Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41397984›Full record

ArticleNature communications2025

Development of a replication-defective mpox virus platform for fundamental and therapeutic research.

Jiannan Chen, Liyuan Hu, Riccardo Vernuccio, Ning Shi, Jiaxin Tian, Yuyi Zhang, Sicheng Tian, Xinyu Cao, Zhuo Ha, Jiahan Lu and 13 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Nature communications, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Synthetic nucleic acids in a post-agent biosecurity Era.Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology · 2026
    Article
  5. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

23 authors.

Jiannan Chen *Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microorganisms and Infection, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Liyuan Hu *Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microorganisms and Infection, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0001-5925-8597
Riccardo Vernuccio *G5 Structural Biology of Infectious Diseases, Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, Paris, France.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0009-8319-0922
Ning Shi *State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Severe Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Key Laboratory for Zoonosis Research of the Ministry of Education, Institute of Zoonosis, and College of Veterinary Medicine, Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin Province, China.
Jiaxin TianChangchun Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changchun, Jilin Province, China.
Yuyi ZhangKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microorganisms and Infection, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5554-3756
Sicheng TianKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microorganisms and Infection, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Xinyu CaoChangchun Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changchun, Jilin Province, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0004-8656-7282
Zhuo HaChangchun Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changchun, Jilin Province, China.
Jiahan LuState Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, NHC Key Laboratory of Human Disease Comparative Medicine, Institute of Laboratory Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.
Leandro BattiniG5 Structural Biology of Infectious Diseases, Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, Paris, France.
Bertrand RaynalPlate-Forme de Biophysique Moleculaire-C2RT, Institut Pasteur, CNRS UMR 3528, Université Paris Cité, Paris, France.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5634-0408
Ahmed HaouzCrystallography Platform-C2RT, UMR 3528, Institut Pasteur, CNRS, Université de Paris, Paris, France.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1196-1635
Jing XueState Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, NHC Key Laboratory of Human Disease Comparative Medicine, Institute of Laboratory Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9113-2433
Qiliang CaiKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microorganisms and Infection, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7147-0953
Yiqi ZhaoSir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
Yongxu LuVaccine Research Centre, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
Geoffrey L SmithSir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
Youhua XieKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microorganisms and Infection, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. yhxie@fudan.edu.cn.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2416-7708
Huijun LuChangchun Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changchun, Jilin Province, China. huijun_lu@126.com.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4532-4466
Pablo Guardado-CalvoG5 Structural Biology of Infectious Diseases, Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, Paris, France. guardado@pasteur.fr.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7292-5270
Ping ZhangDepartment of Immunology and Microbiology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China. zhangp36@mail.sysu.edu.cn.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5400-8767
Rong ZhangKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microorganisms and Infection, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. rong_zhang@fudan.edu.cn.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2941-4808

Funding

Research Training in Pediatric OncologyT32CA136432 · NCI · DANA-FARBER CANCER INST · PI SCOTT A ARMSTRONG · 2009 to 2026
$7.9M
NCI NIH HHS T32 CA136432
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The recent global outbreaks of mpox highlight the urgent need for both fundamental research and antiviral development. However, studying the mpox virus (MPXV), with its large and complex genome, remains challenging due to the requirement for high-containment facilities. Here, we describe a strategy for de novo assembly of MPXV clade IIb genomes in bacterial artificial chromosomes using transformation-associated recombination cloning. Leveraging CRISPR-Cas9 and Lambda Red recombination, we engineer replication-defective MPXV particles with dual deletions of OPG96 (M2R) and OPG158 (A32.5 L)-genes essential for virion assembly, that are capable of recapitulating key stages of the viral life cycle. We apply this system to screen a compound library and identify G243-1720, a potent anti-poxvirus inhibitor with broad activity in vitro and in vivo. G243-1720 blocks the formation of extracellular enveloped virions and cell-cell spread. Resistance mutation selection, crystallographic analysis, analytical ultracentrifugation, and mass photometry reveal that, despite its distinct chemical structure, G243-1720 shares a mode of action with tecovirimat, both functioning by affecting dimerization of protein OPG57 (F13). Our findings underscore the potential of G243-1720 as a promising broad-spectrum anti-poxvirus lead compound and demonstrate the utility of replication-defective MPXV particles as a reliable platform for viral biology studies and antiviral development.

Indexed as

Antiviral AgentsDefective VirusesMonkeypox virusVirus ReplicationAnimalsChromosomes, Artificial, BacterialCRISPR-Cas SystemsGenome, ViralHumansVirionVirus AssemblyAntiviral Agents

Identifiers

PMID41397984
PMCPMC12824250

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.