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For papers that will be published online on 28 August 2005
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* Triggering new sensors for virus infection - Nature Immunology
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[8] Triggering new sensors for virus infection
DOI: 10.1038/ni1243
Research in the September issue of Nature Immunology identifying a new
response factor triggered by intracellular sensors of many types of viruses
may open up new ways of enhancing our ability to fight infections.
Viral infections cause immune cells to fight back by making proteins
called interferons, which are critical for effective activation of the
body's defense mechanisms. This new research gives scientists a novel
direction for finding effective treatments for certain types of virus
infection.
Many of the signals essential to interferon production have been
characterized, and they emanate from myriad different participants. The
abundance of such information might indicate that every important way of
triggering interferon is known. Recent work has identified new sensors in
cells that respond to viral production of double-stranded RNA molecules, but
just how these new sensors caused interferon to be produced was unknown.
Shizuo Akira and colleagues have found that a protein they call
interferon-beta promoter stimulator 1 (IPS-1) is essential for signaling by
the new sensors for production of interferon. Cells that were deficient in
IPS-1 made less interferon and were more susceptible to virus infection than
normal cells. IPS-1 was identified by a 'brute force' method in which
hundreds of candidate proteins were screened for the ability to trigger
interferon production. The finding is of importance, as it represents one
more potential weapon against the harsh assault viruses can make on our
health.
Author contact:
Shizuo Akira (Osaka University, Japan)
Tel: +81 617 278 3240, Email: [email protected]
Other papers from Nature Immunology to be published online at the same time
and with the same embargo:
[9] Negative regulation of natural killer cell functions by EAT-2, a
SAP-related adaptor
DOI: 10.1038/ni1242
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