Publications

development of cell-based assays for in vitro characterization of hepatitis c virus ns3/4a protease inhibitors.	a recombinant vaccinia virus, expressing the ns3-to-ns5 region of the n clone of hepatitis c virus (hcv), was generated and utilized both in a gel-based assay and in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (elisa) to evaluate the pyrrolidine-5,5-trans-lactams, a series of inhibitors of the hcv ns3/4a protease. the absolute levels of processed, mature hcv nonstructural proteins in this system were found to decrease in the presence of the trans-lactams. monitoring of this reduction enabled end points ...	2005	15793116
inhibition of flavivirus infections by antisense oligomers specifically suppressing viral translation and rna replication.	rna elements within flavivirus genomes are potential targets for antiviral therapy. a panel of phosphorodiamidate morpholino oligomers (pmos), whose sequences are complementary to rna elements located in the 5'- and 3'-termini of the west nile (wn) virus genome, were designed to anneal to important cis-acting elements and potentially to inhibit wn infection. a novel arg-rich peptide was conjugated to each pmo for efficient cellular delivery. these pmos exhibited various degrees of antiviral acti ...	2005	15795246
requirements at the 3' end of the sindbis virus genome for efficient synthesis of minus-strand rna.	the 3'-untranslated region of the sindbis virus genome is 0.3 kb in length with a 19-nucleotide conserved sequence element (3' cse) immediately preceding the 3'-poly(a) tail. the 3' cse and poly(a) tail have been assumed to constitute the core promoter for minus-strand rna synthesis during genome replication; however, their involvement in this process has not been formally demonstrated. utilizing both in vitro and in vivo analyses, we have examined the role of these elements in the initiation of ...	2005	15795249
virus-specific and bystander cd8 t cells recruited during virus-induced encephalomyelitis.	neurotropic coronavirus-induced encephalitis was used to evaluate recruitment, functional activation, and retention of peripheral bystander memory cd8+ t cells. mice were first infected with recombinant vaccinia virus expressing a non-cross-reactive human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) epitope, designated p18. following establishment of an endogenous p18-specific memory cd8+ t-cell population, mice were challenged with coronavirus to directly compare recruitment, longevity, and activation characte ...	2005	15795256
identification of structural domains involved in astrovirus capsid biology.	coat proteins of non-enveloped, icosahedral viruses must perform a variety of functions during their life cycle such as assembly of the coat protein subunits into a closed shell, specific encapsidation of the viral nucleic acid, maturation of the capsid, interaction with host receptors, and disassembly to deliver the genetic information into the newly infected cell. a thorough understanding of the multiple capsid properties at the molecular level is required in order to identify potential target ...	2005	15802951
mechanisms of reovirus-induced cell death and tissue injury: role of apoptosis and virus-induced perturbation of host-cell signaling and transcription factor activation.	reoviruses have provided insight into the roles played by specific viral genes and the proteins they encode in virus-induced cell death and tissue injury. apoptosis is a major mechanism of cell death induced by reoviruses. reovirus-induced apoptosis involves both death-receptor and mitochondrial cell death pathways. reovirus infection is associated with selective activation of mitogen activated protein kinase (mapk) cascades including jnk/sapk. infection also perturbs transcription factor signal ...	2005	15802955
class ii fusion protein of alphaviruses drives membrane fusion through the same pathway as class i proteins.	viral fusion proteins of classes i and ii differ radically in their initial structures but refold toward similar conformations upon activation. do fusion pathways mediated by alphavirus e1 and influenza virus hemagglutinin (ha) that exemplify classes ii and i differ to reflect the difference in their initial conformations, or concur to reflect the similarity in the final conformations? here, we dissected the pathway of low ph-triggered e1-mediated cell-cell fusion by reducing the numbers of acti ...	2005	15809312
induction of human papillomavirus type 16-specific immunologic responses in a normal and an human papillomavirus-infected populations.	human papillomavirus (hpv) infection, especially with the oncogenic genotypes, is the most important risk factor for developing cervical cancer. we focused on generating hpv16 e7-specific cytotoxic cd8(+) t lymphocytes and evaluating hpv16 e7-specific immune responses in hpv16-infected and uninfected populations. peripheral blood mononuclear cells (pbmcs) were first collected from an uninfected group with an human lymphocyte antigen (hla) a2 haplotype (four volunteers). mature monocyte-derived d ...	2005	15819706
gamma interferon-dependent, noncytolytic clearance of sindbis virus infection from neurons in vitro.	due to the nonrenewable nature of neurons, recovery from viral infection of the central nervous system requires noncytopathic mechanisms for control of virus replication. recovery from alphavirus encephalitis can occur without apparent neurological damage through the effects of antibody and gamma interferon (ifn-gamma). to establish an in vitro cell culture system that will allow the study of mechanisms of ifn-gamma-mediated control of sindbis virus (sinv) replication in neurons, we have charact ...	2005	15827152
rift valley fever virus nonstructural protein nss promotes viral rna replication and transcription in a minigenome system.	rift valley fever virus (rvfv), which belongs to the genus phlebovirus, family bunyaviridae, has a tripartite negative-strand genome (s, m, and l segments) and is an important mosquito-borne pathogen for domestic animals and humans. we established an rvfv t7 rna polymerase-driven minigenome system in which t7 rna polymerase from an expression plasmid drove expression of rna transcripts for viral proteins and minigenome rna transcripts carrying a reporter gene between both termini of the m rna se ...	2005	15827175
ross river virus disease reemergence, fiji, 2003-2004.	we report 2 clinically characteristic and serologically positive cases of ross river virus infection in canadian tourists who visited fiji in late 2003 and early 2004. this report suggests that ross river virus is once again circulating in fiji, where it apparently disappeared after causing an epidemic in 1979 to 1980.	2005	15829203
effective protection of pigs against lethal pseudorabies virus infection after a single injection of low-dose sindbis-derived plasmids encoding prv gb, gc and gd glycoproteins.	this study compared protection of pigs against lethal pseudorabies virus (prv) infection induced by a single injection of various quantities of sindbis virus-derived plasmids encoding prv glycoproteins gb, gc and gd. pigs were injected with 340, 68 or 13 microg of each plasmid. few immune differences were observed after dna injection and more importantly the pigs of the three groups were equally protected against virulent prv infection. single-shot injection of 13 microg of each prv glycoprotein ...	2005	15837372
bcl-2-related protein a1 is an endogenous and cytokine-stimulated mediator of cytoprotection in hyperoxic acute lung injury.	hyperoxic acute lung injury (hali) is characterized by a cell death response with features of apoptosis and necrosis that is inhibited by il-11 and other interventions. we hypothesized that bfl-1/a1, an antiapoptotic bcl-2 protein, is a critical regulator of hali and a mediator of il-11-induced cytoprotection. to test this, we characterized the expression of a1 and the oxygen susceptibility of wt and il-11 tg(+) mice with normal and null a1 loci. in wt mice, 100% o(2) caused tunel(+) cell death, ...	2005	15841185
stereophysicochemical variability plots highlight conserved antigenic areas in flaviviruses.	flaviviruses, which include dengue (dv) and west nile (wn), mutate in response to immune system pressure. identifying escape mutants, variant progeny that replicate in the presence of neutralizing antibodies, is a common way to identify functionally important residues of viral proteins. however, the mutations typically occur at variable positions on the viral surface that are not essential for viral replication. methods are needed to determine the true targets of the neutralizing antibodies.	2005	15845145
intranasal vaccination induces protective immunity against intranasal infection with virulent francisella tularensis biovar a.	the inhalation of francisella tularensis biovar a causes pneumonic tularemia associated with high morbidity and mortality rates in humans. exposure to f. tularensis usually occurs by accident, but there is increasing awareness that f. tularensis may be deliberately released in an act of bioterrorism or war. the development of a vaccine against pneumonic tularemia has been limited by a lack of information regarding the mechanisms required to protect against this disease. vaccine models for f. tul ...	2005	15845466
virus-inducible reporter genes as a tool for detecting and quantifying influenza a virus replication.	the use of influenza a virus-inducible reporter gene segments in detecting influenza a virus replication was investigated. the rna polymerase i promoter/terminator cassette was used to express rna transcripts encoding green fluorescence protein or firefly luciferase flanked by the untranslated regions of the influenza a/wsn/33 nucleoprotein (np) segment. reporter gene activity was detected after reconstitution of the influenza a virus polymerase complex from cdna or after virus infection, and wa ...	2005	15847914
high-level expression of marek's disease virus glycoprotein c is detrimental to virus growth in vitro.	expression levels of marek's disease virus (mdv) glycoprotein c (gc) are significantly reduced after serial virus passage in cell culture. reduced gc expression coincides with enhanced mdv growth in vitro and attenuation. to analyze this phenomenon in detail, a full-length infectious mdv clone was modified by red-based and shuttle mutagenesis in escherichia coli. besides a gc-negative deletion mutant harboring a kanamycin resistance gene, a markerless mutant with the u(l)44 gene deleted was cons ...	2005	15857974
roles of cd4+ t-cell-independent and -dependent antibody responses in the control of influenza virus infection: evidence for noncognate cd4+ t-cell activities that enhance the therapeutic activity of antiviral antibodies.	previous studies have indicated that b cells make a significant contribution to the resolution of influenza virus infection. to determine how b cells participate in the control of the infection, we transferred intact, major histocompatibility complex class ii (mhc-ii)-negative or b-cell receptor (bcr)-transgenic spleen cells into b-cell-deficient and cd8(+) t-cell-depleted mumt mice, termed mumt(-8), and tested them for ability to recover from infection. mumt(-8) mice that received no spleen cel ...	2005	15857980
targeting human glioblastoma cells: comparison of nine viruses with oncolytic potential.	brain tumors classified as glioblastomas have proven refractory to treatment and generally result in death within a year of diagnosis. we used seven in vitro tests and one in vivo trial to compare the efficacy of nine different viruses for targeting human glioblastoma. green fluorescent protein (gfp)-expressing vesicular stomatitis (vsv), sindbis virus, pseudorabies virus (prv), adeno-associated virus (aav), and minute virus of mice i-strain (mvmi) and mvmp all infected glioblastoma cells. mouse ...	2005	15857987
suppression of proliferation of poliovirus and porcine parvovirus by novel phenoxazines, 2-amino-4,4 alpha-dihydro-4 alpha-7-dimethyl-3h-phenoxazine-3-one and 3-amino-1,4 alpha-dihydro-4 alpha-8-dimethyl-2h-phenoxazine-2-one.	the present study aimed at investigating the antiviral effects of 2-amino-4,4alpha-dihydro-4alpha-7-dimethyl-3h-phenoxazine-3-one (phx-1) and 3-amino-1,4alpha-dihydro-4alpha-8-dimethyl-2h-phenoxazine-2-one (phx-2) on 6 representative viruses: poliovirus, porcine parvovirus, simian virus 40 (sv-40), herpes simplex virus-1 (hsv-1), sindbis virus, and vesicular stomatitis virus (vsv). phx-1 and phx-2 suppressed the proliferation of poliovirus in vero cells and that of porcine parvovirus in esk cell ...	2005	15863903
induction of antigen-specific immune responses against malignant brain tumors by intramuscular injection of sindbis dna encoding gp100 and il-18.	we constructed psin-sv40-hdv-sv40pa, an improved sindbis dna expression vector, and evaluated the potential of this vector system for brain tumor therapy. we investigated whether immunizing mice with xenogeneic dna encoding human gp100 and mouse il-18 would enhance the antitumor responses. to study the immune mechanisms involved in tumor regression, we examined tumor growth in b16-gp100-implanted brain tumor models using t-cell subset-depleted and ifn-gamma-neutralized mice. hugp100/mil-18 vacci ...	2005	15869409
identification and phenotypic characterization of sphingomonas wittichii strain rw1 by peptide mass fingerprinting using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry.	mass spectrometry is a potentially attractive means of monitoring the survival and efficacy of bioaugmentation agents, such as the dioxin-mineralizing bacterium sphingomonas wittichii strain rw1. the biotransformation activity of rw1 phenotypes is determined primarily by the presence and concentration of the dioxin dioxygenase, an enzyme initiating the degradation of both dibenzo-p-dioxin and dibenzofuran (df). we explored the possibility of identifying and characterizing putative cultures of rw ...	2005	15870332
properties of sindbis virus vectors produced with a chimeric split helper system.	we have evaluated a chimeric, two-component sindbis virus packaging system. as expected, use of this combination of two modified helper rna species prevented formation of infection competent sindbis viruses as analyzed by serial passaging. we observed, however, that vectors produced using this method were able to spread in bhk cell cultures and formed clusters of transgene positive cells that did not display cytopathic effects for up to 3 days post-transduction. formation of spreading sindbis vi ...	2005	15870906
clinical and laboratory manifestations of sindbis virus infection: prospective study, finland, 2002-2003.	sindbis virus (sinv) is widespread in europe, africa, australia, and asia, but clinical infection occurs as epidemics in a few geographically restricted areas. we recently proved, by virus isolation from patients, that sinv is the causative agent of pogosta disease, a mosquito-borne rash-arthritis occurring as larger epidemics every seventh year in finland. altogether, 86 patients with serologically verified sinv infection were recruited to the present study during the 2002 outbreak. we now desc ...	2005	15871114
persistent expression of factor viii in vivo following nonprimate lentiviral gene transfer.	hemophilia a is a clinically important coagulation disorder caused by the lack or abnormality of plasma coagulation factor viii (fviii). gene transfer of the fviii cdna to hepatocytes using lentiviral vectors is a potential therapeutic approach. we investigated the efficacy of feline immunodeficiency virus (fiv)-based vectors in targeting hepatocytes and correcting fviii deficiency in a hemophilia a mouse model. several viral envelope glycoproteins were screened for efficient fiv vector pseudoty ...	2005	15886327
long-range rna-rna interactions circularize the dengue virus genome.	secondary and tertiary rna structures present in viral rna genomes play essential regulatory roles during translation, rna replication, and assembly of new viral particles. in the case of flaviviruses, rna-rna interactions between the 5' and 3' ends of the genome have been proposed to be required for rna replication. we found that two rna elements present at the ends of the dengue virus genome interact in vitro with high affinity. visualization of individual molecules by atomic force microscopy ...	2005	15890901
the 5'-terminal region of the aichi virus genome encodes cis-acting replication elements required for positive- and negative-strand rna synthesis.	aichi virus is a member of the family picornaviridae. it has already been shown that three stem-loop structures (sl-a, sl-b, and sl-c, from the 5' end) formed at the 5' end of the genome are critical elements for viral rna replication. in this study, we further characterized the 5'-terminal cis-acting replication elements. we found that an additional structural element, a pseudoknot structure, is formed through base-pairing interaction between the loop segment of sl-b (nucleotides [nt] 57 to 60) ...	2005	15890931
characterization of human immunodeficiency virus gag-specific gamma interferon-expressing cells following protective mucosal immunization with alphavirus replicon particles.	a safe, replication-defective viral vector that can induce mucosal and systemic immune responses and confer protection against many infectious pathogens, such as human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (hiv-1), may be an ideal vaccine platform. accordingly, we have generated and tested alphavirus replicon particles encoding hiv-1 gag from sindbis virus (sin-gag) and venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (vee-gag), as well as chimeras between the two (vee/sin-gag). following intramuscular (i.m.), intr ...	2005	15890953
loss of interferon regulatory factor 3 in cells infected with classical swine fever virus involves the n-terminal protease, npro.	we show that cells infected with the pestivirus classical swine fever virus (csfv) fail to produce alpha/beta interferon not only following treatment with double-stranded rna but also after superinfection with a heterologous virus, the alphavirus sindbis virus, a virus shown to normally induce interferon. we investigated whether the inhibition of interferon synthesis by csfv involved a block in interferon regulatory factor 3 (irf3) activity. cells infected with csfv exhibited a lack of transloca ...	2005	15890962
secondary dengue virus type 4 infections in vietnam.	this study was designated to describe clinical and biological features of patients with a suspected diagnosis of dengue fever/dengue hemorrhagic fever during an outbreak in central vietnam. one hundred and twenty-five consecutive patients hospitalized at khanh hoa and binh thuan provincial hospitals between november 2001 and january 2002 with a diagnosis of suspected dengue infection were included in the present study. viruses were isolated in c6/36 and vero e6 cell cultures or detected by rt-pc ...	2005	15906664
rubella virus capsid protein modulation of viral genomic and subgenomic rna synthesis.	the ratio of the subgenomic (sg) to genome rna synthesized by rubella virus (rub) replicons expressing the green fluorescent protein reporter gene (rubrep/gfp) is substantially higher than the ratio of these species synthesized by rub (4.3 for rubrep/gfp vs. 1.3-1.4 for rub). it was hypothesized that this modulation of the viral rna synthesis was by one of the virus structural protein genes and it was found that introduction of the capsid (c) protein gene into the replicons as an in-frame fusion ...	2005	15907967
association of signr1 with tlr4-md-2 enhances signal transduction by recognition of lps in gram-negative bacteria.	signr1, a member of a new family of mouse c-type lectins, is expressed at high levels in macrophages (mphi) within the splenic marginal zone, lymph node medulla, and in some strains, in peritoneal cavity. we previously reported that signr1 captures gram-negative bacteria, such as escherichia coli and salmonella typhimurium, as well as candida albicans. we have now investigated the precise ligands and innate responses that involve signr1. the interaction of signr1 with fitc-dextran and e. coli wa ...	2005	15908446
no signalling decodes frequency of neuronal activity and generates synapse-specific plasticity in mouse cerebellum.	nitric oxide (no) is an intercellular messenger regulating neuronal functions. to visualize no signalling in the brain, we generated a novel fluorescent no indicator, which consists of the heme-binding region (hbr) of soluble guanylyl cyclase and the green fluorescent protein. the indicator (hbr-gfp) was expressed in the purkinje cells of the mouse cerebellum and we imaged no signals in acute cerebellar slices upon parallel fibre (pf) activation with a train of burst stimulations (bs, each bs co ...	2005	15919714
complement activation is required for induction of a protective antibody response against west nile virus infection.	infection with west nile virus (wnv) causes a severe infection of the central nervous system (cns) with higher levels of morbidity and mortality in the elderly and the immunocompromised. experiments with mice have begun to define how the innate and adaptive immune responses function to limit infection. here, we demonstrate that the complement system, a major component of innate immunity, controls wnv infection in vitro primarily in an antibody-dependent manner by neutralizing virus particles in ...	2005	15919902
noncytopathic replication of venezuelan equine encephalitis virus and eastern equine encephalitis virus replicons in mammalian cells.	venezuelan equine encephalitis (vee) and eastern equine encephalitis (eee) viruses are important, naturally emerging zoonotic viruses. they are significant human and equine pathogens which still pose a serious public health threat. both vee and eee cause chronic infection in mosquitoes and persistent or chronic infection in mosquito-derived cell lines. in contrast, vertebrate hosts infected with either virus develop an acute infection with high-titer viremia and encephalitis, followed by host de ...	2005	15919912
single amino acid insertions at the junction of the sindbis virus e2 transmembrane domain and endodomain disrupt virus envelopment and alter infectivity.	the final steps in the envelopment of sindbis virus involve specific interactions of the e2 endodomain with the virus nucleocapsid. deleting e2 k at position 391 (e2 deltak391) resulted in the disruption of virus assembly in mammalian cells but not insect cells (host range mutant). this suggested unique interactions of the e2 deltak391 endodomain with the different biochemical environments of the mammalian and insect cell lipid bilayers. to further investigate the role of the amino acid residues ...	2005	15919921
indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase mediates cell type-specific anti-measles virus activity of gamma interferon.	gamma interferon (ifn-gamma) has been shown to be increased in sera from patients with acute measles and after vaccination, to exhibit protective functions in brains of patients with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis, and to mediate a noncytolytic clearance of measles virus (mv) from rodent brains. in order to reveal a possible intracellular antiviral activity in the absence of antigen presentation and cytotoxic t cells, we investigated ifn-gamma-induced effects on mv replication in various ti ...	2005	15919929
reversible acid-induced inactivation of the membrane fusion protein of semliki forest virus.	previously, it has been shown that the exposure of semliki forest virus (sfv) to a mildly acidic environment induces a rapid and complete loss of the ability of the virus to bind and fuse to target membranes added subsequently. in the present study, incubation of sfv at low ph followed by a specific reneutralization step resulted in a partial reversion of this loss of viral fusion capacity, as assessed in a liposomal model system. also, the ability of the viral e1 fusion protein to undergo lipos ...	2005	15919953
targeting sindbis virus-based vectors to fc receptor-positive cell types.	some viruses display enhanced infection for fc receptor (fcr)-positive cell types when complexed with virus-specific immunoglobulin (ig). this process has been termed antibody-dependent enhancement of viral infection (ade). we reasoned that the mechanism of ade could be exploited and adapted to target alphavirus-based vectors to fcr-positive cell types. towards this goal, recombinant sindbis viruses were constructed that express 1 to 4 immunoglobulin-binding domains of protein l (ppl) as n-termi ...	2005	15922395
california serogroup gc (g1) glycoprotein is the principal determinant of ph-dependent cell fusion and entry.	members of the california serogroup of orthobunyaviruses, particularly la crosse (lac) and tahyna (tah) viruses, are significant human pathogens in areas where their mosquito vectors are endemic. previous studies using wild-type lac and tah181/57, a highly neurovirulent strain with low neuroinvasiveness (janssen, r., gonzalez-scarano, f., nathanson, n., 1984. mechanisms of bunyavirus virulence. comparative pathogenesis of a virulent strain of la crosse and an avirulent strain of tahyna virus. la ...	2005	15923017
the use of gene silencing to study the role of dopa decarboxylase in mosquito melanization reactions.	mosquito melanization involves hydroxylation of tyrosine to dopa, which then is oxidized to dopaquinone by phenoloxidase, or decarboxylated to dopamine by dopa decarboxlase (ddc). an armigeres subalbatus cdna encoding ddc was cloned and real-time pcr analysis revealed increased transcripts in blood-fed and microfilariae (mf)-inoculated mosquitoes. a double subgenomic sindbis virus was used to silence ddc and assess its role in melanization of mf. ddc transcription and activity were significantly ...	2005	15926892
peptide inhibitors of dengue virus and west nile virus infectivity.	viral fusion proteins mediate cell entry by undergoing a series of conformational changes that result in virion-target cell membrane fusion. class i viral fusion proteins, such as those encoded by influenza virus and human immunodeficiency virus (hiv), contain two prominent alpha helices. peptides that mimic portions of these alpha helices inhibit structural rearrangements of the fusion proteins and prevent viral infection. the envelope glycoprotein (e) of flaviviruses, such as west nile virus ( ...	2005	15927084
design, synthesis, and evaluation of dioxane-based antiviral agents targeted against the sindbis virus capsid protein.	dioxane-based antiviral agents targeted to the hydrophobic binding pocket of sindbis virus capsid protein were designed by computer graphics molecular modeling and synthesized. virus production using sin-ires-luc and capsid assembly were monitored to evaluate antiviral activity. a compound with a three-carbon linker chain connecting two dioxane moieties inhibited virus production by 50% at a concentration of 40 microm, while (r)-hydroxymethyldioxane inhibited virus production by 50% at a concent ...	2005	15927464
efficient functional pseudotyping of oncoretroviral and lentiviral vectors by venezuelan equine encephalitis virus envelope proteins.	murine oncoretroviruses and lentiviruses pseudotyped with envelope proteins of alphaviruses have shown great potential in providing broad-host-range, stable vectors for gene therapy. unlike vesicular stomatitis virus g protein-pseudotyped vectors, they are not neutralized by complement and do not appear to cause significant tissue damage. here we report the production of murine oncoretroviral and lentiviral vectors pseudotyped with the envelope proteins of venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (v ...	2005	15613303
efficient rescue of hepatitis c virus rna replication by trans-complementation with nonstructural protein 5a.	studies of hepatitis c virus (hcv) rna replication have become possible with the development of subgenomic replicons. this system allows the functional analysis of the essential components of the viral replication complex, which so far are poorly defined. in the present study we wanted to investigate whether lethal mutations in hcv nonstructural genes can be rescued by trans-complementation. therefore, a series of replicon rnas carrying mutations in ns3, ns4b, ns5a, and ns5b that abolish replica ...	2005	15613318
glycine-amide is an active metabolite of the antiretroviral tripeptide glycyl-prolyl-glycine-amide.	the chemically modified tripeptide glycyl-prolyl-glycine-amide (gpg-nh(2)) inhibits replication of human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) type 1 (hiv-1) in vitro, probably by interfering with capsid formation. the aim of the present study was to determine whether the metabolites glycyl-proline (gp-oh), glycine (g-oh), prolyl-glycine-amide (pg-nh(2)), proline (p-oh), and glycine-amide (g-nh(2)) from proteolytic cleavage may inhibit the replication of hiv-1 in vitro. pg-nh(2) has previously been shown ...	2005	15616273
bioinformatic mapping of alkb homology domains in viruses.	alkb-like proteins are members of the 2-oxoglutarate- and fe(ii)-dependent oxygenase superfamily. in escherichia coli the protein protects rna and dna against damage from methylating agents. 1-methyladenine and 3-methylcytosine are repaired by oxidative demethylation and direct reversal of the methylated base back to its unmethylated form. genes for alkb homologues are widespread in nature, and eukaryotes often have several genes coding for alkb-like proteins. similar domains have also been obse ...	2005	15627404
construction and applications of yellow fever virus replicons.	subgenomic replicons of yellow fever virus (yfv) were constructed to allow expression of heterologous reporter genes in a replication-dependent manner. expression of the antibiotic resistance gene neomycin phosphotransferase ii (neo) from one of these yfv replicons allowed selection of a stable population of cells (bhk-rep cells) in which the yfv replicon persistently replicated. bhk-rep cells were successfully used to trans-complement replication-defective yfv replicons harboring large internal ...	2005	15629769
il-15-independent antiviral function of primary and memory cd8+ t cells.	memory cd8+ t cells are comprised of cd122hi il-15-dependent and cd122lo il-15-independent subsets. induction and retention of il-15-independent memory cd8+ t cells was assessed in il-15-/- and wild-type (wt) mice immunized with recombinant vaccinia virus (rvv) or sindbis virus (rsin) vectors expressing the identical foreign epitope. both vectors induced epitope-specific cd8+ t cell expansion and function, independent of il-15. similar kinetics of rvv clearance confirmed effective cd8+ t cell fu ...	2005	15629776
early events in the pathogenesis of eastern equine encephalitis virus in mice.	to elucidate the pathogenesis of eastern equine encephalitis (eee) virus infections, we used histopathology, immunohistochemistry, and in situ hybridization to track the spread and early cellular targets of viral infection in mice. young mice were inoculated with virulent eee virus in their right rear footpad and were followed in a time-course study for 4 days. virulent eee virus produced a biphasic illness characterized by an early self-limiting replication phase in peripheral tissues followed ...	2005	15632009
ethnomedicinal uses of momordicacharantia (cucurbitaceae) in togo and relation to its phytochemistry and biological activity.	investigation of the traditional uses of momordica charantia (cucurbitaceae) in togo (west africa) showed that it is one of the most important local medicinal plants both for ritual and ethnomedical practices. there was a high degree of consensus (>50%) for use in the treatment of gastrointestinal and viral disease among 47 groups of village informants in the general population, while 19 traditional healers reported a larger and broader set of uses. the use by informants in gaur and kwa language ...	2005	15588650
expression of cellular oncogene bcl-xl prevents coronavirus-induced cell death and converts acute infection to persistent infection in progenitor rat oligodendrocytes.	murine coronavirus mouse hepatitis virus (mhv) causes persistent infection of the central nervous system (cns) in rodents, which has been associated with demyelination. however, the precise mechanism of mhv persistence in the cns remains elusive. here we show that the progenitor oligodendrocytes (central glial 4 [cg-4] cells) derived from newborn rat brain were permissive to mhv infection, which resulted in cell death, although viral replication was restricted. interestingly, treatment with feta ...	2005	15596800
prevention of virus persistence and protection against immunopathology after borna disease virus infection of the brain by a novel orf virus recombinant.	the parapoxvirus orf virus represents a promising candidate for novel vector vaccines due to its immune modulating properties even in nonpermissive hosts such as mouse or rat. the highly attenuated orf virus strain d1701 was used to generate a recombinant virus (d1701-vrvp40) expressing nucleoprotein p40 of borna disease virus, which represents a major antigen for the induction of a borna disease virus-specific humoral and cellular immune response. infection with borna disease virus leads to dis ...	2005	15596826
sindbis virus with a tricomponent genome.	we established a system for propagation of sindbis virus (sin)-based replicons in tissue culture in the form of a tricomponent genome virus. three rna fragments containing complementing genetic information required for virus replication are packaged into separate viral particles, and each cell produces at least 1,000 packaged replicons and the number of packaged helpers sufficient to perform the next passage. this system can be used to generate large stocks of packaged replicons. the formation o ...	2005	15596860
rab7 associates with early endosomes to mediate sorting and transport of semliki forest virus to late endosomes.	semliki forest virus (sfv) is internalized by clathrin-mediated endocytosis, and transported via early endosomes to late endosomes and lysosomes. the intracellular pathway taken by individual fluorescently labeled sfv particles was followed using immunofluorescence in untransfected cells, and by video-enhanced, triple-color fluorescence microscopy in live cells transfected with gfp- and rfp-tagged rab5, rab7, rab4, and arf1. the viruses progressed from rab5-positive early endosomes to a populati ...	2005	15954801
enhanced potency of plasmid dna microparticle human immunodeficiency virus vaccines in rhesus macaques by using a priming-boosting regimen with recombinant proteins.	dna vaccines have been used widely in experimental primate models of human immunodeficiency virus (hiv), but their effectiveness has been limited. in this study, we evaluated three technologies for increasing the potency of dna vaccines in rhesus macaques. these included dna encoding sindbis virus rna replicons (psincp), cationic poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (plg) microparticles for dna delivery, and recombinant protein boosting. the dna-based psincp replicon vaccines encoding hiv gag and env were ...	2005	15956564
innate stat1-dependent genomic response of neurons to the antiviral cytokine alpha interferon.	alpha/beta interferons (ifns-alpha/beta) are cytokines that play an essential role in the host defense against viral infection. our previous studies have shown that the key ifn signaling molecule stat1 is highly elevated and activated in central nervous system neurons during viral infection and in transgenic mice with astrocyte production of ifn-alpha (glial fibrillary acidic protein [gfap]-ifn-alpha), suggesting that neurons are a very responsive target cell population for ifns. to elucidate th ...	2005	15956575
control of translation by the 5'- and 3'-terminal regions of the dengue virus genome.	the genomic rnas of flaviviruses such as dengue virus (den) have a 5' m7gpppn cap like those of cellular mrnas but lack a 3' poly(a) tail. we have studied the contributions to translational expression of 5'- and 3'-terminal regions of the den serotype 2 genome by using luciferase reporter mrnas transfected into vero cells. dcld rna contained the entire den 5' and 3' untranslated regions (utrs), as well as the first 36 codons of the capsid coding region fused to the luciferase reporter gene. capp ...	2005	15956576
envelope protein glycosylation status influences mouse neuroinvasion phenotype of genetic lineage 1 west nile virus strains.	the introduction of west nile virus (wnv) into north america has been associated with relatively high rates of neurological disease and death in humans, birds, horses, and some other animals. previous studies identified strains in both genetic lineage 1 and genetic lineage 2, including north american isolates of lineage 1, that were highly virulent in a mouse neuroinvasion model, while other strains were avirulent or significantly attenuated (d. w. c. beasley, l. li, m. t. suderman, and a. d. t. ...	2005	15956579
early arthritis and infection.	to summarize the recent literature on the association of infection with early arthritis, and to discuss the possible role of such infections with respect to the development of chronic rheumatic complications.	2005	15956840
oncolytic viral therapy for cervical and ovarian cancer cells by sindbis virus ar339 strain.	recently, the application of replication-competent viruses has been studied as anticancer agents. sindbis virus (sin) is an rna virus that belongs to the alphavirus genus in the togaviridae virus family. the ar339 strain of sin has not been reported to induce any serious disease to humans.	2005	15958641
viroporin activity of murine hepatitis virus e protein.	the viroporin activity of the e protein from murine hepatitis virus (mhv), a member of the coronaviruses, was analyzed. viroporins are a growing family of viral proteins able to enhance membrane permeability, promoting virus budding. initially, the mhv e gene was inducibly expressed in escherichia coli cells, leading to the arrest of bacterial growth, cell lysis and permeabilization to different compounds. thus, exit of labeled nucleotides from e. coli cells to the cytoplasm was apparent upon ex ...	2005	15963987
targeted gene delivery by intravenous injection of retroviral vectors.	specifically and effectively directing a therapeutic gene to its intended site of action is a critical issue for translation of basic genomics to clinical gene therapy. delivering gene therapy vectors to specific cells or tissues through intravenous injection is the most desirable method for this purpose. in 2001, we reported successful targeted gene transduction in vitro utilizing both oncoretroviral and lentiviral vectors pseudotyped with a chimeric sindbis virus envelope (zz sindbis). however ...	2005	15970695
castanospermine, a potent inhibitor of dengue virus infection in vitro and in vivo.	previous studies have suggested that alpha-glucosidase inhibitors such as castanospermine and deoxynojirimycin inhibit dengue virus type 1 infection by disrupting the folding of the structural proteins prm and e, a step crucial to viral secretion. we extend these studies by evaluating the inhibitory activity of castanospermine against a panel of clinically important flaviviruses including all four serotypes of dengue virus, yellow fever virus, and west nile virus. using in vitro assays we demons ...	2005	15994763
infectious pancreatic necrosis virus vp5 is dispensable for virulence and persistence.	infectious pancreatic necrosis virus (ipnv) is the causative agent of infectious pancreatic necrosis (ipn) disease in salmonid fish. recent studies have revealed variation in virulence between isolates of the sp serotype, associated with certain residues of the structural protein vp2. the isolates are also highly heterogenic in the coding region of the nonstructural vp5 protein. to study the involvement of this protein in the pathogenesis of disease, we generated three recombinant vp5 mutant vir ...	2005	15994815
respiratory syncytial virus nonstructural proteins ns1 and ns2 mediate inhibition of stat2 expression and alpha/beta interferon responsiveness.	respiratory syncytial virus (rsv) subverts the antiviral interferon (ifn) response, but the mechanism for this evasion was unclear. here we show that rsv preferentially inhibits ifn-alpha/beta signaling by expression of viral ns1 and ns2. thus, rsv infection or expression of recombinant ns1 and ns2 in epithelial host cells causes a marked decrease in stat2 levels and the consequent downstream ifn-alpha/beta response. similarly, ns1/ns2-deficient rsv no longer decreases stat2 levels or ifn respon ...	2005	15994826
aif suppresses chemical stress-induced apoptosis and maintains the transformed state of tumor cells.	apoptosis-inducing factor (aif) exhibits reactive oxygen species (ros)-generating nadh oxidase activity of unknown significance, which is dispensable for apoptosis. we knocked out the aif gene in two human colon carcinoma cell lines that displayed lower mitochondrial complex i oxidoreductase activity and produced less ros, but showed increased sensitivity to peroxide- or drug-induced apoptosis. aif knockout cells failed to form tumors in athymic mice or grow in soft agar. only aif with intact na ...	2005	16001080
reovirus infection of the cns enhances inos expression in areas of virus-induced injury.	nitric oxide (no) has been implicated as a contributor to the host's innate defense against viral infections including those affecting the cns. reovirus infection of the cns is a classic experimental system for understanding the pathogenesis of neurotropic viral infection. infection with serotype 3 strains is associated with perturbations in various cellular signaling pathways including nf-kappab and no plays a regulatory role in many of these same pathways. we therefore examined whether no prod ...	2005	16004984
inhibition of transcription and translation in sindbis virus-infected cells.	alphaviruses are arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) that include a number of important human and animal pathogens. the natural transmission cycle of alphaviruses requires their presence at high concentrations in the blood of amplification hosts for efficient infection of mosquito vectors. the high-titer viremia development implies multiple rounds of infection that proceed in the background of the developing antiviral cell response aimed at blocking virus spread on an organismal level. therefo ...	2005	16014903
characterization of immune responses induced by intramuscular vaccination with dna vaccines encoding measles virus hemagglutinin and/or fusion proteins.	measles virus (mv) hemagglutinin (mv-h) and fusion (mv-f) proteins induce plaque reduction neutralizing (prn) antibodies and cell-mediated immune responses that protect against clinical measles. dna vaccines that encode mv-h and mv-f are being investigated as a new generation of measles vaccine to protect infants too young to receive currently licensed attenuated measles vaccines. however, it is unclear whether dna vaccines encoding both mv-h and mv-f act synergistically to induce stronger immun ...	2005	16014946
essential amino acids of the hantaan virus n protein in its interaction with rna.	the nucleocapsid (n) protein of hantavirus encapsidates viral genomic and antigenomic rnas. previously, deletion mapping identified a central, conserved region (amino acids 175 to 217) within the hantaan virus (htnv) n protein that interacts with a high affinity with these viral rnas (vrnas). to further define the boundaries of the rna binding domain (rbd), several peptides were synthesized and examined for the ability to bind full-length s-segment vrna. peptide 195-217 retained 94% of the vrna ...	2005	16014963
modulation of disease, t cell responses, and measles virus clearance in monkeys vaccinated with h-encoding alphavirus replicon particles.	measles remains a major worldwide problem partly because of difficulties with vaccination of young infants. new vaccine strategies need to be safe and to provide sustained protective immunity. we have developed sindbis virus replicon particles that express the measles virus (mv) hemagglutinin (sin-h) or fusion (sin-f) proteins. in mice, sin-h induced high-titered, dose-dependent, mv-neutralizing antibody after a single vaccination. sin-f, or sin-h and sin-f combined, induced somewhat lower respo ...	2005	16037211
bcl-xl inhibits t-cell apoptosis induced by expression of sars coronavirus e protein in the absence of growth factors.	one of the hallmark findings in patients suffering from sars (severe acute respiratory syndrome) is lymphopenia, which is the result of massive lymphocyte death. sars-cov (sars coronavirus), a novel coronavirus that has been etiologically associated with sars cases, is homologous with mhv (murine hepatitis coronavirus), and mhv small envelope e protein is capable of inducing apoptosis. we hypothesized that sars-cov encodes a small envelope e protein that is homologous with mhv e protein, thus in ...	2005	16048439
early alpha/beta interferon production by myeloid dendritic cells in response to uv-inactivated virus requires viral entry and interferon regulatory factor 3 but not myd88.	alpha/beta interferons (ifn-alpha/beta) are key mediators of innate immunity and important modulators of adaptive immunity. the mechanisms by which ifn-alpha/beta are induced are becoming increasingly well understood. recent studies showed that toll-like receptors 7 and 8 expressed by plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pdcs) mediate the endosomal recognition of incoming viral rna genomes, a process which requires myeloid differentiation factor 88 (myd88). here we investigate the requirements for viru ...	2005	16051830
bovine viral diarrhea virus entry is dependent on clathrin-mediated endocytosis.	cellular mechanisms of bovine viral diarrhea virus (bvdv) entry in mdbk cells were investigated. chloroquine, bafilomycin a1, or ammonium chloride inhibited bvdv infection, indicating that an acidic endosomal ph is required for bvdv entry. the tyrosine kinase inhibitor genistein partially inhibited bvdv infection at a postentry step, whereas bvdv entry was strongly inhibited by chlorpromazine or by the overexpression of a dominant-negative form of eps15, a protein essential for the formation of ...	2005	16051874
alphaviral cytotoxicity and its implication in vector development.	a great variety of viruses have been engineered to serve as expression vectors. among them, the alphaviruses semliki forest virus and sindbis virus represent promising tools for heterologous gene expression in a wide variety of host cells. several applications have already been described in neurobiological studies, in gene therapy, for vaccine development and in cancer therapy. both viruses trigger stress pathways in the cells they infect, sometimes culminating in the death of the host. this inh ...	2005	15542620
protective effects of task-3 (kcnk9) and related 2p k channels during cellular stress.	tandem pore domain (or 2p) k channels form a recently isolated family of channels that are responsible for background k currents in excitable tissues. previous studies have indicated that 2p k channel activity produces membrane hyperpolarization, which may offer protection from cellular insults. to study the effect of these channels in neuroprotection, we overexpressed ph-sensitive 2p k channels by transfecting the partially transformed c8 cell line with these channels. tandem pore weak inward r ...	2005	15649441
west nile virus inhibits the signal transduction pathway of alpha interferon.	west nile virus (wnv) is a human pathogen that can cause neurological disorders, including meningoencephalitis. experiments with mice and mammalian cell cultures revealed that wnv exhibited resistance to the innate immune program induced by alpha interferon (ifn-alpha). we have investigated the nature of this inhibition and have found that wnv replication inhibited the activation of many known ifn-inducible genes, because it prevented the phosphorylation and activation of the janus kinases jak1 ...	2005	15650160
mutual interference between genomic rna replication and subgenomic mrna transcription in brome mosaic virus.	replication by many positive-strand rna viruses includes genomic rna amplification and subgenomic mrna (sgrna) transcription. for brome mosaic virus (bmv), both processes occur in virus-induced, membrane-associated compartments, require bmv replication factors 1a and 2a, and use negative-strand rna3 as a template for genomic rna3 and sgrna syntheses. to begin elucidating their relations, we examined the interaction of rna3 replication and sgrna transcription in saccharomyces cerevisiae expressin ...	2005	15650170
sindbis virus translation is inhibited by a pkr/rnase l-independent effector induced by alpha/beta interferon priming of dendritic cells.	the tropism of sindbis virus (sb) for cells of the dendritic cell (dc) lineage and the virulence of sb in vivo are largely determined by the efficacy of alpha/beta interferon (ifn-alpha/beta)-mediated antiviral responses. these responses are essentially intact in the absence of pkr and/or rnase l (k. d. ryman, l. j. white, r. e. johnston, and w. b. klimstra, viral immunol. 15:53-76, 2002). in the present studies, we investigated the nature of antiviral effects and identity of antiviral effectors ...	2005	15650175
involvement of clathrin-mediated endocytosis in human immunodeficiency virus type 1 entry.	productive entry of human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) is believed to occur by direct fusion at the plasma membrane. endocytic uptake of hiv particles has been observed in several studies but is considered to be nonproductive, leading to virus degradation in the lysosome. we show here that endocytosis contributes significantly to productive hiv entry in hela cells by using trans dominant-negative mutants of dynamin and eps15. inducible expression of a dominant-negative mutant of dynamin in a cd4 ...	2005	15650184
human immunodeficiency virus type 1 vectors with alphavirus envelope glycoproteins produced from stable packaging cells.	alphavirus glycoproteins have broad host ranges. human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (hiv-1) vectors pseudotyped with their glycoproteins could extend the range of tissues that can be transduced in both humans and animal models. here, we established stable producer cell lines for hiv vectors pseudotyped with alphavirus ross river virus (rrv) and semliki forest virus (sfv) glycoproteins e2e1. rrv e2e1-stable clones could routinely produce high-titer pseudotyped vectors for at least 5 months. sfv ...	2005	15650201
yellow fever 17d as a vaccine vector for microbial ctl epitopes: protection in a rodent malaria model.	the yellow fever vaccine 17d (17d) is safe, and after a single immunizing dose, elicits long-lasting, perhaps lifelong protective immunity. one of the major challenges facing delivery of human vaccines in underdeveloped countries is the need for multiple injections to achieve full efficacy. to examine 17d as a vector for microbial t cell epitopes, we inserted the h-2k(d)-restricted ctl epitope of the circumsporozoite protein (cs) of plasmodium yoelii between 17d nonstructural proteins ns2b and n ...	2005	15657290
requirement of the vesicular system for membrane permeabilization by sindbis virus.	the vast majority of animal viruses enhance membrane permeability at two moments of infection. herein, we describe that the entry of sindbis virus (sv) in bhk cells promotes the co-entry of the macromolecule alpha-sarcin into the cytoplasm, thereby blocking translation. at a later stage, this protein toxin cannot enter the cell, while low molecular weight compounds, such as hygromycin b, readily pass through the plasma membrane of sindbis virus-infected bhk cells. to unveil the participation of ...	2005	15661162
invariant valpha14 chain nkt cells promote plasmodium berghei circumsporozoite protein-specific gamma interferon- and tumor necrosis factor alpha-producing cd8+ t cells in the liver after poxvirus vaccination of mice.	understanding the protective mechanism in the liver induced by recombinant vaccines against the pre-erythrocytic stages of malaria is important for vaccine development. most studies in mice have focused on splenic and peripheral blood t cells and identified gamma interferon (ifn-gamma)-producing cd8+ t cells as correlates of protection, which can be induced by prime-boost vaccination with recombinant poxviruses. invariant natural killer t (valpha14inkt) cells can also protect against liver stage ...	2005	15664925
adp-ribose-1"-monophosphatase: a conserved coronavirus enzyme that is dispensable for viral replication in tissue culture.	replication of the approximately 30-kb plus-strand rna genome of coronaviruses and synthesis of an extensive set of subgenome-length rnas are mediated by the replicase-transcriptase, a membrane-bound protein complex containing several cellular proteins and up to 16 viral nonstructural proteins (nsps) with multiple enzymatic activities, including protease, polymerase, helicase, methyltransferase, and rnase activities. to get further insight into the replicase gene-encoded functions, we characteri ...	2005	16188975
virus infection switches tlr-3-positive human neurons to become strong producers of beta interferon.	to study the capacity of human neurons to mount innate immunity responses to viral infections, we infected cells of a human postmitotic neuron-derivative cell line, nt2-n, with rabies virus (rabv) and herpes simplex type 1 (hsv-1). changes in neuronal gene expression were analyzed by use of affymetrix microarrays. applying a twofold cutoff, rabv increased the transcription of 228 genes, and hsv-1 increased the transcription of 263 genes. the most striking difference between the two infections co ...	2005	16188991
a surface groove essential for viral bcl-2 function during chronic infection in vivo.	antiapoptotic bcl-2 family proteins inhibit apoptosis in cultured cells by binding bh3 domains of proapoptotic bcl-2 family members via a hydrophobic bh3 binding groove on the protein surface. we investigated the physiological importance of the bh3 binding groove of an antiapoptotic bcl-2 protein in mammals in vivo by analyzing a viral bcl-2 family protein. we show that the gamma-herpesvirus 68 (gammahv68) bcl-2 family protein (gammahv68 v-bcl-2), which is known to inhibit apoptosis in cultured ...	2005	16201011
sindbis virus induces transport processes and alters expression of innate immunity pathway genes in the midgut of the disease vector, aedes aegypti.	the midgut of hematophagous insects is the initial site of infection by arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) and plays a crucial role in vector competence. to further understand processes that occur in the midgut in response to infection by an arbovirus, dna microarrays were used to analyze gene expression changes following infection by the alphavirus, sindbis (mre16 malaysian strain). midgut transcription profiles from mosquitoes fed blood containing 10(8)pfu/ml of virus were compared with tho ...	2005	16203210
domain iii from class ii fusion proteins functions as a dominant-negative inhibitor of virus membrane fusion.	alphaviruses and flaviviruses infect cells through low ph-dependent membrane fusion reactions mediated by their structurally similar viral fusion proteins. during fusion, these class ii viral fusion proteins trimerize and refold to form hairpin-like structures, with the domain iii and stem regions folded back toward the target membrane-inserted fusion peptides. we demonstrate that exogenous domain iii can function as a dominant-negative inhibitor of alphavirus and flavivirus membrane fusion and ...	2005	16216925
ceramide-enriched membrane domains.	cellular activation involves the re-organization of receptor molecules and the intracellular signalosom in the cell membrane. recent studies indicate that specialized domains of the cell membrane, termed rafts, are central for the spatial organization of receptors and signaling molecules. rafts are converted into larger membrane platforms by activity of the acid sphingomyelinase, which hydrolyses raft-sphingomyelin to ceramide. ceramide molecules spontaneously associate to form ceramide-enriched ...	2005	16226325
alpha/beta interferon protects against lethal west nile virus infection by restricting cellular tropism and enhancing neuronal survival.	west nile virus (wnv) is a mosquito-borne flavivirus that is neurotropic in humans, birds, and other animals. while adaptive immunity plays an important role in preventing wnv spread to the central nervous system (cns), little is known about how alpha/beta interferon (ifn-alpha/beta) protects against peripheral and cns infection. in this study, we examine the virulence and tropism of wnv in ifn-alpha/beta receptor-deficient (ifn- alpha/betar-/-) mice and primary neuronal cultures. ifn-alpha/beta ...	2005	16227257
cd8 t cells require gamma interferon to clear borna disease virus from the brain and prevent immune system-mediated neuronal damage.	borna disease virus (bdv) frequently causes meningoencephalitis and fatal neurological disease in young but not old mice of strain mrl. disease does not result from the virus-induced destruction of infected neurons. rather, it is mediated by h-2(k)-restricted antiviral cd8 t cells that recognize a peptide derived from the bdv nucleoprotein n. persistent bdv infection in mice is not spontaneously cleared. we report here that n-specific vaccination can protect wild-type mrl mice but not mutant mrl ...	2005	16227271
influenza virus hemagglutinin (h3 subtype) requires palmitoylation of its cytoplasmic tail for assembly: m1 proteins of two subtypes differ in their ability to support assembly.	the influenza a virus hemagglutinin (ha) transmembrane domain boundary region and the cytoplasmic tail contain three cysteines (residues 555, 562, and 565 for the h3 ha subtype) that are highly conserved among the 16 ha subtypes and which are each modified by the covalent addition of palmitic acid. previous analysis of the role of these conserved cysteine residues led to differing data, suggesting either no role for ha palmitoylation or an important role for ha palmitoylation. to reexamine the r ...	2005	16227287
human immunodeficiency virus type 1 vpr interacts with antiapoptotic mitochondrial protein hax-1.	human immunodeficiency virus type 1 viral protein r (vpr) is required for viral pathogenesis and has been implicated in t-cell apoptosis through its activation of caspase 3 and caspase 9 and perturbation of mitochondrial membrane potential. to understand better vpr-mitochondria interaction, we report here the identification of antiapoptotic mitochondrial protein hax-1 as a novel vpr target. we show that vpr and hax-1 physically associate with each other. overexpression of vpr in cells dislocates ...	2005	16227293
aberrant cortical neurogenesis in a pediatric neuroaids model: neurotrophic effects of growth hormone.	to study the effects of hiv-1 and feline immunodeficiency virus (fiv) on neural stem cell viability, together with the neurotrophic properties of growth hormone (gh) in models of pediatric neuroaids.	2005	16227785
biology and application of alphaviruses in gene therapy.	the broad host cell range and high expression levels of transgenes are features that have made alphaviruses attractive for gene expression studies and gene therapy applications. particularly, semliki forest virus vectors have been applied for large-scale production of recombinant membrane proteins for drug screening purposes and structural biology studies. the high preference of expression in neuronal cells has led to many applications of alphavirus vectors in neuroscience. studies on localizati ...	2005	16231060
a family of mammalian e3 ubiquitin ligases that contain the ubr box motif and recognize n-degrons.	a subset of proteins targeted by the n-end rule pathway bear degradation signals called n-degrons, whose determinants include destabilizing n-terminal residues. our previous work identified mouse ubr1 and ubr2 as e3 ubiquitin ligases that recognize n-degrons. such e3s are called n-recognins. we report here that while double-mutant ubr1(-/-) ubr2(-/-) mice die as early embryos, the rescued ubr1(-/-) ubr2(-/-) fibroblasts still retain the n-end rule pathway, albeit of lower activity than that of w ...	2005	16055722
viruses activate a genetically conserved cell death pathway in a unicellular organism.	given the importance of apoptosis in the pathogenesis of virus infections in mammals, we investigated the possibility that unicellular organisms also respond to viral pathogens by activating programmed cell death. the m1 and m2 killer viruses of saccharomyces cerevisiae encode pore-forming toxins that were assumed to kill uninfected yeast cells by a nonprogrammed assault. however, we found that yeast persistently infected with these killer viruses induce a programmed suicide pathway in uninfecte ...	2005	16061692
a cell-free system for the synthesis of sindbis virus subgenomic rna: importance of the concentration of the initiating ntp.	we describe here an in vitro system for template-dependent initiation and synthesis of a sindbis virus (sv) subgenomic (sg) rna transcript. the critical components of this system were (1) a minus-strand promoter-template corresponding to the region of the sv genome from nt 7441 to nt 7772 (-157 to +175 relative to the sg rna transcription initiation site at nt 7598), and (2) a p15 fraction from cells infected with recombinant vaccinia viruses expressing the sv nonstructural proteins, p123 and ns ...	2005	16085228