Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41950307›Full record

ArticleScience translational medicine2026

Design of a neutralizing and protective pan-encephalitic alphavirus receptor decoy protein.

Sathvik Palakurty, Saravanan Raju, Alan Sariol, Ngan Wagoner, Theron C Gilliland, William B Klimstra, Michael S Diamond

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Science translational medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing 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

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

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

7 authors.

Sathvik PalakurtyDepartment of Pathology & Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-2222-4553
Saravanan RajuDepartment of Pathology & Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-3216-5574
Alan SariolDepartment of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-3127-0543
Ngan WagonerDepartment of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.ORCID 0009-0002-6070-3261
Theron C GillilandCenter for Vaccine Research and Department of Immunology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-8373-0057
William B KlimstraCenter for Vaccine Research and Department of Immunology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-4506-7842
Michael S DiamondDepartment of Pathology & Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-8791-3165

Funding

Project 5: mAb Development Flaviviruses and AlphavirusesU19AI181960 · NIAID · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · PI DIAMOND, MICHAEL S, KUHN, RICHARD J. · 2024 to 2024
$46.7M
Infectious Diseases/Basic Microbial Pathogenic MechanismsT32AI007172 · NIAID · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · PI Daniel E. Goldberg, JENNIFER A PHILIPS · 1985 to 2026
$13.0M
LDLRAD3 Receptor Interaction with Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis VirusR01AI164653 · NIAID · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · PI DIAMOND, MICHAEL S, FREMONT, DAVED H. · 2021 to 2025
$3.8M
An Informed Approach to Live Attenuated Vaccines against Encephalitis AlphavirusesR01AI153209 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · PI KLIMSTRA, WILLIAM B · 2020 to 2024
$2.9M
Building an atlas of B cell mediated protective immunity to alphavirusesK08AI187716 · NIAID · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · PI Saravanan Raju · 2025 to 2026
$340k
NIAID NIH HHS K08 AI187716NIAID NIH HHS R01 AI153209NIAID NIH HHS R01 AI164653NIAID NIH HHS T32 AI007172NIAID NIH HHS U19 AI181960
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Venezuelan (VEEV), eastern (EEEV), and western (WEEV) equine encephalitis viruses are alphaviruses from different serocomplexes that cause neurological disease in humans. Given their antigenic distance, it has been challenging to isolate cross-reactive antibodies that neutralize infection by multiple medically relevant encephalitic alphaviruses. Recently, distinct entry receptors were identified for these encephalitic alphaviruses: LDLRAD3 for VEEV, VLDLR for EEEV and some strains of WEEV, and PCDH10 for WEEV. Here, using structure-guided mutagenesis, we generated a soluble chimeric protein derived from the LA1 domain of LDLRAD3 and the LA2 domain of VLDLR, termed LDLRAD3-vLA1-VLDLR-LA2, which neutralized infection by VEEV, EEEV, and some WEEV strains in cell culture and protected mice from infection. Structural analysis of this engineered decoy revealed binding to distinct sites on each virus, which corresponded to those engaged by their endogenous entry receptors. We extended the neutralizing and protective capacity to contemporary WEEV strains by adding a single extracellular cadherin domain from sparrow PCDH10 through a stabilized symmetric bispecific decoy scaffold. Our designed receptor decoy serves as a possible countermeasure against multiple encephalitic alphaviruses, and this design platform could be harnessed to develop therapeutic agents against viruses from other families.

Indexed as

AlphavirusAntibodies, NeutralizingReceptors, VirusAnimalsCadherinsHumansMiceModels, MolecularNeutralization TestsReceptors, LDLAntibodies, NeutralizingCadherinsReceptors, LDLReceptors, Virus

Identifiers

PMID41950307
PMCPMC13282995

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Registered trials

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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.