Our main findings indicate that CHIKV infection of A. albopictus cell lines is sensitive to Bafilomycin A1 and chloroquine and to membrane cholesterol depletion.
The E1-226V mutated LR-OPY1 isolate collected during the 2005 outbreak in La R茅union replicated more efficiently than the 37997 African reference strain in C6/36 cells. Moreover, the LR-OPY1 strain displayed greater membrane cholesterol dependence and was more sensitive to inhibition of endosomal pH acidification. Finally, using electron microscopy, we imaged CHIKV entry into C6/36 cells.
Our data support that CHIKV is endocyted into A. albopictus cells and requires membrane cholesterol as well as a low-pH environment for entry. These features are modulated in some extent by the A226V mutation in the E1 gene of the LR-OPY1 isolate. Altogether, our data provide information regarding the pathways used by CHIKV to infect A. albopictus cells.