In Silico Characterization and Structural Modeling of Different Important Glycoproteins of Varicella-Zoster Virus Related to Chicken Pox

Varicella Zoster Virus (VZV) is responsible for the sufferings of chickenpox. The highly contagious varicella zoster virus also causes shingles when it reactivates after first causing chickenpox. In this study, different important envelope Glycoproteins of VZV related to chicken pox namely gB (ORF31), gH (ORF37), gL (ORF60), gE (ORF68) have been characterized and then three-dimensional structural models are developed using in silico computational techniques. With the emphasizes on investigation of the insights into their molecular mechanisms and structures, the proposed methodological steps included sequence selection and translation, primary and secondary structures identification, 3D modeling and validation, and result analysis. Different physiochemical parameters including the molecular weight (MW), theoretical isoelectric point (TPI), instability index (II), aliphatic index (AI), extinction coefficient (EC), GRAVY, and positive and negative residues were computed and investigated. The simulation results show the MW range 17.78-105.35 kDa of gB is maximum, the TPIs are found between 5.05 to 8.81, and the AI indices are above 75. Furthermore, validation of the predicted structural models are done through Ramachandran plot, MolProbity score, QMEAN Zscore, and QMEANDisCo global value analysis to guarantee their precision and dependability. 89.5% to 92.9% of the residues are stayed in the most favored regions of the predicted models and the other validation matrices also suggested the model’s quality as good. The findings of this study might be useful for further studies and clinical applications in antiviral treatment.