MOLECULAR BIOLOGY OF VARICELLA-ZOSTER VIRUS INFECTIONS

该项目构成实验室两大研究重点之一 本节的。目标是识别、绘制和表征 VZV 基因 以及在活动性和潜伏性感染期间表达的蛋白质，并定义 基因表达的时间顺序和控制。迄今为止，我们绘制了 病毒基因组、其转录本和许多重要基因。我们 证明 VZV 仍然潜伏在人类神经节的卫星细胞中 72 个 VZV 基因中有 4 到 11 个在潜伏期表达。为了更好 检测并表征延迟转录本，我们目前正在提取 来自人类神经节的 RNA，用逆转录酶对其进行处理，以及 使用合成 olio 进行聚合酶链反应 (PCR) 代表目标 VZV 开放阅读框的核苷酸。在其他方面 研究中，我们正在定义开放阅读框架的作用和组成部分 负责 VZV 基因调控。具体来说，通过创建突变 在基因 4 和 61 中，我们确定了负责基因的蛋白质结构域 反式激活和抑制。

This project constitutes one of the two major laboratory research focuses of this section. The goals are to identify, map and characterize VZV genes and proteins expressed during active and latent infections, and to define the temporal sequence and control of gene expression. To date, we mapped the viral genome, its transcripts, and a number of important genes. We proved that VZV remains latent in satellite cells of human nerve ganglia and that 4 to 11 of 72 VZV genes are expressed during latency. To better detect and characterize latency transcripts, we are currently extracting RNA from human ganglia, processing it with reverse transcriptase, and performing polymerase chain reactions (PCR) using synthetic olio nucleotides representing targeted VZV open reading frames. In other studies, we are defining the roles and components of open reading frames responsible for VZV gene regulation. Specifically, by creating mutations within genes 4 and 61, we identified protein domains responsible for gene transactivation and suppression.