Center for Investigating Viral Immunity and Antagonism

描述（由申请人提供）：在本中心资助中，我们计划研究A、B和C类病毒与人原代细胞的相互作用，从而诱导先天性和适应性免疫应答。我们的研究将集中在1）1型干扰素应答和2）树突状细胞成熟的诱导和破坏的病毒机制以及这些过程对适应性免疫的影响。这将通过开发新技术来实现，这些技术将提供人类对病毒病原体反应的全面概况。虽然已经很明显，如果不是所有的病毒编码的基因产物涉及逃避免疫，很少知道这些病毒基因对人类免疫反应的影响。我们计划建立试验，以1）使用表达此类拮抗剂的嵌合病毒鉴定和表征免疫功能的病毒抑制剂; 2）在三个阶段产生对病毒的人类免疫应答诱导的分子描述：先天免疫，先天适应性界面和适应性免疫。这将通过在基因转录、IFN信号传导、细胞因子/细胞表面标志物表达和肽呈递水平上表征对病毒感染的细胞应答的动力学来完成;和3）尝试鉴定影响参与诱导免疫应答的关键基因的转录水平的人基因多态性。该中心的其他成员将利用开发的技术研究NIAID优先病原体。项目1研究了高致死性尼帕病毒，一种人畜共患副粘病毒，以精确定义四种病毒蛋白（P，V，W和C）的作用机制，这些蛋白显示出抑制先天免疫。项目2研究了埃博拉病毒编码的不同蛋白质对树突状细胞功能调节的作用，树突状细胞功能似乎在这种出血性负链RNA病毒的自然感染过程中受到影响。在项目3中，研究了流感病毒的IFN拮抗剂蛋白NS 1减弱先天免疫、树突细胞成熟和刺激T细胞的能力。临床核心提供了技术和研究项目所需的人体样本的可靠获取途径，此外，该中心还将生成一个患者临床病史数据库，该数据库对于解释个体之间免疫反应的差异非常宝贵。行政核心将监督和协调本申请的研究项目和技术开发部分，并组织联席会议，以确保这些部分之间更好的协同作用。我们拟议的中心收集的信息和资源将用于促进人类-病原体相互作用的研究，例如支持几个A-C类病原体的试点项目。我们提出的研究将扩大我们的理解，人类对病毒感染的免疫反应在细胞水平上的作用机制和适应性免疫和致病性的病毒基因，拮抗1型IFN反应的影响。此外，开发的技术将有助于分析调节先天性和适应性免疫反应的人/病原体相互作用。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): In this center grant we propose to study interactions of Category A, B and C viruses with human primary cells resulting in induction of innate and adaptive immune responses. Our investigations will be focused on viral mechanisms of induction and subversion of 1) type 1 interferon responses and 2) maturation of dendritic cells and the impact that these processes have on adaptive immunity. This will be done through the development of novel technologies that will provide a comprehensive profile of human responses to viral pathogens. Although it has become apparent that most if not all viruses encode gene products implicated in evasion of immunity, very little is known of the impact of these viral genes on the human immune response. We are planning to establish assays that will 1) identify and characterize viral inhibitors of immune function using chimeric viruses expressing such antagonists; 2) generate a molecular depiction of the induction of the human immune response against viruses at three stages: innate immunity, the innate-adaptive interface, and adaptive immunity. This will be done by characterizing the kinetics of the cellular response to viral infection at the levels of gene transcription, IFN signaling, cytokine/cell surface marker expression and peptide presentation; and 3) attempt to identify human gene polymorphisms that impact the levels of transcription of critical genes involved in the induction of the immune response. The technology developed will be utilized by other members of the center to study NIAID priority pathogens. Project 1 investigates the highly lethal Nipah virus, a zoonotic paramyxovirus, to precisely define the mechanisms of action of four viral proteins (P,V,W, and C) shown to inhibit innate immunity. Project 2 investigates the role that different proteins encoded by Ebola virus have on modulation of dendritic cell function, which appears to be affected during natural infections with this hemorrhagic negative strand RNA virus. In Project 3, the IFN antagonist protein NS1 of influenza virus is investigated with respect to its ability to attenuate innate immunity, dendritic cell maturation and stimulation of T cells. Reliable access to human samples required for both the technological and research projects is provided by the clinical core , which in addition will generate a database of patient clinical histories that will be invaluable for interpretation of differences in immune responses among individuals. Administrative core will oversee and coordinate the research projects and technology development components of this application, and organize joint meetings to guarantee a better synergism among these components. The information and resources gathered by our proposed center will be used to facilitate research in human-pathogen interactions, as exemplified by the support of pilot projects on several category A-C pathogens. Our proposed studies will expand our understanding of human immune responses to virus infection at the cellular level and of the mechanism of action and the impact on adaptive immunity and pathogenicity of viral genes that antagonize the type 1 IFN response. In addition, the developed technology will facilitate the analysis of human/pathogen interactions that modulate the innate and adaptive immune response.