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The Brain Has an Innate Immune Response That Can Limit Virus Spread
(2016-05-17)
The brain has a tightly regulated environment that protects non-regenerating post-mitotic neurons and limits inflammation, which led to its description as a site of ‘immune privilege’. For example, viral and bacterial ...
Evasion of MDA5-Mediated Innate Immunity by Paramyxoviruses
(2015-05-04)
The innate immune sensor MDA5, a RIG-I-like receptor (RLR), is critical for the detection of viral nucleic acid, eliciting an antiviral immune response. Aberrant immune activation can be detrimental to the host; therefore, ...
Interplay of Dengue Virus and the Human Immune Response
(2015-05-07)
RIG-I is a key cytosolic sensor of many RNA viruses, including dengue virus (DV), the most significant arboviral pathogen. Upon viral RNA binding, RIG-I signals via the adaptor protein MAVS, located at mitochondria, to ...
Epigenetic Regulation of Lytic and Latent Herpes Simplex Virus 1 Infection
(2015-05-01)
Epigenetic regulation plays a major role in whether the herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) will initiate viral gene expression and lytic infection or instead suppress its gene expression and establish a latent infection. Prior ...
Adaptive Evolution of the SIV Envelope Protein During Early SIV Infection
(2016-03-08)
Primate lentiviruses (PLVs), including human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), HIV type 2 (HIV-2), and the simian immunodeficiency viruses (SIVs), cause persistent lifelong infections despite the presence of virus-specific ...
Emergence of simian immunodeficiency virus in rhesus macaques is characterized by changes in structural and accessory genes that enhance fitness in the new host species
(2016-02-25)
The distribution of lentiviruses among primates reflects a history of interspecies transmission and emergence of new virus-host relationships. The degree to which viruses must adapt to the genetic environment of new host ...
Multivalent Vaccination Strategies With Novel HIV-1 Trimeric Envelope Proteins Elicit Improved Neutralizing Antibody Responses Compared to Monovalent Vaccination Regimens
(2016-04-05)
Elicitation of neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) remains a major goal in the generation of a successful vaccine against human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). One of the major obstacles in generating such NAbs is the ...
Nucleotide Modifications of RNA Suppress RIG-I Antiviral Signaling by Unique Mechanisms
(2016-05-02)
In order to counter pathogen infection while preventing autoimmune responses, the human innate immune system must be precisely regulated to distinguish “self” from “non-self”. Pattern recognition receptors detect “non-self” ...
Molecular Mechanisms of CD8+ T Cell Differentiation
(2016-04-25)
CD8+ T cells are a crucial component of the adaptive immune system and are required for optimal protection from most pathogens and cancer. They function by secreting pro-inflammatory cytokines and by directly eliminating ...
CD4 T Cells Regulate Adenovirus Vector-Elicited Cellular and Humoral Immune Responses
(2016-01-08)
The processes that regulate viral vector vaccine-elicited cellular and humoral immune responses remain poorly defined. Thus, in this thesis, the role of CD4+ T cells – master regulators of adaptive immunity – in modulating ...