HPV hijacking of the epidermal growth factor receptor via its oncogenic ion channel, the E5 viroporin: a new mechanism of virus-driven pathogenesis

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Infection with human papillomavirus (HPV) is associated with a number of diseases including genital warts, cervical cancer in women and oral cancers in both sexes. Estimates predict that the cost associated with treating HPV infections and disease is $8 billion in the USA alone. Whilst vaccines are available that can prevent HPV infection, these do not work in those already infected with the virus and they are not routinely available in the developing world, where the largest disease burden exists. Urgent need exists to identify drugs capable of treating those already infected with the virus. Towards this a better understanding of how HPV re-wires an infected cell to cause disease is required. We have focused on a less well understood protein coded by the virus and shown it plays a critical role during infection. We now want to take our research further to understand how this protein interacts with components of the infected cell, and how changes brought about by the protein might lead to cancer development. For these studies we will use a model system allowing us to investigate HPV infection in cells. Our work should give us a clear picture of how this virus coded protein works and open up the possibility of developing drugs that prevent its action.