Nanoscale Mechanical and Morphological Characterization of Ebolavirus-like Particles: Implications for Therapeutic Development

Hannah Hargrove; Susana A. Torres-Hurtado; Wendy J. Maury; Xiaohui Frank Zhang

doi:10.3390/ijms26115185

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Nanoscale Mechanical and Morphological Characterization of Ebolavirus-like Particles: Implications for Therapeutic Development

Journal article

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Nanoscale Mechanical and Morphological Characterization of Ebolavirus-like Particles: Implications for Therapeutic Development

Hannah Hargrove, Susana A. Torres-Hurtado, Wendy J. Maury and Xiaohui Frank Zhang

International journal of molecular sciences, Vol.26(11), 5185

05/28/2025

DOI: 10.3390/ijms26115185

PMCID: PMC12154113

PMID: 40507994

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Abstract

Zaire Ebolavirus (EBOV) is one type of filovirus that causes the deadly EBOV disease, with an average fatality rate of around 50%. EBOV outbreaks are devastating and unpredictable and may emerge as the next global pandemic. As a BSL-4 pathogen, EBOV is inaccessible to regular biological laboratories. Therefore, EBOV virus-like particles (EBOV-VLPs) and EBOV pseudoviruses (EBOV-PVs) are utilized in the initial development of many potential therapies, for safety reasons and ease of procurement, as opposed to using infectious viruses. To investigate the host cell entry of EBOV and develop viral entry blockers, the EBOV model virions must accurately represent the morphological and mechanical properties of infectious EBOV virions. Due to the nanometer scale and irregular shape of EBOVs, these properties are challenging to characterize. In this research, state-of-the-art nanoscale characterization techniques are employed to examine the mechanical and structural elements of a selection of commonly used EBOV-approximating model virions. This study comprehensively determines the accuracy of EBOV approximation with a variety of model virions and the uniformity of mechanical and structural traits across different model virion types and preparation methods. This provides important implications for developing therapeutic treatments against EBOV using these model virions.

Ebolavirus

EBOV Delta VP30

EBOV Delta VP40 VLP

rVSV-EBOV-GP

virus-like particles (VLPs)

atomic force microscopy (AFM) imaging

atomic force spectroscopy

elastic modulus nanoindentation

Details

Title: Subtitle: Nanoscale Mechanical and Morphological Characterization of Ebolavirus-like Particles: Implications for Therapeutic Development
Creators: Hannah Hargrove - University of Massachusetts Amherst
Susana A. Torres-Hurtado - University of Massachusetts Amherst
Wendy J. Maury - University of Iowa
Xiaohui Frank Zhang - University of Massachusetts Amherst
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: International journal of molecular sciences, Vol.26(11), 5185
DOI: 10.3390/ijms26115185
PMID: 40507994
PMCID: PMC12154113
NLM abbreviation: Int J Mol Sci
ISSN: 1661-6596
eISSN: 1422-0067
Publisher: MDPI
Grant note: AI133634; AI163708 / National Institutes of Health CBET-2226779 / NSF UMass Amherst
Language: English
Date published: 05/28/2025
Academic Unit: Microbiology and Immunology
Record Identifier: 9984829023402771

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