VIRUS INFECTIONS IN THE EYE

在过去的一年里，我们研究了各种病毒学和 病毒在眼内复制时发生的免疫病理过程 微环境。本项目包括三个方面：(1)研究 冠状病毒在眼和视神经细胞中的感染；(2) 病毒在人类疾病中的可能作用；(3)抗病毒治疗 细胞因子和药物的作用。 我们已经证实，小鼠冠状病毒可以诱发眼部疾病和 因此可以作为研究视网膜退行性变的模型系统。 疾病。这款车有很多独特的特点。该病毒能够 在轻微炎症的情况下引起急性感染的。这个 最初的视网膜损伤之后是病毒的清除和 进行性视网膜破坏，甚至在病毒消失几个月后也是如此。这 疾病可以被认为是色素退行性疾病的模型 人类的上皮细胞和光感受器。 需要有效的药物治疗和预防疱疹病毒和 其他病毒性疾病也变得越来越重要。我们发现 白细胞调节蛋白是一种自然产生的免疫细胞因子，它增加了 药物阿昔洛韦的抗病毒作用。这些发现证明了 免疫疗法和化疗相结合可以产生大量的 抑制疱疹病毒复制，为 这种方法在病毒感染治疗中的应用。

During the past year, we have studied various virologic and immunopathologic processes that occur when viruses replicate in the ocular microenvironment. This project consists of three areas: (1) studies on coronavirus infection in ocular and optic nerve cells; (2) determination of the possible roles of viruses in human diseases; (3) antiviral therapeutic actions of cytokines and drugs. We have established that murine coronavirus can induce ocular disease and thus may be used as a model system for studying retinal degenerative diseases. This model has many unique features. The virus is capable of inducing an acute infection in the presence of mild inflammation. The initial retinal damage is followed by clearance of the virus and progressive retinal destruction, even months after the virus is gone. This disease may be considered a model for degenerative diseases of the pigment epithelium and photoreceptors in humans. The need for effective drug treatment and prevention of herpes virus and other viral diseases has assumed growing importance. We found that leukoregulin, a naturally occurring immunologic cytokine, increases the antiviral actions of the drug acyclovir. These findings which demonstrate that combination immunotherapy and chemotherapy can produce substantial inhibition of herpes virus replication, provide a rationale for the application of this approach to the treatment of virus infections.