Fluorescence imaging upgrade for stereoscope

疱疹病毒感染包括人类在内的多种动物，对农业和人类健康都有重大影响。 单纯疱疹病毒是典型的疱疹病毒。 像所有疱疹病毒一样，它是一种高度复杂的有机体，使用多种策略重新编程受感染的细胞以使其自身受益。 我们研究计划的目标是在分子水平上了解这一过程。 我们的两个主要兴趣之一是了解一旦细胞被感染，病毒基因如何被激活，以及这种感染如何影响细胞基因的开启或关闭。 我们还在研究某些病毒基因如何改变细胞的正常功能。 我们实现这些目标的战略核心是改变病毒遗传物质的能力，然后研究这些改变对病毒复制能力的影响。 为了识别这种转基因病毒，我们在它们的基因组中加入了使感染细胞在特殊光线下发出荧光的基因。 荧光成像升级将使我们能够有效地筛选受感染的细胞，以寻找所需的病毒。 通过操纵病毒基因组，我们可以直接测试不同病毒基因对感染基本方面的重要性。 我们的研究计划的结果具有经济破坏性兽医疾病的更好的治疗设计的影响，以及工程的新菌株的单纯疱疹病毒，可用于基因治疗策略。

Herpes viruses infect a wide variety of animals including humans, which has a significant impact both for agriculture and human health.  Herpes simplex virus is the prototypic herpesvirus.  Like all herpesviruses, it is a highly complex organism that uses multiple strategies to reprogramme the infected cell to its own benefit.  The goal of our research programme is to understand this process at a molecular level.  One of our two main interests is to understand how viral genes are activated once a cell becomes infected, and how this infection affects which of the cell's genes are on or off.  We are also studying how certain viral genes alter the normal functions of the cell.  Central to our strategy for achieving each of these goals is the ability to alter the genetic material of the virus, and then to study the impact of these alterations on the ability of the virus to replicate.  In order to identify such genetically modified viruses, we incorporate into their genome genes that make the infected cells fluoresce under special light.  The fluorescence imaging upgrade will allow us to efficiently screen infected cells for the desired viruses.  By manipulating the viral genome, we can directly test the importance of different viral genes on fundamental aspects of infections.  The results of our research programme have implications for the design of better treatments for financially devastating veterinary diseases, as well as the engineering of new strains of herpes simplex virus that can be used in gene therapy strategies.