Roles of the functional domains and conserved residues of the severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus L protein provide insights into the viral RNA transcription/replication mechanism

Virol Sin. 2022 Dec;37(6):946-949. doi: 10.1016/j.virs.2022.08.009. Epub 2022 Sep 3.

¹ National Virus Resource Center, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430071, China; Academic Affairs Office of Cangzhou Jiaotong University, Cangzhou, 061199, China.
² National Virus Resource Center, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430071, China; Center for Translational Medicine, Jinyintan Hospital, Wuhan, 430023, China.
³ National Virus Resource Center, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430071, China.
⁴ National Virus Resource Center, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430071, China. Electronic address: shenshu@wh.iov.cn.
⁵ National Virus Resource Center, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430071, China. Electronic address: sjm@wh.iov.cn.

Abstract

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All the domains of SFTSV-L protein were required for its function in viral RNA replication/transcription.
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The influence of twelve conserved residues were evaluated, nine of which showed significance in the function of L protein.
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Nine residues of SFTSV-L were strictly conserved among phleboviruses, suggesting its potency as a promising drug target.