| myxoma virus induces apoptosis in cultured feline carcinoma cells. | there is growing interest in utilizing replicating oncolytic viruses as cancer therapeutics agents. the effectiveness of myxoma virus-induced oncolysis was evaluated in two feline cancer cell cultures. although myxoma virus is a rabbit-specific pathogen, protein expression driven by myxoma virus and production of infectious viral particles were detected. cell death occurred in primary feline cancer cells within 48h of inoculation with myxoma virus. future studies to determine if other feline neo ... | 2011 | 22100245 |
| genetic characterization of the chemokine receptor cxcr4 gene in lagomorphs: comparison between the families ochotonidae and leporidae. | chemokines receptors are transmembrane proteins that bind chemokines. chemokines and their receptors are known to play a crucial role in the immune system and in pathogen entry. there is evidence that myxoma virus, the causative agent of myxomatosis, can use the chemokine receptor cxcr4 to infect cells. this virus causes a benign disease in its natural host, sylvilagus, but in the european rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus) it causes a highly fatal and infectious disease known as myxomatosis. we hav ... | 2008 | 18205827 |
| comparative analysis of poxvirus orthologues of the vaccinia virus e3 protein: modulation of protein kinase r activity, cytokine responses, and virus pathogenicity. | poxviruses are important human and animal pathogens that have evolved elaborate strategies for antagonizing host innate and adaptive immunity. the e3 protein of vaccinia virus, the prototypic member of the orthopoxviruses, functions as an inhibitor of innate immune signaling and is essential for vaccinia virus replication in vivo and in many human cell culture systems. however, the function of orthologues of e3 expressed by poxviruses of other genera with different host specificity remains large ... | 2011 | 21917954 |
| myxoma virus oncolysis of primary and metastatic b16f10 mouse tumors in vivo. | myxoma virus (mv) is a rabbit-specific poxvirus, whose unexpected tropism to human cancer cells has led to studies exploring its potential use in oncolytic therapy. mv infects a wide range of human cancer cells in vitro, in a manner intricately linked to the cellular activation of akt kinase. mv has also been successfully used for treating human glioma xenografts in immunodeficient mice. this study examines the effectiveness of mv in treating primary and metastatic mouse tumors in immunocompeten ... | 2008 | 17998900 |
| myxoma virus sensitizes cancer cells to gemcitabine and is an effective oncolytic virotherapeutic in models of disseminated pancreatic cancer. | myxoma virus (myxv) is a novel oncolytic virus that has been shown to replicate in pancreatic cancer cells, but its efficacy in animal models of pancreatic cancer has not been determined. the efficacy of myxv as monotherapy or in combination with gemcitabine was evaluated in intraperitoneal dissemination (ipd) models of pancreatic cancer. the effects of an intact immune system on the efficacy of myxv therapy was tested by comparing immunodeficient versus immunocompetent murine models and combina ... | 2012 | 22233582 |
| oncolytic virotherapy for hematological malignancies. | hematological malignancies such as leukemias, lymphomas, multiple myeloma (mm), and the myelodysplastic syndromes (mdss) primarily affect adults and are difficult to treat. for high-risk disease, hematopoietic stem cell transplant (hct) can be used. however, in the setting of autologous hct, relapse due to contamination of the autograft with cancer cells remains a major challenge. ex vivo manipulations of the autograft to purge cancer cells using chemotherapies and toxins have been attempted. be ... | 2011 | 22312362 |
| the role of cell signaling in poxvirus tropism: the case of the m-t5 host range protein of myxoma virus. | poxviruses demonstrate strict species specificity in vivo that range from narrow to broad, however the fundamental factors that mediate the basis of poxvirus tropism remain poorly understood. it is generally believed that most, if not all, poxviruses can efficiently bind and enter a wide range of mammalian cells and all of the known host anti-viral pathways that block viral replication in nonpremissive cells operate downstream of virus entry. a productive poxvirus infection is heavily dependent ... | 2008 | 17905673 |
| myxoma virus and oncolytic virotherapy: a new biologic weapon in the war against cancer. | oncolytic virotherapy is an innovative alternative to more conventional cancer therapies. the ability of some viruses to specifically target and kill malignant cancerous cells while leaving normal tissue unscathed has opened a large repertoire of new and selective cancer killing therapeutic candidates. poxviruses, such as vaccinia virus, have a long history of use in humans as live vaccines and have more recently been studied as potential platforms for delivery of immunotherapeutics and attenuat ... | 2007 | 17727330 |
| oncolytic viruses in cancer therapy. | oncolytic virotherapy is a promising form of gene therapy for cancer, employing nature's own agents to find and destroy malignant cells. the purpose of this review is to provide an introduction to this very topical field of research and to point out some of the current observations, insights and ideas circulating in the literature. we have strived to acknowledge as many different oncolytic viruses as possible to give a broader picture of targeting cancer using viruses. some of the newest additio ... | 2007 | 17383089 |
| viral biocontrol: grand experiments in disease emergence and evolution. | although viral emergence is commonly associated with cross-species transmission, the processes and determinants of viral evolution in a novel host environment are poorly understood. we address key questions in virus emergence and evolution using data generated from two unique natural experiments: the deliberate release of myxoma virus (myxv) and rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (rhdv) as biological control (biocontrol) agents against the european rabbit in australia, and which have been of enorm ... | 2014 | 25455418 |
| structural basis for antagonizing a host restriction factor by c7 family of poxvirus host-range proteins. | human sterile alpha motif domain-containing 9 (samd9) protein is a host restriction factor for poxviruses, but it can be overcome by some poxvirus host-range proteins that share homology with vaccinia virus c7 protein. to understand the mechanism of action for this important family of host-range factors, we determined the crystal structures of c7 and myxoma virus m64, a c7 family member that is unable to antagonize samd9. despite their different functions and only 23% sequence identity, the two ... | 2015 | 26578811 |
| a whole-genome rna interference screen for human cell factors affecting myxoma virus replication. | myxoma virus (myxv) provides an important model for investigating host-pathogen interactions. recent studies have also highlighted how mutations in transformed human cells can expand the host range of this rabbit virus. although virus growth depends upon interactions between virus and host proteins, the nature of these interactions is poorly understood. to address this matter, we performed small interfering rna (sirna) screens for genes affecting myxv growth in human mda-mb-231 cells. by using s ... | 2013 | 23408614 |
| molecular species identification, host preference and detection of myxoma virus in the anopheles maculipennis complex (diptera: culicidae) in southern england, uk. | determining the host feeding patterns of mosquitoes by identifying the origin of their blood-meals is an important part of understanding the role of vector species in current and future disease transmission cycles. collecting large numbers of blood-fed mosquitoes from the field is difficult, therefore it is important to maximise the information obtained from each specimen. this study aimed to use mosquito genome sequence to identify the species within anopheles maculipennis sensu lato (an. macul ... | 2015 | 26271277 |
| biological characterization and next-generation genome sequencing of the unclassified cotia virus span232 (poxviridae). | cotia virus (cotv) span232 was isolated in 1961 from sentinel mice at cotia field station, são paulo, brazil. attempts to classify cotv within a recognized genus of the poxviridae have generated contradictory findings. studies by different researchers suggested some similarity to myxoma virus and swinepox virus, whereas another investigation characterized cotv span232 as a vaccinia virus strain. because of the lack of consensus, we have conducted an independent biological and molecular character ... | 2012 | 22345477 |
| myxoma virus m063r is a host range gene essential for virus replication in rabbit cells. | the myxoma virus m063r gene product exhibits some sequence similarity to the poxvirus host range gene, c7l, of vaccinia virus. to address the potential host range function of the m063r gene product in rabbits, a deletion mutant of myxoma virus (vmyx63ko) was generated and characterized. vmyx63ko replicated to normal titre levels and produced foci that were indistinguishable from those produced by mv in vitro in a monkey kidney cell line (bgmk) that are permissive for wild type mv. however, vmyx6 ... | 2007 | 17184804 |
| ligand-induced and nonfusogenic dissolution of a viral membrane. | hitherto, all enveloped viruses were thought to shed their lipid membrane during entry into cells by membrane fusion. the extracellular form of vaccinia virus has two lipid envelopes surrounding the virus core, and consequently a single fusion event will not deliver a naked core into the cell. here we report a previously underscribed mechanism in which the outer viral membrane is disrupted by a ligand-induced nonfusogenic reaction, followed by the fusion of the inner viral membrane with the plas ... | 2006 | 16585508 |
| exploring the antitumor effect of virus in malignant glioma. | malignant gliomas are the most common type of primary malignant brain tumor with no effective treatments. current conventional therapies (surgical resection, radiation therapy, temozolomide (tmz), and bevacizumab administration) typically fail to eradicate the tumors resulting in the recurrence of treatment-resistant tumors. therefore, novel approaches are needed to improve therapeutic outcomes. oncolytic viruses (ovs) are excellent candidates as a more effective therapeutic strategy for aggress ... | 2017 | 26855472 |
| the ex vivo purge of cancer cells using oncolytic viruses: recent advances and clinical implications. | hematological malignancies are treated with intensive high-dose chemotherapy, with or without radiation. this is followed by hematopoietic stem cell (hsc) transplantation (hsct) to rescue or reconstitute hematopoiesis damaged by the anticancer therapy. autologous hsc grafts may contain cancer cells and purging could further improve treatment outcomes. similarly, allogeneic hsct may be improved by selectively purging alloreactive effector cells from the graft rather than wholesale immune cell dep ... | 2015 | 27512666 |
| prevention of ebv lymphoma development by oncolytic myxoma virus in a murine xenograft model of post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease. | epstein-barr virus (ebv) has been associated with a variety of epithelial and hematologic malignancies, including b-, t- and nk cell-lymphomas, hodgkin's disease (hd), post-transplant lymphoproliferative diseases (lpds), nasopharyngeal and gastric carcinomas, smooth muscle tumors, and hiv-associated lymphomas. currently, treatment options for ebv-associated malignancies are limited. we have previously shown that myxoma virus specifically targets various human solid tumors and leukemia cells in a ... | 2015 | 25843801 |
| pseudogenization of the mcp-2/ccl8 chemokine gene in european rabbit (genus oryctolagus), but not in species of cottontail rabbit (sylvilagus) and hare (lepus). | recent studies in human have highlighted the importance of the monocyte chemotactic proteins (mcp) in leukocyte trafficking and their effects in inflammatory processes, tumor progression, and hiv-1 infection. in european rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus) one of the prime mcp targets, the chemokine receptor ccr5 underwent a unique structural alteration. until now, no homologue of mcp-2/ccl8a, mcp-3/ccl7 or mcp-4/ccl13 genes have been reported for this species. this is interesting, because at least t ... | 2012 | 22894773 |
| a poxvirus-encoded pyrin domain protein interacts with asc-1 to inhibit host inflammatory and apoptotic responses to infection. | proinflammatory caspases play an essential role in innate immune responses to infection by regulating the cleavage and activation of proinflammatory cytokines. activation of these enzymes requires the assembly of an intracellular molecular platform, termed the inflammasome, which is comprised of members of the pyrin domain (pyd)-containing superfamily of apoptosis and inflammation-regulatory proteins. we report here the identification and characterization of a poxvirus-encoded pyd-containing pro ... | 2005 | 16356857 |
| the inadvertent introduction into australia of trypanosoma nabiasi, the trypanosome of the european rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus), and its potential for biocontrol. | wild rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus) in australia are the descendents of 24 animals from england released in 1859. we surveyed rabbits and rabbit fleas (spilopsyllus cuniculi) in australia for the presence of trypanosomes using parasitological and pcr-based methods. trypanosomes were detected in blood from the european rabbits by microscopy, and pcr using trypanosome-specific small subunit ribosomal rna (ssu rrna) gene primers and those in rabbit fleas by pcr. this is the first record of trypano ... | 2005 | 16101782 |
| myxoma virus selectively disrupts type i interferon signaling in primary human fibroblasts by blocking the activation of the janus kinase tyk2. | poxviruses currently are known to disrupt jak-stat signal transduction induced by interferon (ifn) through two distinct mechanisms: (1) secreted poxviral ifn decoy receptors that prevent the initiation of ifn signaling from type i or ii receptors at the cell surface; and (2) poxviral phosphatase that dephosphorylates stat1 intracellularly. here, we report a novel mechanism by which poxviruses can inhibit jak-stat signaling in response to type i ifn. myxoma virus (mv) is a highly species-restrict ... | 2009 | 19254804 |
| genomic and phenotypic characterization of myxoma virus from great britain reveals multiple evolutionary pathways distinct from those in australia. | the co-evolution of myxoma virus (myxv) and the european rabbit occurred independently in australia and europe from different progenitor viruses. although this is the canonical study of the evolution of virulence, whether the genomic and phenotypic outcomes of myxv evolution in europe mirror those observed in australia is unknown. we addressed this question using viruses isolated in the united kingdom early in the myxv epizootic (1954-1955) and between 2008-2013. the later uk viruses fell into t ... | 2017 | 28253375 |
| an interaction domain in human samd9 is essential for myxoma virus host-range determinant m062 antagonism of host anti-viral function. | in humans, deleterious mutations in the sterile α motif domain protein 9 (samd9) gene are associated with cancer, inflammation, weakening of the immune response, and developmental arrest. however, the biological function of samd9 and its sequence-structure relationships remain to be characterized. previously, we found that an essential host range factor, m062 protein from myxoma virus (myxv), antagonized the function of human samd9. in this study, we examine the interaction between m062 and huma ... | 2017 | 28157624 |
| myxoma viral serpin, serp-1, inhibits human monocyte adhesion through regulation of actin-binding protein filamin b. | serp-1 is a secreted myxoma viral serine protease inhibitor (serpin) with proven, highly effective, anti-inflammatory defensive activity during host cell infection, as well as potent immunomodulatory activity in a wide range of animal disease models. serp-1 binds urokinase-type plasminogen activator (upa) and the tissue-type pa, plasmin, and factor xa, requiring upa receptor (upar) for anti-inflammatory activity. to define serp-1-mediated effects on inflammatory cell activation, we examined the ... | 2009 | 19052145 |
| m148r and m149r are two virulence factors for myxoma virus pathogenesis in the european rabbit. | myxoma virus (myxv), a member of the poxviridae family, is the agent responsible for myxomatosis, a fatal disease in the european rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus). myxv has a linear double-stranded dna genome that encodes several factors important for evasion from the host immune system. among them, four ankyrin (ank) repeat proteins were identified: m148r, m149r, m150r and m-t5. to date, only m150r and m-t5 were studied and characterized as critical virulence factors. this article presents the fi ... | 2009 | 19019281 |
| vaccinia virus proteins a52 and b14 share a bcl-2-like fold but have evolved to inhibit nf-kappab rather than apoptosis. | vaccinia virus (vacv), the prototype poxvirus, encodes numerous proteins that modulate the host response to infection. two such proteins, b14 and a52, act inside infected cells to inhibit activation of nf-kappab, thereby blocking the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines. we have solved the crystal structures of a52 and b14 at 1.9 a and 2.7 a resolution, respectively. strikingly, both these proteins adopt a bcl-2-like fold despite sharing no significant sequence similarity with other viral or ... | 2008 | 18704168 |
| molecular characterization of sg33 and borghi vaccines used against myxomatosis. | myxoma virus is a poxvirus responsible for myxomatosis in european rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus). the entire genome of the myxoma virus has been sequenced, allowing a systemic survey of the functions of a large number of putative pathogenic factors that this virus expresses to subvert the immune and inflammatory pathways of infected rabbit hosts. in italy, industrial rabbits are mostly vaccinated against myxomatosis using the attenuated myxoma virus strains borghi or sg33. we have identified g ... | 2010 | 20598407 |
| myxoma virus combined with rapamycin treatment enhances adoptive t cell therapy for murine melanoma brain tumors. | adoptive transfer of tumor-specific t cells has shown some success for treating metastatic melanoma. we evaluated a novel strategy to improve adoptive therapy by administering both t cells and oncolytic myxoma virus to mice with syngeneic b16.siy melanoma brain tumors. adoptive transfer of activated cd8(+) 2c t cells that recognize siy peptide doubled survival time, but siy-negative tumors recurred. myxoma virus killed b16.siy cells in vitro, and intratumoral injection of virus led to selective ... | 2011 | 21656158 |
| oncolytic efficacy of recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus and myxoma virus in experimental models of rhabdoid tumors. | rhabdoid tumors are highly aggressive pediatric tumors that are usually refractory to available treatments. the purpose of this study was to evaluate the therapeutic potential of two oncolytic viruses, myxoma virus (mv) and an attenuated vesicular stomatitis virus (vsv(deltam51)), in experimental models of human rhabdoid tumor. | 2008 | 18281557 |
| biological effects of a de novo designed myxoma virus peptide analogue: evaluation of cytotoxicity on tumor cells. | the resonant recognition model (rrm) is a physico-mathematical model that interprets protein sequence linear information using digital signal processing methods. in this study the rrm concept was employed for structure-function analysis of myxoma virus (mv) proteins and the design of a short bioactive therapeutic peptide with mv-like antitumor/cytotoxic activity. | 2011 | 21949758 |
| myxoma virus lacking the pyrin-like protein m013 is sensed in human myeloid cells by both nlrp3 and multiple toll-like receptors, which independently activate the inflammasome and nf-κb innate response pathways. | the myxoma virus (myxv)-encoded pyrin domain-containing protein m013 coregulates inflammatory responses mediated by both the inflammasome and the nf-κb pathways. infection of human thp-1 monocytic cells with a myxv construct deleted for the m013 gene (vmyxm013-ko), but not the parental myxv, activates both the inflammasome and nf-κb pathways and induces a spectrum of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines, like interleukin-1β (il-1β), tumor necrosis factor (tnf), il-6, and monocyte chemoattrac ... | 2011 | 21957307 |
| a survey of host range genes in poxvirus genomes. | poxviruses are widespread pathogens, which display extremely different host ranges. whereas some poxviruses, including variola virus, display narrow host ranges, others such as cowpox viruses naturally infect a wide range of mammals. the molecular basis for differences in host range are poorly understood but apparently depend on the successful manipulation of the host antiviral response. some poxvirus genes have been shown to confer host tropism in experimental settings and are thus called host ... | 2012 | 23268114 |
| myxoma virus and the leporipoxviruses: an evolutionary paradigm. | myxoma virus (myxv) is the type species of the leporipoxviruses, a genus of chordopoxvirinae, double stranded dna viruses, whose members infect leporids and squirrels, inducing cutaneous fibromas from which virus is mechanically transmitted by biting arthropods. however, in the european rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus), myxv causes the lethal disease myxomatosis. the release of myxv as a biological control for the wild european rabbit population in australia, initiated one of the great experiments ... | 2015 | 25757062 |
| the α2,3-sialyltransferase encoded by myxoma virus is a virulence factor that contributes to immunosuppression. | myxoma virus (myxv) induces a lethal disease called myxomatosis in european rabbits. myxv is one of the rare viruses that encodes an α2,3-sialyltransferase through its m138l gene. in this study, we showed that although the absence of the enzyme was not associated with any in vitro deficit, the m138l deficient strains are highly attenuated in vivo. indeed, while all rabbits infected with the parental and the revertant strains died within 9 days post-infection from severe myxomatosis, all but one ... | 2015 | 25705900 |
| a structural viral mimic of prosurvival bcl-2: a pivotal role for sequestering proapoptotic bax and bak. | many viruses express antiapoptotic proteins to counter host defense mechanisms that would otherwise trigger the rapid clearance of infected cells. for example, adenoviruses and some gamma-herpesviruses express homologs of prosurvival bcl-2 to subvert the host's apoptotic machinery. myxoma virus, a double-stranded dna virus of the pox family, harbors antiapoptotic m11l, its virulence factor. analysis of its three-dimensional structure reveals that despite lacking any primary sequence similarity t ... | 2007 | 17386268 |
| myxomatosis. | myxomatosis, a major disease of european rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus), is enzootic on several continents. the disease is infectious, virulent and contagious. the pathogen is a virus of the family poxviridae, genus leporipoxvirus. in its classic form the disease is often fatal, characterised by severe immunosuppression and the appearance of skin pseudotumours (myxomas); it is conducive to effective mechanical transmission by many biting arthropods. atypical clinical forms, referred to as amyxo ... | 2015 | 26601455 |
| rabbit cd200r binds host cd200 but not cd200-like proteins from poxviruses. | cd200 is a widely distributed membrane protein that gives inhibitory signals through its receptor (cd200r) on myeloid cells. cd200 has been acquired by herpesviruses where it has been shown to interact with host cd200r and downmodulate the immune system. it has been hypothesized that poxviruses have acquired cd200; but the potential orthologues show less similarity to their hosts. myxoma virus m141 protein is a potential cd200 orthologue with a potent immune modulatory function in rabbits. here, ... | 2016 | 26590792 |
| field experimental vaccination campaigns against myxomatosis and their effectiveness in the wild. | we conducted a field experiment in sw spain to test the efficacy of a myxomatosis vaccine, a viral disease strongly affecting wild rabbit populations, by assessing individual survival and antibody seroprevalence of monthly live-trapped, vaccinated (n=466) and unvaccinated (n=558) juvenile wild rabbits, between april and october 2007. eight percent of all juveniles caught from april to june showed maternal antibodies against myxomatosis, whereas all animals were seropositive to the disease after ... | 2009 | 19800438 |
| myxomatosis in wild rabbit: design of control programs in mediterranean ecosystems. | a cross-sectional study was carried out in natural wild rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus) populations from southern spain to identify risk factors associated to myxoma virus infection. blood samples from 619 wild rabbits were collected, and questionnaires which included variables related to host, disease, game management and environment were completed. a logistic regression analysis was conducted to investigate the associations between myxomatosis seropositivity (dependent variable) across 7 huntin ... | 2010 | 19818517 |
| the superinfection of the rabbit papilloma (shope) by extraneous viruses. | 1. the potentialities that viruses have for the superinfection of virus tumors have not been recognized nor has the fact that a single cell can harbor more than one virus. 2. rabbit papillomas, induced by the papilloma virus (shope), were superinfected by b virus, myxoma virus, vaccinia virus, and probably, virus iii. similar attempts at superinfection by herpes virus were without success. the criteria for parasitization included the histopathological finding of specific inclusion bodies, the re ... | 1947 | 19871661 |
| molecular and serological analysis of the epidemiology of myxoma virus in rabbits. | the epidemiology of myxoma virus was studied by serology and molecular analysis of restriction fragment length polymorphisms (rflps) in genomic dna. 159 isolates of myxoma virus were made over a period of 5 spring/summer epidemics from 12 field sites in south-eastern australia. virus isolates were classified into 10 genetic types using rflps detected with a panel of nine restriction endonucleases. between 3 and 6 different genetic types were found during spring/summer periods across all sites an ... | 2010 | 20018465 |
| molecular characterisation of virulence graded field isolates of myxoma virus. | myxoma virus (mv) has been endemic in europe since shortly after its deliberate release in france in 1952. while the emergence of more resistant hosts and more transmissible and attenuated virus is well documented, there have been relatively few studies focused on the sequence changes incurred by the virus as it has adapted to its new host. in order to identify regions of variability within the mv genome to be used for phylogenetic studies and to try to investigate causes of mv strain attenuatio ... | 2010 | 20187925 |
| cottontail rabbit papillomavirus in langerhans cells in sylvilagus spp. | a wildlife sanctuary presented an adult female cottontail rabbit (sylvilagus spp.), age unknown, to the colorado state university pathology service for postmortem examination. gross examination revealed numerous pigmented wartlike lesions arising from the skin of the head surrounding the ears, eyes, nares, mouth, and dorsum. masses were firm, friable, and easily detached from the underlying skin. differential diagnoses included cottontail rabbit papillomavirus, rabbit fibroma virus, and myxoma v ... | 2010 | 20453226 |
| the viral tropism of two distinct oncolytic viruses, reovirus and myxoma virus, is modulated by cellular tumor suppressor gene status. | replication-competent oncolytic viruses hold great potential for the clinical treatment of many cancers. importantly, many oncolytic virus candidates, such as reovirus and myxoma virus, preferentially infect cancer cells bearing abnormal cellular signaling pathways. reovirus and myxoma virus are highly responsive to activated ras and akt signaling pathways, respectively, for their specificity for viral oncolysis. however, considering the complexity of cancer cell populations, it is possible that ... | 2010 | 20473328 |
| myxoma virus dsrna binding protein m029 inhibits the type i ifn-induced antiviral state in a highly species-specific fashion. | myxoma virus (myxv) is leporipoxvirus that possesses a specific rabbit-restricted host tropism but exhibits a much broader cellular host range in cultured cells. myxv is able to efficiently block all aspects of the type i interferon (ifn)-induced antiviral state in rabbit cells, partially in human cells and very poorly in mouse cells. the mechanism(s) of this species-specific inhibition of type i ifn-induced antiviral state is not well understood. here we demonstrate that myxv enc ... | 2017 | 28157174 |
| systemic therapy with oncolytic myxoma virus cures established residual multiple myeloma in mice. | multiple myeloma is an incurable malignancy of plasma b-cells. traditional chemotherapeutic regimes often induce initial tumor regression; however, virtually all patients eventually succumb to relapse caused by either reintroduction of disease during autologous transplant or expansion of chemotherapy resistant minimal residual disease. it has been previously demonstrated that an oncolytic virus known as myxoma can completely prevent myeloma relapse caused by reintroduction of malignant cells dur ... | 2016 | 27933316 |
| genetic variability of myxoma virus genomes. | myxomatosis is a recurrent problem on rabbit farms throughout europe despite the success of vaccines. to identify gene variations of field and vaccine strains that may be responsible for changes in virulence, immunomodulation, and immunoprotection, the genomes of 6 myxoma virus (myxv) strains were sequenced: german field isolates munich-1, fli-h, 2604, and 3207; vaccine strain mav; and challenge strain za. the analyzed genomes ranged from 147.6 kb (strain mav) to 161.8 kb (strain 3207). all sequ ... | 2017 | 27903800 |
| effects of myxoma virus and rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus on the physiological condition of wild european rabbits: is blood biochemistry a useful monitoring tool? | myxomatosis and rabbit hemorrhagic disease (rhd) are the major viral diseases that affect the wild european rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus). these diseases arrived in europe within the last decades and have caused wild rabbit populations to decline dramatically. both viruses are currently considered to be endemic in the iberian peninsula; periodic outbreaks that strongly impact wild populations regularly occur. myxoma virus (mv) and rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (rhdv) alter the physiology of ... | 2016 | 27892861 |
| myxoma virus therapy for human embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma in a nude mouse model. | rhabdomyosarcoma (rms) is a devastating tumor of young people that is difficult to cure. to determine if oncolytic virus therapy can improve outcomes in individuals with rms, myxoma virus expressing a red fluorescent protein (myxv-red) was evaluated for antitumoral effects using a murine model of rms. fluorescent protein was expressed in four rms cell lines inoculated with myxv-red, indicating that these cells were semipermissive to myxv infection. myxv-red replication and cytopathic effects wer ... | 2016 | 27579297 |
| benign rabbit caliciviruses exhibit evolutionary dynamics similar to those of their virulent relatives. | two closely related caliciviruses cocirculate in australia: rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (rhdv) and rabbit calicivirus australia 1 (rcv-a1). rcv-a1 causes benign enteric infections in the european rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus) in australia and new zealand, while its close relative rhdv causes a highly pathogenic infection of the liver in the same host. the comparison of these viruses provides important information on the nature and trajectory of virulence evolution, particularly as highly v ... | 2016 | 27512059 |
| myxoma virus expressing a fusion protein of interleukin-15 (il15) and il15 receptor alpha has enhanced antitumor activity. | myxoma virus, a rabbit poxvirus, can efficiently infect various types of mouse and human cancer cells. it is a strict rabbit-specific pathogen, and is thought to be safe as a therapeutic agent in all non-rabbit hosts tested including mice and humans. interleukin-15 (il15) is an immuno-modulatory cytokine with significant potential for stimulating anti-tumor t lymphocytes and nk cells. co-expression of il15 with the α subunit of il15 receptor (il15rα) greatly enhances il15 stability and bioavaila ... | 2014 | 25329832 |
| cutaneous lesions in pet rabbits following subcutaneous administration of a novel bivalent vaccine against myxomatosis and rabbit haemorrhagic disease. | a novel bivalent vaccine to protect against myxomatosis and rabbit haemorrhagic disease is commercially available for pet rabbits. | 2014 | 25227274 |
| increased virulence of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus associated with genetic resistance in wild australian rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus). | the release of myxoma virus (myxv) and rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (rhdv) in australia with the aim of controlling overabundant rabbits has provided a unique opportunity to study the initial spread and establishment of emerging pathogens, as well as their co-evolution with their mammalian hosts. in contrast to myxv, which attenuated shortly after its introduction, rapid attenuation of rhdv has not been observed. by studying the change in virulence of recent field isolates at a single field ... | 2014 | 25146599 |
| stress beyond translation: poxviruses and more. | poxviruses are large double-stranded dna viruses that form viral factories in the cytoplasm of host cells. these viruses encode their own transcription machinery, but rely on host translation for protein synthesis. thus, poxviruses have to cope with and, in most cases, reprogram host translation regulation. granule structures, called antiviral granules (avgs), have been observed surrounding poxvirus viral factories. avg formation is associated with abortive poxvirus infection, and avgs contain p ... | 2016 | 27314378 |
| evolutionary clash between myxoma virus and rabbit pkr in australia. | | 2016 | 27035991 |
| therapeutics for graft-versus-host disease: from conventional therapies to novel virotherapeutic strategies. | allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-hsct) has a curative potential for many hematologic malignancies and blood diseases. however, the success of allo-hsct is limited by graft-versus-host disease (gvhd), an immunological syndrome that involves inflammation and tissue damage mediated by donor lymphocytes. despite immune suppression, gvhd is highly incident even after allo-hsct using human leukocyte antigen (hla)-matched donors. therefore, alternative and more effective therapi ... | 2016 | 27011200 |
| m011l-deficient oncolytic myxoma virus induces apoptosis in brain tumor-initiating cells and enhances survival in a novel immunocompetent mouse model of glioblastoma. | myxoma virus (myxv) is a promising oncolytic agent and is highly effective against immortalized glioma cells but less effective against brain tumor initiating cells (btics), which are believed to mediate glioma development/recurrence. myxv encodes various proteins to attenuate host cell apoptosis, including an antiapoptotic bcl-2 homologue known as m011l. such proteins may limit the ability of myxv to kill btics, which have heightened resistance to apoptosis. we hypothesized that infecting btics ... | 2016 | 26962017 |
| ex vivo virotherapy with myxoma virus does not impair hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. | relapsing disease is a major challenge after hematopoietic cell transplantation for hematological malignancies. myxoma virus (myxv) is an oncolytic virus that can target and eliminate contaminating cancer cells from auto-transplant grafts. the aims of this study were to examine the impact of myxv on normal hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells and define the optimal treatment conditions for ex vivo virotherapy. | 2016 | 26857235 |
| myxoma virus induces ligand independent extrinsic apoptosis in human myeloma cells. | multiple myeloma is a clonal malignancy of plasma b cells. although recent advances have improved overall prognosis, virtually all myeloma patients still succumb to relapsing disease. therefore, novel therapies to treat this disease remain urgently needed. we have recently shown that treatment of human multiple myeloma cells with an oncolytic virus known as myxoma results in rapid cell death even in the absence of viral replication; however, the specific mechanisms and pathways involved remain u ... | 2016 | 26803534 |
| myxoma virus m156 is a specific inhibitor of rabbit pkr but contains a loss-of-function mutation in australian virus isolates. | myxoma virus (myxv) is a rabbit-specific poxvirus, which is highly virulent in european rabbits. the attenuation of myxv and the increased resistance of rabbits following the release of myxv in australia is one of the best-documented examples of host-pathogen coevolution. to elucidate the molecular mechanisms that contribute to the restriction of myxv infection to rabbits and myxv attenuation in the field, we have studied the interaction of the myxv protein m156 with the host antiviral protein k ... | 2016 | 26903626 |
| myxoma virus-mediated oncolysis of ascites-derived human ovarian cancer cells and spheroids is impacted by differential akt activity. | we propose that metastatic epithelial ovarian cancer (eoc) is a potential therapeutic target for the oncolytic agent, myxoma virus (myxv). | 2012 | 22306204 |
| viral infections of rabbits. | viral diseases of rabbits have been used historically to study oncogenesis (e.g. rabbit fibroma virus, cottontail rabbit papillomavirus) and biologically to control feral rabbit populations (e.g. myxoma virus). however, clinicians seeing pet rabbits in north america infrequently encounter viral diseases although myxomatosis may be seen occasionally. the situation is different in europe and australia, where myxomatosis and rabbit hemorrhagic disease are endemic. advances in epidemiology and virol ... | 2013 | 23642871 |
| evolution of viral sensing rig-i-like receptor genes in leporidae genera oryctolagus, sylvilagus, and lepus. | one of the most severe european rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus) pathogens is myxoma virus (myxv), a rabbit-specific leporipoxvirus that causes the highly lethal disease myxomatosis. other leporid genera, sylvilagus and lepus, encompass species with variable susceptibilities to myxv, but these do not develop the lethal form of the disease. the protective role of the retinoic acid-inducible gene-i (rig-i/ddx58) in sensing myxv in nonpermissive human myeloid cells prompted the study of the rig-i-lik ... | 2014 | 24220721 |
| genome scale evolution of myxoma virus reveals host-pathogen adaptation and rapid geographic spread. | the evolutionary interplay between myxoma virus (myxv) and the european rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus) following release of the virus in australia in 1950 as a biological control is a classic example of host-pathogen coevolution. we present a detailed genomic and phylogeographic analysis of 30 strains of myxv, including the australian progenitor strain standard laboratory strain (sls), 24 australian viruses isolated from 1951 to 1999, and three isolates from the early radiation in britain from 1 ... | 2013 | 24067966 |
| viral skin diseases of the rabbit. | this article describes the viral skin diseases affecting the domestic rabbit, the most important being myxomatosis. transmission and pathogenesis, clinical signs, diagnosis, treatment, and control are described and the article will be of interest to veterinary practitioners who treat rabbits. shope fibroma virus, shope papilloma virus, and rabbitpox are also discussed. | 2013 | 24018033 |
| ex vivo oncolytic virotherapy with myxoma virus arms multiple allogeneic bone marrow transplant leukocytes to enhance graft versus tumor. | allogeneic stem cell transplant-derived t cells have the potential to seek and eliminate sites of residual cancer that escaped primary therapy. oncolytic myxoma virus (myxv) exhibits potent anti-cancer efficacy against human cancers like multiple myeloma (mm) and can arm transplant-derived t cells to become more effective cancer killers in vitro and in an immunodeficient xenotransplant murine model. here, we tested ex vivo myxv virotherapy against residual murine mm in immunocompetent mice using ... | 2017 | 28345022 |
| tumor localized secretion of soluble pd1 enhances oncolytic virotherapy. | oncolytic virotherapy represents an attractive option for the treatment of a variety of aggressive or refractory tumors. while this therapy is effective at rapidly debulking directly injected tumor masses, achieving complete eradication of established disease has proven difficult. one method to overcome this challenge is to use oncolytic viruses to induce secondary anti-tumor immune responses. unfortunately, while the initial induction of these immune responses is typically robust, their subsequ ... | 2017 | 28314785 |
| myxoma virus attenuates expression of activating transcription factor 4 (atf4) which has implications for the treatment of proteasome inhibitor-resistant multiple myeloma. | the recent development of chemotherapeutic proteasome inhibitors, such as bortezomib, has improved the outcomes of patients suffering from the plasma cell malignancy multiple myeloma. unfortunately, many patients treated with these drugs still suffer relapsing disease due to treatment-induced upregulation of the antiapoptotic protein mcl1. we have recently demonstrated that an oncolytic poxvirus, known as myxoma, can rapidly eliminate primary myeloma cells by inducing cellular apoptosis. the eff ... | 2015 | 27512665 |
| evidence for differential viral oncolytic efficacy in an in vitro model of epithelial ovarian cancer metastasis. | epithelial ovarian cancer is unique among most carcinomas in that metastasis occurs by direct dissemination of malignant cells traversing throughout the intraperitoneal fluid. accordingly, we test new therapeutic strategies using an in vitro three-dimensional spheroid suspension culture model that mimics key steps of this metastatic process. in the present study, we sought to uncover the differential oncolytic efficacy among three different viruses-myxoma virus, double-deleted vaccinia virus, an ... | 2015 | 27119108 |
| oncolytic myxoma virus: the path to clinic. | many common neoplasms are still noncurative with current standards of cancer therapy. more therapeutic modalities need to be developed to significantly prolong the lives of patients and eventually cure a wider spectrum of cancers. oncolytic virotherapy is one of the promising new additions to clinical cancer therapeutics. successful oncolytic virotherapy in the clinic will be those strategies that best combine tumor cell oncolysis with enhanced immune responses against tumor antigens. the curren ... | 2013 | 23726825 |
| treating brain tumor-initiating cells using a combination of myxoma virus and rapamycin. | intratumoral heterogeneity in glioblastoma multiforme (gbm) poses a significant barrier to therapy in certain subpopulation such as the tumor-initiating cell population, being shown to be refractory to conventional therapies. oncolytic virotherapy has the potential to target multiple compartments within the tumor and thus circumvent some of the barriers facing conventional therapies. in this study, we investigate the oncolytic potential of myxoma virus (myxv) alone and in combination with rapamy ... | 2013 | 23585629 |
| samd9 is an innate antiviral host factor with stress response properties that can be antagonized by poxviruses. | we show that samd9 is an innate host antiviral stress response element that participates in the formation of antiviral granules. poxviruses, myxoma virus and vaccinia virus specifically, utilize a virus-encoded host range factor(s), such as a member of the c7l superfamily, to antagonize samd9 to prevent granule formation in a eukaryotic initiation factor 2α (eif2α)-independent manner. when samd9 is stimulated due to failure of the viral antagonism during infection, the resulting antiviral granul ... | 2015 | 25428864 |
| gene delivery of a viral anti-inflammatory protein to combat ocular inflammation. | inflammation of the retina is a contributing factor in ocular diseases such as uveitis, diabetic retinopathy, and age-related macular degeneration (amd). the m013 immunomodulatory protein from myxoma virus has been shown to interfere with the proinflammatory signaling pathways involving both the nlrp3 inflammasome and nf-κb. we have developed and characterized an adeno-associated viral (aav) vector that delivers a secretable and cell-penetrating form of the m013 protein (tatm013). the expressed ... | 2015 | 25420215 |
| cellular factors promoting resistance to effective treatment of glioma with oncolytic myxoma virus. | oncolytic virus therapy is being evaluated in clinical trials for human glioma. while it is widely assumed that the immune response of the patient to the virus infection limits the utility of the therapy, investigations into the specific cell type(s) involved in this response have been performed using nonspecific pharmacologic inhibitors or allogeneic models with compromised immunity. to identify the immune cells that participate in clearing an oncolytic infection in glioma, we used flow cytomet ... | 2014 | 25336188 |
| recombinant myxoma virus lacking all poxvirus ankyrin-repeat proteins stimulates multiple cellular anti-viral pathways and exhibits a severe decrease in virulence. | although the production of single gene knockout viruses is a useful strategy to study viral gene functions, the redundancy of many host interactive genes within a complex viral genome can obscure their collective functions. in this study, a rabbit-specific poxvirus, myxoma virus (myxv), was genetically altered to disrupt multiple members of the poxviral ankyrin-repeat (ank-r) protein superfamily, m-t5, m148, m149 and m150. a particularly robust activation of the nf-κb pathway was observed in a54 ... | 2014 | 25068401 |
| the control of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma cell lines by oncolytic poxviruses. | anaplastic thyroid cancer (atc) is rare, but its clinical presentation is often dramatic and aggressive and is nearly uniformly fatal. oncolytic viral therapy is a potential strategy to improve outcomes for patients suffering with this disease. | 2014 | 25038405 |
| targeting gallbladder carcinoma: bone marrow-derived stem cells as therapeutic delivery vehicles of myxoma virus. | gallbladder carcinoma (gbc) has a high mortality rate, requiring synergistic anti-tumor management for effective treatment. the myxoma virus (myxv) exhibits a modest clinical value through its oncolytic potential and narrow host tropism. | 2014 | 24931255 |
| investigation of cytotoxicity of negative control peptides versus bioactive peptides on skin cancer and normal cells: a comparative study. | resonant recognition model-myxoma virus (rrm-mv), a bioactive peptide analogue for myxoma virus mv-t5 protein, was computationally designed by the rrm. in this study, the anticancer effects of rrm-mv were assessed in vitro against four negative control peptides on human skin cancer and normal cells. | 2012 | 22917245 |
| virotherapy using myxoma virus prevents lethal graft-versus-host disease following xeno-transplantation with primary human hematopoietic stem cells. | graft-versus-host disease (gvhd) is a potentially lethal clinical complication arising from the transfer of alloreactive t lymphocytes into immunocompromised recipients. despite conventional methods of t cell depletion, gvhd remains a major challenge in allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant. here, we demonstrate a novel method of preventing gvhd by ex vivo treatment of primary human hematopoietic cell sources with myxoma virus, a rabbit specific poxvirus currently under development for oncoly ... | 2012 | 22905251 |
| sheeppox virus sppv14 encodes a bcl-2-like cell death inhibitor that counters a distinct set of mammalian proapoptotic proteins. | many viruses express inhibitors of programmed cell death (apoptosis), thereby countering host defenses that would otherwise rapidly clear infected cells. to counter this, viruses such as adenoviruses and herpesviruses express recognizable homologs of the mammalian prosurvival protein bcl-2. in contrast, the majority of poxviruses lack viral bcl-2 (vbcl-2) homologs that are readily identified by sequence similarities. one such virus, myxoma virus, which is the causative agent of myxomatosis, expr ... | 2012 | 22896610 |
| oncolysis of canine tumor cells by myxoma virus lacking the serp2 gene. | to determine the oncolytic efficacy of an attenuated form of myxoma virus lacking the serp2 gene in canine tumor cells. | 2012 | 22849686 |
| a bioactive peptide analogue for myxoma virus protein with a targeted cytotoxicity for human skin cancer in vitro. | cancer is an international health problem, and the search for effective treatments is still in progress. peptide therapy is focused on the development of short peptides with strong tumoricidal activity and low toxicity. in this study, we investigated the efficacy of a myxoma virus peptide analogue (rrm-mv) as a candidate for skin cancer therapy. rrm-mv was designed using the resonant recognition model (rrm) and its effect was examined on human skin cancer and normal human skin cells in vitro. | 2012 | 22805371 |
| innate immune response of human plasmacytoid dendritic cells to poxvirus infection is subverted by vaccinia e3 via its z-dna/rna binding domain. | plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pdcs) play important roles in antiviral innate immunity by producing type i interferon (ifn). in this study, we assess the immune responses of primary human pdcs to two poxviruses, vaccinia and myxoma virus. vaccinia, an orthopoxvirus, was used for immunization against smallpox, a contagious human disease with high mortality. myxoma virus, a leporipoxvirus, causes lethal disease in rabbits, but is non-pathogenic in humans. we report that myxoma virus infection of hu ... | 2012 | 22606294 |
| suppression of collagen-induced arthritis with a serine proteinase inhibitor (serpin) derived from myxoma virus. | many viruses encode virulence factors to facilitate their own survival by modulating a host's inflammatory response. one of these factors, secreted from cells infected with myxoma virus, is the serine proteinase inhibitor (serpin) serp-1. because serp-1 had demonstrated anti-inflammatory properties in arterial injury models and viral infections, it was cloned and evaluated for therapeutic efficacy in collagen-induced arthritis (cia). clinical severity was significantly lower in the serp-1 protoc ... | 2014 | 24845791 |
| targeting gallbladder cancer: oncolytic virotherapy with myxoma virus is enhanced by rapamycin in vitro and further improved by hyaluronan in vivo. | gallbladder carcinoma (gbc) is highly lethal, and effective treatment will require synergistic anti-tumor management. the study is aimed at investigating the oncolytic value of myxoma virus (myxv) infection against gbc and optimizing myxv oncolytic efficiency. | 2014 | 24725816 |
| targeting pediatric cancer stem cells with oncolytic virotherapy. | cancer stem cells (cscs), also termed "cancer-initiating cells" or "cancer progenitor cells," which have the ability to self-renew, proliferate, and maintain the neoplastic clone, have recently been discovered in a wide variety of pediatric tumors. these cscs are thought to be responsible for tumorigenesis and tumor maintenance, aggressiveness, and recurrence due to inherent resistance to current treatment modalities such as chemotherapy and radiation. oncolytic virotherapy offers a novel, targe ... | 2012 | 22430386 |
| myxoma virus m064 is a novel member of the poxvirus c7l superfamily of host range factors that controls the kinetics of myxomatosis in european rabbits. | the myxoma virus (myxv) carries three tandem c7l-like host range genes (m062r, m063r, and m064r). however, despite the fact that the sequences of these three genes are similar, they possess very distinctive functions in vivo. the role of m064 in myxv pathogenesis was investigated and compared to the roles of m062 and m063. we report that m064 is a virulence factor that contributes to myxv pathogenesis but lacks the host range properties associated with m062 and m063. | 2012 | 22379095 |
| development and validation of a myxoma virus real-time polymerase chain reaction assay. | to aid in the rapid diagnosis of myxomatosis in rabbits, a real-time polymerase chain reaction (pcr) for the specific detection of myxoma virus is described. primers and probe were designed to amplify a 147-bp fragment within the serp2 gene. the assay was able to detect 23 copies of a synthesized oligo indicating a reliable sensitivity. in addition, the real-time pcr did not detect the rabbit fibroma virus used in myxomatosis vaccines. the novel pcr was shown to be able to detect myxoma virus in ... | 2012 | 22362943 |
| multi-event capture-recapture modeling of host-pathogen dynamics among european rabbit populations exposed to myxoma and rabbit hemorrhagic disease viruses: common and heterogeneous patterns. | host-pathogen epidemiological processes are often unclear due both to their complexity and over-simplistic approaches used to quantify them. we applied a multi-event capture-recapture procedure on two years of data from three rabbit populations to test hypotheses about the effects on survival of, and the dynamics of host immunity to, both myxoma virus and rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (mv and rhdv). although the populations shared the same climatic and management conditions, mv and rhdv dynam ... | 2014 | 24708296 |
| early infections by myxoma virus of young rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus) protected by maternal antibodies activate their immune system and enhance herd immunity in wild populations. | the role of maternal antibodies is to protect newborns against acute early infection by pathogens. this can be achieved either by preventing any infection or by allowing attenuated infections associated with activation of the immune system, the two strategies being based on different cost/benefit ratios. we carried out an epidemiological survey of myxomatosis, which is a highly lethal infectious disease, in two distant wild populations of rabbits to describe the epidemiological pattern of the di ... | 2014 | 24589193 |
| genetic characterization of interleukins (il-1α, il-1β, il-2, il-4, il-8, il-10, il-12a, il-12b, il-15 and il-18) with relevant biological roles in lagomorphs. | ils, as essential innate immune modulators, are involved in an array of biological processes. in the european rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus) il-1α, il-1β, il-2, il-4, il-8, il-10, il-12a, il-12b, il-15 and il-18 have been implicated in inflammatory processes and in the immune response against rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus and myxoma virus infections. in this study we characterized these ils in six lagomorpha species (european rabbit, pygmy rabbit, two cottontail rabbit species, european brown ... | 2015 | 26395994 |
| myxoma virus oncolytic efficiency can be enhanced through chemical or genetic disruption of the actin cytoskeleton. | myxoma virus (myxv) is one of many animal viruses that exhibit oncolytic properties in transformed human cells. compared to orthopoxviruses like vaccinia (vacv), myxv spreads inefficiently, which could compromise its use in treating tumors and their associated metastases. the vacv f11 protein promotes virus exit and rapid spread by inhibiting rho signalling, which results in a disruption of cortical actin. we have previously shown that although myxv lacks an f11 homolog, the f11l gene can be int ... | 2013 | 24391902 |
| systemic virotherapy for multiple myeloma. | the multiple myeloma (mm) treatment scenario has changed considerably over the past few years. several novel targeted therapies are currently under consideration including oncolytic virotherapy. areas covered: this review provides an analysis of the mechanisms of action of virotherapy, and summarizes the preclinical and clinical studies of systemic virotherapy developed for the treatment of mm. different types of viruses have been identified, including: adenovirus, vaccinia virus, herpes simplex ... | 2017 | 28796556 |
| development and validation of a real time pcr for the detection of myxoma virus based on the diploid gene m000.5l/r. | the myxoma virus (myxv) causes severe infections in european rabbits that may reach mortality rates up to 100% depending on the viral strain. the typical symptoms and lesions induced by the virus are usually enough to permit the correct clinical diagnosis. however, in peracute forms the infection may be accompanied by unspecific symptoms. sudden death may also occur without evident clinical signs of myxomatosis. likewise, a clinical diagnosis of atypical forms of myxomatosis (amyxomatous) is oft ... | 2014 | 24300832 |
| targeting b16 tumors in vivo with peptide-conjugated gold nanoparticles. | this study examines the effects of polyethylene glycol (peg) and peptide conjugation on the biodistribution of ultrasmall (2.7 nm) gold nanoparticles in mice bearing b16 melanoma allografts. nanoparticles were delivered intravenously, and biodistribution was measured at specific timepoints by organ digestion and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. all major organs were examined. two peptides were tested: the cyclic rgd peptide (crgd, which targets integrins); and a recently described p ... | 2015 | 26111959 |
| vaccine breaks: outbreaks of myxomatosis on spanish commercial rabbit farms. | despite the success of vaccination against myxoma virus, myxomatosis remains a problem on rabbit farms throughout spain and europe. in this study we set out to evaluate possible causes of myxoma virus (myxv) vaccine failures addressing key issues with regard to pathogen, vaccine and vaccination strategies. this was done by genetically characterising myxv field isolates from farm outbreaks, selecting a representative strain for which to assay its virulence and measuring the protective capability ... | 2015 | 26009303 |
| targeting gallbladder cancer: hyaluronan sensitizes cancer cells to chemo-therapeutics. | gallbladder cancer is the most common biliary tract malignancy and the fifth most common gastrointestinal malignancy. chemo-resistance is the most remarkable characteristic of gallbladder cancer. the relatively dense extracellular space in tumor is the main barrier to nanotherapeutics' anticancer efficacy. hyaluronan (ha) was shown in our previous study to significantly improve the myxoma virus distribution via promoting the mmp-9 production, which degrades collagen iv. we demonstrated that ha i ... | 2015 | 25973074 |
| myxoma virus suppresses proliferation of activated t lymphocytes yet permits oncolytic virus transfer to cancer cells. | allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant (allo-hct) can be curative for certain hematologic malignancies, but the risk of graft-versus-host disease (gvhd) is a major limitation for wider application. ideally, strategies to improve allo-hct would involve suppression of t lymphocytes that drive gvhd while sparing those that mediate graft-versus-malignancy (gvm). recently, using a xenograft model, we serendipitously discovered that myxoma virus (myxv) prevented gvhd while permitting gvm. in this st ... | 2015 | 25904246 |