Following exposure to Venezuelan encephalitis virus (VEEV), Eastern equine encephalitis virus (EEEV), and Western equine encephalitis virus (WEEV), researchers detected single infected neurons throughout the brains of rodents . Significant cytoskeletal remodeling occurs in host cells as a result of alphavirus infection, leading to the formation of two distinct forms of filopodia-like extensions, known as short and long intercellular extensions in this context .