Early inhibition of glycosylation with deoxynojirimycin has no effect on the replication of flavivirus West Nile

Abstract

Deoxynojirimycin (dNM) is a specific and reversible inhibitor of the trimming actions of glucosidase I and II in the rough endoplasmic reticulum. The importance of the effects of dNM on the replication of West Nile (sarafend - glycosylated) and West Nile (Wengler - nonglycosylated) viruses were studied. It was found that dNM treatment increase the molecular weights of the E and prM proteins in both virus strains without affecting the yields of the virus. The intracellular transport of the E protein from the rough endoplasmic reticulum to Golgi apparatus was not affected despite the change in molecular weights. It would appear that the prevention of removal of glucose molecules by dNM did not affected the maturation of E protein or the virus.