Vectors for Cancer Therapy
Category: Virology
Oncolytic HSV (oHSV) virotherapy is a promising new strategy for cancer therapy, converting a human pathogen into a therapeutic agent. This takes advantage of the biology of HSV, by introducing genetic alterations that limit virus replication and cytotoxicity to transformed cancer cells while making the virus non-permissive in normal cells. HSV encodes a large number of genes that are non-essential for growth in tissue culture cells, but are nevertheless important for growth in post-mitotic cells and for interfering with intrinsic antiviral and innate immune responses. Many of the cellular pathways regulating growth and antiviral responses are disrupted in cancer cells, which means that viral gene products allowing replication in normal cells are not necessary in cancer cells. In considering the development of an infectious agent for human use, safety is a critical consideration. Therefore mutations targeting cancer cells must be combined with mutations in genes that play important roles in vivo; causing pathogenicity, spread through the nervous system and other organs, latency and reactivation, and adaptive immune responses. This review will focus more on the virological aspects of oHSV vectors and less on the cancer cell target, and describe the multiple strategies and genes involved in generating oHSV vectors. However, it is important to bear in mind that the effect of different HSV mutations will be highly dependent upon the physiology of the particular type of cancer cell and tumor, and that each oHSV vector will be more effective in some tumor types, so that it is unlikely that any one oHSV will be optimal for all types of cancer.
Further reading: Alphaherpesviruses: Molecular Virology
Further reading: Alphaherpesviruses: Molecular Virology
Autophagy
Category: Virology
Autophagy is a rapidly growing area of biomedical research with broad relevance to fields including microbiology, cell biology, immunology, cancer biology, and neurodegeneration. In infection and immunity, it is emerging as a pivotal pathway mediating direct pathogen degradation as well as for the development of robust innate and adaptive immune responses. Successful pathogens have evolved to either evade or harness the autophagy pathway to further their replication and pathogenesis. In a recent review the basic aspects of autophagy will be described, along with its role in cellular homeostasis, and the development of immunity. The primary focus is a survey of past and recent research defining the interplay of autophagy and the herpesviruses, with particular reference to immune evasion and pathogenesis.
Further reading: Alphaherpesviruses: Molecular Virology
Further reading: Alphaherpesviruses: Molecular Virology
Human Alpha-herpesvirus MicroRNAs
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are an extensive class of approx 22 nucleotide long regulatory RNAs expressed by all mammalian cells and also by several DNA viruses, including many members of the herpesvirus family. Using deep sequencing technology, it has now been demonstrated that Herpes Simplex Virus 1 (HSV-1) encodes at least eight viral miRNAs, seven of which are expressed in latently infected human neurons. Similarly, HSV-2 has also been shown to encode at least six miRNAs, four of which are evolutionarily conserved between HSV-2 and HSV-1. Perhaps surprisingly, varicella zoster virus does not appear to express any viral miRNAs in latently infected cells. A recent review discusses the potential functions of the currently known HSV-1 and HSV-2 miRNAs, focusing on a possible role in stabilizing viral latency in infected neurons.
Further reading: Alphaherpesviruses: Molecular Virology
Further reading: Alphaherpesviruses: Molecular Virology
Microbial Biopolymers Book Review
Category: Book Review
I am pleased to provide the following excerpt from a book review of Microbial Production of Biopolymers and Polymer Precursors: Applications and Perspectives:
"The authors of this comprehensive review are internationally accepted specialists in the field of using microorganisms as a cell factory for biopolymers or special precursors of these polymers ... The editor and the authors have produced an excellent up-to date compendium which is extremely useful for all students of biotechnology, engineering and scientists in the biotechnological and microbiological branches and is recommended for all biotechnological and microbial laboratories and enterprises in this field. It should be available in libraries at universities, research institutes and biotechnological companies and is further strongly recommended to all those who are interested in life sciences." from Uta Breuer (Halle, Germany) writing in Clean (2009) 37(6): 414 read more ...
"The authors of this comprehensive review are internationally accepted specialists in the field of using microorganisms as a cell factory for biopolymers or special precursors of these polymers ... The editor and the authors have produced an excellent up-to date compendium which is extremely useful for all students of biotechnology, engineering and scientists in the biotechnological and microbiological branches and is recommended for all biotechnological and microbial laboratories and enterprises in this field. It should be available in libraries at universities, research institutes and biotechnological companies and is further strongly recommended to all those who are interested in life sciences." from Uta Breuer (Halle, Germany) writing in Clean (2009) 37(6): 414 read more ...
 | Edited by: Bernd H. A. Rehm "an excellent up-to date compendium ... strongly recommended" (Clean)ISBN: 978-1-904455-36-3 Publisher: Caister Academic Press Publication Date: January 2009 Cover: hardback |
5th Annual DREAM Reverse Engineering Challenges
November 16 - 20, 2010 5th Annual DREAM Reverse Engineering Challenges
New York, USA Further information
Held jointly with the 6th Annual RECOMB Satellite on Systems Biology, and the 7th Annual RECOMB Satellite on Regulatory Genomics. The goal of the meeting is to bring together computational and experimental scientists in the area of regulatory genomics and systems biology, to discuss current research directions, latest findings, and establish new collaborations towards a systems-level understanding of gene regulation. The meeting consists of keynote presentations, oral presentations selected from submitted manuscripts and 1-page abstracts, and posters presentations also selected from submitted abstracts. More than 500 participants attended last year\'s meeting, the vast majority of whom attended all three meetings, and we expect a similar interest this year.
Suggested reading: Molecular Biology Books
New York, USA Further information
Held jointly with the 6th Annual RECOMB Satellite on Systems Biology, and the 7th Annual RECOMB Satellite on Regulatory Genomics. The goal of the meeting is to bring together computational and experimental scientists in the area of regulatory genomics and systems biology, to discuss current research directions, latest findings, and establish new collaborations towards a systems-level understanding of gene regulation. The meeting consists of keynote presentations, oral presentations selected from submitted manuscripts and 1-page abstracts, and posters presentations also selected from submitted abstracts. More than 500 participants attended last year\'s meeting, the vast majority of whom attended all three meetings, and we expect a similar interest this year.
Suggested reading: Molecular Biology Books
ESF-EMBO Symposium on Molecular Perspectives on Protein-Protein Interactions
November 14 - 19, 2010 ESF-EMBO Symposium on Molecular Perspectives on Protein-Protein Interactions
Sant Feliu de Guixols, Spain Further information
The conference aims to gather scientists from molecular cell biology, biochemistry, structural biology, biophysics and bioinformatics with the common interest to explore the immensely important field of protein-protein interactions. The particular focus of the conference will be on molecular aspects of protein-protein interactions. Topics will include theory and computation, thermodynamics & kinetics, intrinsically unstructured protein complexes, PPI in disease and drug development, protein interaction networks, signaling complexes, membrane protein complexes, emerging and single molecule techniques, evolution and design as well as large multi-protein complexes. Fundamental and applied problems in these fields will be discussed from an interdisciplinary perspective.
Suggested reading: Molecular Biology Books
Sant Feliu de Guixols, Spain Further information
The conference aims to gather scientists from molecular cell biology, biochemistry, structural biology, biophysics and bioinformatics with the common interest to explore the immensely important field of protein-protein interactions. The particular focus of the conference will be on molecular aspects of protein-protein interactions. Topics will include theory and computation, thermodynamics & kinetics, intrinsically unstructured protein complexes, PPI in disease and drug development, protein interaction networks, signaling complexes, membrane protein complexes, emerging and single molecule techniques, evolution and design as well as large multi-protein complexes. Fundamental and applied problems in these fields will be discussed from an interdisciplinary perspective.
Suggested reading: Molecular Biology Books