated organs were harvested and ZIKV RNA levels were measured by qRT PCR as described in methods. Error bars represent mean ±standard deviation (SD). Y axis starts at the limit of detection of the assay.