Question

Which of the following can be used as a temperature-sensitive mutant to study the endomembrane system?

(a) Vesicular Stomatitis Virus

(b) Human Immunodeficiency Virus

(c) Tobacco Mosaic Virus

(d) Retrovirus

The question was asked in a job interview.

This intriguing question originated from Cytoplasmic Membrane Systems topic in division Cytoplasmic Membrane Systems of Cell Biology

Answer 1

Correct answer is (a) Vesicular Stomatitis Virus

To explain I would say: VSVG is a viral gene of the Vesicular Stomatitis Virus, which is fused with the green fluorescent protein (GFP) to study the pathway of VSVG protein. In this case, a VSV with mutant VSVG protein can be used that can only grow at lower temperatures than normal; called the temperature-sensitive mutant.