Interferon action on Mayaro virus replication.

Treatment of TC7 cells with interferon (IFN) drastically reduced the yield of infectious Mayaro virus under experimental conditions that virus attachment and penetration into the cells were not affected. In IFN-treated cells, synthesis of Mayaro virus proteins was inhibited and cellular protein synthesis was restored. This phenomenon is dependent on IFN concentration and multiplicity of infection. Electron microscopy of these cells revealed normal and anomalous viral particles inside cytoplasmic vacuoles. This suggests that IFN also interferes with Mayaro virus morphogenesis and inhibits the release of virions from cells.