Virology Commons^™

Molecular Coevolution Of Pacific Northwest Hantaviruses And Their Host, The Deer Mouse, Peromyscus Maniculatus, Philip Darren Jones

Dissertations and Theses

Sin Nombre virus (SNV, family Bunyaviridae, genus Hantavirus), hosted by the deer mouse, Peromyscus maniculatus (family Cricetidae, Subfamily Neotominae), is the primary etiological agent of Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) in the western United States. HPS, with known pathogenicity only to humans and for which there is no cure or prophylaxis, affects the epithelium of the lungs by making the capillaries leaky, thereby resulting in bilateral infiltrates, and eventually leading to respiratory failure and death by drowning in approximately 38% of hospitalized patients.

In the Americas, Peromyscus has been co-evolving with hantaviruses for approximately 12–20 million years, since the first …

Molecular Characterisation Of A Bovine-Like Rotavirus Detected From A Giraffe, Emily Mulherin, Jill Bryan, Marijke Beltman, Luke O'Grady, Eugene Pidgeon, Lucie Garon, Andrew Lloyd, John Bainbridge, Helen O'Shea, Paul Whyte, Séamus Fanning

Department of Biological Sciences Publications

Background

Rotavirus (RV), is a member of the Reoviridae family and an important etiological agent of acute viral gastroenteritis in the young. Rotaviruses have a wide host range infecting a broad range of animal species, however little is known about rotavirus infection in exotic animals. In this paper we report the first characterisation of a RV strain from a giraffe calf.

Results

This report describes the identification and detailed molecular characterisation of a rotavirus strain detected from a 14-day-old Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis), presenting with acute diarrhea. The RV strain detected from the giraffe was characterized molecularly as G10P[11]. …

Subcellular Localization Of Human T-Cell Leukemia Virus Type 1 Tax Oncoprotein, Kimberly Anne Fryrear

Theses and Dissertations in Biomedical Sciences

Human T-cell Leukemia Virus Type 1 (HTLV-1) is a transforming retrovirus that gives rise to Adult T-cell Leukemia (ATL) and a variety of other subneoplastic conditions such as HTLV-Associated Myelopathy/Tropical Spastic Paraperesis (HAM/TSP). In ATL, the transformation and immortalization of T-lymphocytes has been attributed to the expression and activity of a single HTLV-1 viral protein, namely the trans-activating protein Tax. Although the exact mechanism of Tax-mediated transformation is uncertain, current studies support a model in which Tax induces genomic instability in the host cell through interference with DNA repair mechanisms, dysregulation of cell cycle progression, transcriptional activation of cellular …

Isolation And Functional Mapping Of Human T-Cell Leukemia Virus Type 1 Tax Oncoprotein Dna-Damage Complexes, Sarah Saionz Durkin

Theses and Dissertations in Biomedical Sciences

Human T-cell Leukemia Virus Type 1 (HTLV-1) is a transforming retrovirus which causes Adult T-cell Leukemia (ATL) and HTLV-1 Associated Myelopathy/Tropical Spastic Paraparesis (HAM/TSP). Cellular transformation can be caused by a single viral trans-activating protein, Tax. Tax may contribute to transformation through interaction with components of the DNA damage response pathway, promoting cellular genomic instability. We examined cellular Tax complexes in an effort to elucidate potential protein-protein interactions that can model the Tax-induced molecular events.

We also investigated the role of post-translational modification in regulating Tax function. We employed a direct physical analysis of Tax complexes isolated from mammalian …

Interactions Among Murine Cytomegalovirus Us22 Family Gene Products That Influence Viral Pathogenesis, Zaruhi Karabekian

Theses and Dissertations in Biomedical Sciences

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a complex, ubiquitous herpesvirus that is characterized by acute, chronic, and latent infections. Monocytes-macrophages are the key target cell type involved in pathogenesis, which is most effectively studied using the murine model of CMV infection. Previously three murine CMV (MCMV) genes (M139, M140, and M141) were identified to regulate viral expression in cultured macrophages and in mice. These genes are members of the US22 gene family with respect to HCMV homology. There is no function assigned to the proteins encoded by these genes. However, deletion of M139, M140, and M141 significantly curtails growth of MCMV in macrophages …

Carmoviruses (Tombusviridae), Feng Qu, Thomas Jack Morris

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Carmovirus is one of two officially recognized genera of Tombusviridae. Members of Tombusviridae all have icosahedral virions of about 30 nm in diameter with T = 3 symmetry that consists of 180 coat protein (CP) subunits of about 38- 43 kDa and a single-stranded (ss) RNA genome ranging in size from 4.0 to 4.7 kb. Carmoviruses share recognizable sequence similarity in both the polymerase and structural genes with members of the other genus, Tombusvirus. Sequence comparisons and phylogenetic analysis of these genes support the view that the genera are distinct but closely related. In addition, the genome organization of the …

The Kinetic Characterization Of Mutant L289p Of Recombinant Hiv-1 Reverse Transcriptase, Tryn Thomas Stimart

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses & Dissertations

The Human Immunodeficiency Virus, type 1 (HIV-1) is the causative agent of the Acquired immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Currently, AIDS is the leading cause of death amongst young people in the United States. The large increase of HIV-1 infections over the past decade has spawned considerable research in fighting the spread of this disease. One area of intense HIV-1 research has focused on the enzyme Reverse Transcriptase (RT) which is an essential enzyme involved in the replication and life cycle of HIV-1. HIV-1 RT is composed of p66 and p51 subunits and is only active as a heterodimer in vivo. …