Acts as a chaperone for envelope protein E during intracellular virion assembly by masking and inactivating envelope protein E fusion peptide. prM is the only viral peptide matured by host furin in the trans-Golgi network probably to avoid catastrophic activation of the viral fusion activity in acidic Golgi compartment prior to virion release. prM-E cleavage is inefficient, and many virions are only partially matured. These uncleaved prM would play a role in immune evasion