The Zika virus remodels its host cell’s endoplasmic reticulum into small pockets (black arrows) where the virus can safely replicate. Ci et al. reveal that this remodeling step is driven by a viral protein called NS1.
A model of how the Zika virus NS1 protein inserts itself into the ER membranes of its host cell, reshaping them to form a protected viral replication compartment.