PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

New technique tracks proteins in single HIV particle

Using HIV virions as nano test tubes speeds up screening of anti-HIV drugs

2014-05-05
(Press-News.org) An interdisciplinary team of scientists from KU Leuven in Belgium has developed a new technique to examine how proteins interact with each other at the level of a single HIV viral particle. The technique allows scientists to study the life-threatening virus in detail and makes screening potential anti-HIV drugs quicker and more efficient. The technique can also be used to study other diseases.

Understanding how the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) reproduces itself is crucial in the effort to fight the disease. Upon entering the bloodstream, HIV viral particles, or virions, 'highjack' individual immune cells. The virion binds to and then penetrates the immune cell. Once inside, the virion reprograms the genetic material of the immune cell to produce more HIV virions. In this way, HIV disables the disease-fighting 'bodyguards' in our blood and turns them into breeding machines for new HIV virions.

Integrase plays a key role throughout this whole process: "Integrase is the HIV protein that causes the genetic material of HIV to link to that of the hijacked cell. It ensures the programming of the human cell upon infection. In our study, we wanted to track integrase during the different stages of infection," explains postdoctoral researcher Jelle Hendrix (Department of Chemistry). The challenge is to do this at the level of a single virion: "HIV has multiple ways of doing the same thing. This is the case for cell penetration, for instance. So it is certainly useful to be able to see exactly how the individual HIV virions are behaving."

To achieve this, the researchers used single-molecule fluorescence imaging. They engineered a genetically modified HIV virion that was capable of infecting the cell but incapable of reproducing inside it. The virion was programmed to produce a fluorescent form of integrase. "This allowed us to examine the interactions of the florescent integrase under the light microscope both in vitro in a single HIV virion as well as in a human cell infected with it."

"We then used the technique to study both clinically approved and newly developed HIV inhibitors. Some of these drugs were thought to affect interaction between integrase particles. With our new technique, we were able to observe that this was indeed the case."

"There are already a few dozen medications available for HIV, but further research is essential. Whenever HIV multiplies by hijacking an immune cell, there is a chance of mutation, and there is no guarantee that an HIV drug will be able to handle that mutation. A medication may not be as effective over the course of a patient's lifetime. Moreover, current HIV drugs are very expensive. Hence the importance of being able to test anti-HIV medications quickly and efficiently."

The good news is that this new technique can be broadly applied: "It may seem surprising, but we can also use a genetically modified version of a dangerous virus to examine other pathogens. Essentially, we have created a nano test tube out of an HIV virion, inside of which protein interactions can be studied. In principle, we can make any protein fluorescent, be it from HIV, from another disease or from a human cell."

"Researchers have been studying protein interactions for some time, but studying them at the level of a single viral particle was not possible until now," says Jelle Hendrix. Our technique allows scientists to quickly test many molecules – potential medications – for many diseases using minimal material. In future research, we will be using the technique to study integrase proteins of other viruses."

INFORMATION: END


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Low testosterone levels may indicate worsening of disease for men with prostate cancer

2014-05-05
For men with low-risk prostate cancer, low levels of testosterone may indicate a worsening of their disease. That's the conclusion of a new study published in BJU International. The findings may help physicians identify patients with low-risk prostate cancer who should receive aggressive anticancer treatment. Men with prostate cancer that is not life threatening and is only slowly progressing, can often forego treatment and instead undergo active surveillance. This involves close monitoring to ensure that their disease does not become serious and jeopardize their health. ...

Stigma: At the root of ostracism and bullying

2014-05-05
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA – Increasing evidence shows that stigma – whether due to a child's weight, sexual orientation, race, income or other attribute -- is at the root of bullying, and that it can cause considerable harm to a child's mental health. Experts in pediatric mental health, bullying and ostracism will gather May 5 for a symposium titled "Stigma, Ostracism and Bullying: Dangers, Prevention and Interventions" at the Pediatric Academic Societies Annual Meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia. Researchers will present evidence of stigma associated with various ...

Being born 4-6 weeks premature can affect brain structure, function

2014-05-05
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA – The brains of children who were born just a few weeks early differ from those born on time, and these differences may affect learning and behavior, according to a study to be presented Monday, May 5, at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Studies have shown that children who were born between 34 and 36 weeks' gestation (late preterm) have more social, behavioral and academic problems than children born at full term (37-41 weeks). However, few studies have looked at the brain structure ...

Electronic tool helps reduce drug errors among hospitalized children

2014-05-05
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA – When children are admitted to the hospital, sometimes the medications they take at home are lost in the shuffle, or they may be given the wrong dose. Having a system in place at hospital admission to record and review a child's medication history results in fewer errors, potentially avoiding harm to the patient, according to a study to be presented Monday, May 5, at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The Joint Commission, which accredits and certifies more than 20,000 health care ...

Disease outbreak may not spur parents to have children vaccinated

2014-05-05
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA – Conventional wisdom holds that when the risk of catching a disease is high, people are more likely to get vaccinated to protect themselves. This may not be the case, however, according to a study to be presented Monday, May 5, at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Researchers, led by Elizabeth R. Wolf, MD, FAAP, compared rates of infant vaccination with the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine (DTaP) before and during an epidemic of pertussis (whooping cough) in Washington ...

Few children receive dental care before recommended age of 1 year

Few children receive dental care before recommended age of 1 year
2014-05-05
TORONTO, May 5, 2014—Less than one per cent of healthy urban children surveyed in Toronto had received dental care by the recommended age of 12 months and less than two per cent had seen a dentist by the age of 24 months. Children most susceptible to cavities were least likely to receive early dental care, according to the study by Dr. Jonathon Maguire, a pediatrician and researcher at St. Michael's Hospital. Of the 2,505 children around 4 years of age who were surveyed from 2011-13, 39 per cent had never been to a dentist. The children were part of TARGet Kids! (The ...

Food security increased by new scientific model in agricultural production

2014-05-05
Farmers are used to optimizing crop production on their own lands. They do soil tests to choose the right amount of fertilizers to apply, and they sometimes plant row crops on some fields while keeping others in pasture. But is it possible to optimize production across a much bigger area—say, the whole East Coast of the United States? That's the question a team of USDA-ARS scientists in Beltsville, MD, has begun to tackle by developing a sophisticated new modeling tool. Known as the Geospatial Agricultural Management and Crop Assessment Framework (GAMCAF), the tool ...

Study exposes risk of nutritional deficiencies in obese teens

2014-05-05
A new study exposes the risk of nutritional deficiencies in severely obese teens – both those who had weight loss surgery and those who did not. At least five years after undergoing gastric bypass surgery, teens and young adults maintained significant weight loss but were at risk of nutritional deficiencies, particularly low iron, mild anemia and low vitamin D. The study also found low iron and low vitamin D in severely obese teens who did not undergo weight loss surgery. Those who didn't have surgery also had low levels of protein in their blood. The Cincinnati Children's ...

Lean patients with fatty liver disease have higher mortality rate

2014-05-04
Chicago, IL (May 4, 2014) — Despite being of a healthier weight, lean patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) have a higher overall mortality rate than patients with NAFLD who are overweight or obese, according to new research presented today at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW). In addition to finding higher mortality rates, an international team of researchers found that lean patients [a body mass index (BMI) less than 25] with NAFLD were more likely to be male, non-Caucasian and to have lower rates of chronic conditions, such as diabetes and hypertension. ...

Arizona Sate University scientists take steps to unlock the secrets to the fountain of youth

Arizona Sate University scientists take steps to unlock the secrets to the fountain of youth
2014-05-04
ASU scientists, together with collaborators from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Shanghai, have published today, in Nature Structural and Molecular Biology, a first of its kind atomic level look at the enzyme telomerase that may unlock the secrets to the fountain of youth. Telomeres and the enzyme telomerase have been in the medical news a lot recently due to their connection with aging and cancer. Telomeres are found at the ends of our chromosomes and are stretches of DNA which protect our genetic data, make it possible for cells to divide, and hold some secrets as ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Researchers uncover previously unexplored details of mosquito’s specialized detection mechanisms

Stem cell therapy linked to lower risk of heart failure after a heart attack

The NHS is reaching a crisis point in consultant recruitment, new report warns

UNM research suggests Halloween fireballs could signal increased risk of cosmic impact or airburst in 2032 and 2036

Biochar’s hidden helper: Dissolved organic matter boosts lead removal from polluted water

Sunlight turns everyday fabrics into ocean microfibers, new study finds

Antibiotics linked to lower risk of complications after obstetric tear

Rapid blood pressure fluctuations linked to early signs of brain degeneration in older adults

How microbes control mammalian cell growth

Emergency department pilot program serves rural families

Amid renewable-energy boom, study explores options for electricity market

Study finds improvement in knee pain with exercise and physical therapy

Researchers uncover key mechanism behind chemotherapy-induced nerve damage

Mayo Clinic researchers find enhancing the body’s ‘first responder’ cells may boost immune therapy for cancer

Secret to a long life? In bowhead whales, a protein repairs damaged DNA

MIT study: Identifying kids who need help learning to read isn’t as easy as A, B, C

Plant biomass substance helps combat weeds

Veterans with epilepsy after traumatic brain injury may have higher mortality rates

Who is more likely to lose vision due to high brain pressure?

Scripps Research professor awarded $3.2 million to advance type 1 diabetes research

Anna Wuttig wins Bayer Foundation Early Excellence in Science Award

Electric vehicles outperform gasoline cars in lifetime environmental impact

Kilimanjaro has lost 75 percent of its natural plant species over the last century

Spider web “decorations” may help pinpoint location of captured prey

Ancient tombs reveal the story of Chinese history

1 in 3 university students surveyed from a Parisian suburb report being unable to access desired food, with this food insecurity associated with academic dropout

Researchers uncover oldest 3D burrow systems in Hubei's Shibantan Biota

Discovery of a new principle: chiral molecules adhere to magnets

New algorithm lets autonomous drones work together to transport heavy, changing payloads

Lehigh University team develops computational model to guide neurostimulation therapy for atrial fibrillation

[Press-News.org] New technique tracks proteins in single HIV particle
Using HIV virions as nano test tubes speeds up screening of anti-HIV drugs