Snowy Owl
Retired in 2010, In Memoriam
Inhibition of Influenza Virus Infection by a Novel Antiviral Peptide That Targets Viral Attachment to Cells
Journal of Virology, December 2006, p. 11960-11967, Vol. 80, No. 24
0022-538X/06/$08.00+0 doi:10.1128/JVI.01678-06
Copyright ? 2006, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Jeremy C. Jones,<SUP>1</SUP> Elizabeth A. Turpin,<SUP>1</SUP><SUP>,
</SUP> Hermann Bultmann,<SUP>2</SUP> Curtis R. Brandt,<SUP>1</SUP><SUP>,2</SUP> and Stacey Schultz-Cherry<SUP>1</SUP><SUP>*</SUP>
Journal of Virology, December 2006, p. 11960-11967, Vol. 80, No. 24
0022-538X/06/$08.00+0 doi:10.1128/JVI.01678-06
Copyright ? 2006, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Jeremy C. Jones,<SUP>1</SUP> Elizabeth A. Turpin,<SUP>1</SUP><SUP>,
Departments of Medical Microbiology and Immunology,<SUP>1</SUP> Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53706<SUP>2</SUP>
Received 3 August 2006/ Accepted 12 September 2006
http://jvi.asm.org/cgi/content/abstract/80/24/11960
http://jvi.asm.org/cgi/content/abstract/80/24/11960
Influenza A viruses continue to cause widespread morbidity and<SUP> </SUP>mortality. There is an added concern that the highly pathogenic<SUP> </SUP>H5N1 influenza A viruses, currently found throughout many parts<SUP> </SUP>of the world, represent a serious public health threat and may<SUP> </SUP>result in a pandemic.
Intervention strategies to halt an influenza<SUP> </SUP>epidemic or pandemic are a high priority, with an emphasis on<SUP> </SUP>vaccines and antiviral drugs.
In these studies, we demonstrate<SUP> </SUP>that a 20-amino-acid peptide (EB, for entry blocker) derived<SUP> </SUP>from the signal sequence of fibroblast growth factor 4 exhibits<SUP> </SUP>broad-spectrum antiviral activity against influenza viruses<SUP> </SUP>including the H5N1 subtype in vitro.
The EB peptide was protective<SUP> </SUP>in vivo, even when administered postinfection.
Mechanistically,<SUP> </SUP>the EB peptide inhibits the attachment to the cellular receptor,<SUP> </SUP>preventing infection. Further studies demonstrated that the<SUP> </SUP>EB peptide specifically binds to the viral hemagglutinin protein.<SUP> </SUP>This novel peptide has potential value as a reagent to study<SUP> </SUP>virus attachment and as a future therapeutic.<SUP> </SUP>
Intervention strategies to halt an influenza<SUP> </SUP>epidemic or pandemic are a high priority, with an emphasis on<SUP> </SUP>vaccines and antiviral drugs.
In these studies, we demonstrate<SUP> </SUP>that a 20-amino-acid peptide (EB, for entry blocker) derived<SUP> </SUP>from the signal sequence of fibroblast growth factor 4 exhibits<SUP> </SUP>broad-spectrum antiviral activity against influenza viruses<SUP> </SUP>including the H5N1 subtype in vitro.
The EB peptide was protective<SUP> </SUP>in vivo, even when administered postinfection.
Mechanistically,<SUP> </SUP>the EB peptide inhibits the attachment to the cellular receptor,<SUP> </SUP>preventing infection. Further studies demonstrated that the<SUP> </SUP>EB peptide specifically binds to the viral hemagglutinin protein.<SUP> </SUP>This novel peptide has potential value as a reagent to study<SUP> </SUP>virus attachment and as a future therapeutic.<SUP> </SUP>