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The Rabies Virus: Controlling the Life and Death of the Neurons it Infects

http://www.bulletins-electroniques.com/actualites/62209.htm

Researchers at the Pasteur Institute and at CNRS (French National Center for Scientific Research) Viral Neuro-Immunology Unit headed by Monique Lafon, and the Biomolecule Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Unit headed by Muriel Delepierre, have just identified a key region that can cause the infected human neurons to survive or to be destroyed, in the rabies virus envelope protein, called G protein. The scientist have shown that the key region made of the protein's very last amino acids is a binding site required for these functions. The region has been shown to control the affinity of the G protein and the nature of the neuron proteins with which the viral protein interacts.

To pinpoint the key region of the G protein that the virus needs to keep its target cells alive, the scientists used recombinant chimeric viruses expressing hybrid G proteins from virulent and attenuated viral strains. They have shown that a single mutation in the region is enough to alter the nature of the cellular partners and cause the infected neurons to be destroyed, causing the rabies virus to lose its pathogenicity.

Pasteur Institute and CNRS researchers are focusing on understanding the molecular signaling mechanisms involved and on identifying the synthetic molecules (peptides from the G protein or molecules mimicking them) for therapeutic purposes. It might actually be possible to use the key region of the G protein, or the key part of a derived synthetic molecule that mimics it, to make the neuron survive or regenerate, or conversely to destroy tumor cells that multiply randomly. The still very basic research could pave the way for different therapeutic possibilities, especially in terms of treatments for neurodegenerative diseases and cancer.

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Institut Pasteur - Pasteur Institute
- Viral-Neuro-immunology Unit (Unité de Neuro-immunologie virale) - Monique Lafon - Email: mlafon@pasteur.fr
- Biomolecular Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Unit (Unité de Résonance Magnétique Nucléaire des Biomolécules) - Muriel Delepierre - Email: murield@pasteur.fr

Code brève
ADIT : 62209

ADIT - Jean-François Desessard - email: jfd@adit.fr

eTech France numéro 237 (8/02/2010) - ADIT / ADIT - http://www.bulletins-electroniques.com/actualites/62209.htm