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Most of HIV-1 infections are acquired through sexual contact. In the absence of a preventive vaccine, the development of topical microbicides that can block infection at the mucosal tissues is needed. Dermaseptin S4 (DS4) is an antimicrobial peptide derived from amphibian skin, which displays a broad spectrum of activity against bacteria, yeast, filamentous fungi, and herpes simplex virus type 1....
HIV-related peripheral neuropathy is a major neurological complication of HIV infection, although little is known about its pathogenesis. We amplified HIV-1 C2V3 envelope sequences from peroneal nerves obtained from HIV/AIDS patients. Sequence analysis and infectious recombinant viruses containing peripheral nerve-derived C2V3 sequences indicated a predominance of CCR5-dependent and macrophage-tropic...
A secreted, glycosylated polypeptide containing amino acids 14 to 762 of the SARS coronavirus (SARS-CoV) spike protein and a polyhistidine tag was expressed in recombinant baculovirus-infected insect cells. Mice received the affinity-purified protein with either a saponin (QS21) or a Ribi (MPL + TDM) adjuvant subcutaneously and were challenged intranasally with SARS-CoV. Both regimens induced binding...
PBMC and vaginal cell (VC) viruses were studied from 5 HIV-infected females for the presence of drug-resistance and non-drug resistance associated mutations. A 1318-bp fragment of polymerase gene was amplified from PBMC and VC proviral DNA. Four of the 5 PBMC viruses exhibited drug resistance-associated mutations in reverse transcriptase and protease genes, whereas only 2 VC viruses contained drug...
We studied receptor-binding properties of influenza virus isolates from birds and mammals using polymeric conjugates of sialooligosaccharides terminated with common Neu5Acα2-3Galβ fragment but differing by the structure of the inner part of carbohydrate chain. Viruses isolated from distinct avian species differed by their recognition of the inner part of oligosaccharide receptor. Duck viruses displayed...
Murine leukemia viruses (MLVs) can be lymphomagenic and bone pathogenic. In this work, the possible roles of two distinct proviral enhancer nuclear factor 1 (NF1) binding sites in osteopetrosis and tumor induction by B-lymphomagenic Akv1-99 MLV were investigated. Akv1-99 and mutants either with NF1 site 1, NF1 site 2 or both sites disrupted induced tumors (plasma cell proliferations by histopathology)...
In the present work we identified B-cell epitopes recognized by sera of humans and rodents naturally infected with Andes virus, a hantavirus present in Chile and Argentina. Analysis of patient and rodent sera with overlapping peptides revealed 21 human and rodent epitopes on the three structural proteins. Whereas in the nucleoprotein the region comprising aa 248–260 was shown to be the key determinant...
Full-length genomic sequences from six DENV-2 isolates sampled at different times during a dengue outbreak that occurred in Cuba in 1997 were determined. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that these isolates fall into the “American/Asian” genotype. Genome analysis revealed strong conservation of the structural proteins and the non-coding regions (5′ NCR and 3′ NCR). Nucleotide substitutions were observed...
The human apolipoprotein B mRNA-editing enzyme, catalytic polypeptide-like 3G (APOBEC3G, or hA3G) protein, provides cells with an intracellular antiretroviral activity that is associated with the hypermutation of viral DNA through cytidine deamination. Indeed, hA3G belongs to a family of vertebrate proteins that contain one or two copies of a signature sequence motif unique to cytidine deaminases...
CD8 + T cells play a critical role in protective immunity against Hepatitis B Virus (HBV). Epitope-based DNA vaccines expressing HBV-dominant CTL epitopes can be used as candidate vaccines capable of inducing cytotoxic T Lymphocytes (CTL) responses. A plasmid DNA encoding a CTL epitope of HBV core antigen, HBc 18–27 , was constructed. Intramuscular immunization of C57BL/6 mice with...
Difference electron density maps, based on structure factor amplitudes and experimental phases from crystals of wild-type turnip yellow mosaic virus and those of empty capsids prepared by freeze–thawing, show a large portion of the encapsidated RNA to have an icosahedral distribution. Four unique segments of base-paired, double-helical RNA, one to two turns in length, lie between 33-Å and 101-Å radius...
Among the least characterized herpesvirus membrane proteins are the homologs of UL43 of herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1). To identify and characterize the UL43 protein of pseudorabies virus (PrV), part of the open reading frame was expressed in Escherichia coli and used for immunization of a rabbit. The antiserum recognized in Western blots a 34-kDa protein in lysates of PrV infected cells and purified...
Few human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) have been extensively studied in non-human primates. Such investigations have demonstrated that several element classes are primate unique, contain members with important biological function, are conserved in specific primate lineages, and have in some cases expanded in copy number. We have examined multiple sub-families of all major groups of HERVs using...
Rabies virus P protein is a co-factor of the viral RNA polymerase. It has been shown previously that P mRNA directs the synthesis of four N-terminally truncated P products P2, P3, P4, and P5 due to translational initiation by a leaky scanning mechanism at internal Met codons. Whereas P and P2 are located in the cytoplasm, P3, P4, and P5 are found in the nucleus. Here, we have analyzed the molecular...
We have previously reported the potent in vitro HIV-1 anti-reverse transcriptase activity of a 35-mer of 4-thio-deoxyuridylate [(s 4 dU) 35 ]. In efforts to define its activity in a more physiological system, studies were carried out to determine the stage of viral infection that this compound mediates its anti-viral effect. Results of the studies reported herein show that (s 4...
Adenovirus is one of the well-studied double-stranded DNA viruses. However, the mechanisms of its DNA packaging and virion assembly are still not fully understood. One of the unique features of adenovirus is that the unpackaged viral DNA is associated with core protein pVII. Packaging of viral DNA bound with proteins has not been reported from other viruses. To characterize how viral DNA bound with...
The coronavirus spike (S) protein, required for receptor binding and membrane fusion, is incorporated into the assembling virion by interactions with the viral membrane (M) protein. Earlier we showed that the ectodomain of the S protein is not involved in this process. Here we further defined the requirements of the S protein for virion incorporation. We show that the cytoplasmic domain, not the transmembrane...
US22 gene family members m142 and m143 are essential for replication of murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV). Their transcripts are produced with immediate-early kinetics, but little else is known about these viral genes. Unlike their transcripts, the m142 and m143 gene products (pm142, pm143) were not expressed until early times post-infection, with levels increasing over the course of infection. Both pm142...
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