Functional studies of the KSHV vIRF-2 protein

一些最常见的疱疹病毒是家喻户晓的名字，因为它们是许多常见人类疾病的原因，包括水痘，带状疱疹和口腔和生殖器溃疡。EB病毒（EBV）引起传染性单核细胞增多症（或学生？接吻病）是另一种疱疹病毒，是某些白色血细胞癌症（淋巴瘤）和口腔-鼻腔癌症发展的辅助因子。卡波西？肉瘤相关疱疹病毒（KSHV），一个亲戚的EB病毒，是可能的原因卡波西？S肉瘤（KS）和一种罕见的淋巴瘤，特别是在感染艾滋病毒的个体中，这会导致艾滋病。KS是AIDS患者最常见的恶性肿瘤。然而，KS也影响其他人，包括器官移植受者。KSHV作为一种新的人类病原体的鉴定为研究它和相关疱疹病毒如何引起疾病提供了令人兴奋的机会。关于这种病毒的发现可以扩展到其他疱疹病毒，有助于我们全面了解疱疹病毒的生物学，并帮助设计方法来开发针对它们的药物。这项建议旨在提供更深入的了解KSHV如何与我们身体防御系统的一个重要组成部分相互作用：先天干扰素免疫反应。我们的初步研究表明，KSHV的一个组成部分是一种名为vIRF-2的蛋白质，我们已经开始研究。这种病毒蛋白抑制先天性干扰素免疫反应，可能是因为病毒需要逃避这种防御系统。如果我们能够理解病毒蛋白质是如何实现这种抑制作用的，我们将更好地理解这种反应的机制，也许其他病毒是如何避免这种反应的。最终，我们的工作将有助于药物和疫苗的开发，以防止病毒和其他外来生物体克服这种反应。GU教师科学家？以及国家SETPOINT计划的科学大使。他经常与Lenzie Academy高中互动，就当前的病毒学主题（艾滋病，SARS，禽流感等）和他的研究发表演讲。他是伦齐学院年度科学竞赛的评委。在2004年的国家科学周上，DJB在GU发表了什么讲话？介绍病毒学？

Some of the most common herpesviruses are household names since they are the causes of many familiar human diseases, including chicken pox, shingles and oral and genital ulcers. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) which causes infectious mononucleosis (or student?s kissing disease) is another herpesvirus that is a cofactor in the development of certain cancers of white blood cells (lymphomas) and of the oral-nasal cavity. Kaposi?s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), a relative of EBV, is the probable cause of Kaposi?s sarcoma (KS) and a rare form of lymphoma, especially in individuals infected with HIV, which causes AIDS. KS is the most common malignancy affecting AIDS patients. However, KS also affects others, including organ transplant recipients. The identification of KSHV as a new human pathogen offers exciting opportunities to investigate how it and related herpesviruses cause disease. Discoveries concerning this virus could be extended to other herpesviruses to contribute overall to our understanding of herpesvirus biology and help in devising methods to develop medicines against them.This proposal aims to provide a deeper understanding of how KSHV interacts with an important component of our bodies defence system: the innate interferon immune response . Our preliminary studies indicate that one component of KSHV is a protein called vIRF-2 that we have begun to characterise. This viral protein inhibits the innate interferon immune response, presumably because the virus needs to evade this defence system. If we can understand how the viral protein achieves this inhibition, we will have a better understanding of the mechanics of the response, and perhaps how other viruses avoid it. Eventually, our work could then help in the development of medicines and vaccines to prevent viruses and other foreign organisms overcoming this response.DJB is a ?GU Teacher-Scientist? and a Science Ambassador for the national SETPOINT programme. He interacts regularly with Lenzie Academy High School, giving talks on current virology topics (AIDS, SARS, Avian flu, etc) and his research. He judges in the annual Lenzie Academy science competition. For National Science week, 2004, at GU, DJB spoke on ?Introducing Virology?.