Junín virus

Junin virus
Virus classification
Group:	Group V ((−)ssRNA)
Family:	Arenaviridae
Genus:	Arenavirus
Species
Junin virus

Junin virus

The Junin virus or Junín virus is an arenavirus that causes Argentine hemorrhagic fever (AHF). The virus takes its name from the city of Junín, around which the first cases of infection were reported, in 1958.

The Junin virus is a negative sense ssRNA enveloped virion with a variable diameter between 50 and 300 nm. The surface of the particle encompasses a layer of T-shaped glycoproteins, each extending up to 10 nm outwards from the envelope, which are important in mediating attachment and entry into host cells.

The Junin virus genome is composed of two single-stranded RNA molecules, each encoding two different genes in an ambisense orientation. The two segments are termed 'short (S)' and 'long (L)' owing to their respective lengths. The short segment (around 3400 nucleotides in length) encodes the nucleocapsid protein and the glycoprotein precursor (GPC). The GPC is subsequently cleaved to form two viral glycoproteins, GP1 and GP2, which ultimately form the T-shaped glycoprotein spike which extends outwards from the viral envelope. [1]. The long segment (around 7200 nucleotides in length) encodes the viral polymerase and a zinc-binding protein. The virus is spread by rodents.

A member of the genus Arenavirus, Junin virus characteristically causes Argentine hemorrhagic fever (AHF). AHF leads to severe compromise of the vascular, neurological and immune systems and has a mortality rate between 20 and 30%. Symptoms of the disease are conjunctivitis, purpura, petechia and occasionally sepsis. The symptoms of the disease can be confusing; the condition can be mistaken for a different one, especially during the first week when it can resemble a flu.

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