Feinberg
Northwestern Medicine | Northwestern University | Faculty Profiles

News Center

  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Podcasts
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Menu
  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Podcasts
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Home » Tracking How Herpes Simplex Virus Moves Through Cells
Disease Discoveries

Tracking How Herpes Simplex Virus Moves Through Cells

By Sarah PlumridgeNov 11, 2015
Share
Facebook Twitter Email
 A new study shows how herpes simplex virus particles (green) latch on to microtubules (red) to travel to the nucleus (blue) of a host cell to replicate.  <prop id="look-up-table-custom-values" type="int-array" value="0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0
A new study shows how herpes simplex virus particles (green) latch on to microtubules (red) to travel to the nucleus (blue) of a host cell to replicate.

In a recent study, Derek Walsh, PhD, associate professor of Microbiology-Immunology, and his team showed how the herpes simplex virus (HSV) exploits microtubule plus-end tracking proteins to initiate transport and infection in human cells.

The new research shows that HSV relies on a complex of proteins that mediate cargo capture in order to engage microtubules, the host cell’s intracellular transport network, to reach to the nucleus of a cell and replicate.

Using imaging techniques, Walsh demonstrated that before HSV moves using dynein, the virus depends on the dynamic nature of microtubules for capture. He observed that these microtubules, which dynamically grow and shrink to sense the intracellular environment, capture virus particles using specialized tracking proteins, EB1 and CLIP-170, at the tips of the microtubules.

“The virus actually sits at the periphery of the cell, and the proteins at the tip of the microtubules hook it and grab it on to the microtubule,” Walsh said. “Up until now, it would be assumed the virus could get on any part of the microtubule as long as it’s on a motor, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.”

Vladimir Jovasevic, PhD, postdoctoral fellow, Mojgan Naghavi, PhD, associate professor of Microbiology-Immunology, and Derek Walsh, PhD, associate professor of Microbiology-Immunology, demonstrated how the herpes simplex virus exploits specialized host proteins on the ends of microtubules to initiate transport in host cells.
Vladimir Jovasevic, PhD, postdoctoral fellow, Mojgan Naghavi, PhD, associate professor of Microbiology-Immunology, and Derek Walsh, PhD, associate professor of Microbiology-Immunology, demonstrated how the herpes simplex virus exploits specialized host proteins on the ends of microtubules to initiate transport in host cells.

This finding, published in the Journal of Cell Biology, has “changed the way we think about how the virus gets on the microtubule,” Walsh said.

Furthermore, when the scientists observed other structures within the cell, such as proteins and organelles that depend on microtubules and motor proteins for transport, they found these structures do not need the tracking proteins EB1 and CLIP-170. This finding suggests that these specialized proteins that are required for HSV infection could serve as potential targets in the development of new antivirals.

In future research, Walsh plans to study the mechanisms of how the virus targets tracking proteins and engages microtubules.

The research was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health R01GM101975 and P01GM105536.

Immunology Microbiology Research
Share. Facebook Twitter Email

Related Posts

Shortage of Mental Health Professionals Linked to Increase in Youth Suicides

Jan 25, 2023

Understanding How Childhood Brain Tumors Develop

Jan 23, 2023

Medical School Establishes New Center for Psychiatric Neuroscience

Jan 19, 2023

Comments are closed.

Latest News

Changes in Medical School Leadership

Jan 26, 2023

Shortage of Mental Health Professionals Linked to Increase in Youth Suicides

Jan 25, 2023

Northwestern Medicine Scholars Program Inspires a New Generation of Physicians and Scientists 

Jan 24, 2023

Understanding How Childhood Brain Tumors Develop

Jan 23, 2023

Medical School Establishes New Center for Psychiatric Neuroscience

Jan 19, 2023
  • News Center Home
  • Categories
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
  • News Archives
  • About Us
Flickr Photos
Feinberg_In_Vivo_20221209_tcrawford-24
Feinberg_In_Vivo_20221209_tcrawford-16
Feinberg_In_Vivo_20221209_tcrawford-14
Feinberg_In_Vivo_20221209_tcrawford-5
Feinberg_In_Vivo_20221209_tcrawford-6
Feinberg_In_Vivo_20221209_tcrawford-10
Feinberg_In_Vivo_20221209_tcrawford-8
Feinberg_In_Vivo_20221209_tcrawford-18
Feinberg_In_Vivo_20221209_tcrawford
Feinberg_In_Vivo_20221209_tcrawford-23
Feinberg_In_Vivo_20221209_tcrawford-25
Feinberg_In_Vivo_20221209_tcrawford-26

Northwestern University logo

Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

RSS Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Flickr YouTube Instagram
Copyright © 2023 Northwestern University
  • Contact Northwestern University
  • Disclaimer
  • Campus Emergency Information
  • Policy Statements

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.