The cost of replication fidelity in an RNA virus.

Abstract

It is often argued that high mutation rates are advantageous for RNA viruses, because they confer elevated rates of adaptation. However, there is no direct evidence showing a positive correlation between mutation and adaptation rates among RNA viruses. Moreover, theoretical work does not argue in favor of this prediction. We used a series of vesicular stomatitis virus clones harboring single amino acid substitutions in the RNA polymerase to demonstrate that changes inducing enhanced fidelity paid a fitness cost, but that there was no positive correlation between mutation an adaptation rates. We demonstrate that the observed mutation rate in vesicular stomatitis virus can be explained by a trade-off between replication rate and replication fidelity.

• Authors: Victoria Furió, Andrés Moya, Rafael Sanjuán
• Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A) Vol. 102 Issue 29 Pg. 10233-7 (Jul 19 2005) ISSN: 0027-8424 [Print] United States
• PMID: 16006529 (Publication Type: Comparative Study, Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• DNA-Directed RNA Polymerases

Topics

• Adaptation, Biological (genetics)
• Amino Acid Substitution (genetics)
• DNA-Directed RNA Polymerases (genetics)
• Mutagenesis, Site-Directed
• Selection, Genetic
• Vesicular stomatitis Indiana virus (genetics, physiology)
• Virus Replication (genetics)