The rubella virus causes mild measles in children, but leads to serious congenital health problems when contracted in utero. The condition is controlled by a live vaccine In Western countries, but remains a threat in developing nations. In determining the crystal structure of the rubella virus envelope glycoprotein El, Felix Rey and colleagues have shown that the glycoprotein evolved to become distant from that of mosquito-borne viruses in the same family, creating its own niche as a strictly human virus.
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