Research

Viral Virulence Factors

            Viruses encode factors that are responsible for causing disease in a host.   These virulence factors may be required for the virus to enter cells, to defeat the host defenses, or spread infection throughout the infected organism.  Viruses need to defeat the host in order to propagate and complete their replication cycle, which terminates in the production of progeny virus. However, there needs to be a balance between killing the host rapidly and allowing enough time for the virus to utilize host resources and multiply.  We are studying how key baculovirus factors may allow the virus to spread infection more efficiently and rapidly.   We test recombinant viruses lacking the virulence factor and assess their infectivity both in cell culture and in the insect host.  Specifically, we measure how long it takes the virus to kill its host and how much virus is required to kill the host and compare it to the wild-type virus.  Finally, we look at virus pathogenesis in the host by dissecting insect larvae and looking at the diseased tissues.  The study of the biochemical properties of these virulence factors and their role in host pathogenesis will give us insight into how these factors are orchestrating molecular interactions with the host and signaling events for effective virus replication.