Fig. 1

Anti-SFTS virus effects and cytotoxicity of IFNs and ribavirin. To measure effects of IFNs on SFTS virus infection, Vero cells were inoculated with SFTS virus SPL030 strain in the presence of indicated concentrations of IFNα a, β b, or γ c. Titers of supernatants at 3 days post-inoculation are shown in blue. Results are means ± standard deviation obtained from three independent experiments (n = 3). To measure cytotoxicity of IFNs, viability of Vero cells cultured in the presence of IFNα a, β b, or γ c was measured by use of WST-1 reagent. Cell viability was calculated as follows: (absorbance of cells in the presence of the drug – absorbance of no cells in the presence of the drug) / (absorbance of cells in the absence of the drug – absorbance of no cells in the absence of the drug) × 100 (%). Experiments were performed in triplicate and means ± standard deviation (n = 3) which are shown in red. Effects and cytotoxicity of ribavirin d were calculated from the data reported previously [14] to make comparison with those of IFNs easy. Statistical analysis (unpaired t-test in comparison with data from no drug) was performed only for data from anti-SFTS virus effects of IFNs and ribavirin. *,P < 0.05; **,P < 0.01