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Viruses
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Advances in Gene Technology and Resistance to Viruses
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Advances in Gene Technology and Resistance to Viruses

A special issue of Viruses (ISSN 1999-4915).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2015) | Viewed by 37621

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, gene technology has opened up many opportunities for handling with virus epidemics. Plants have been constructed to express antiviral proteins and antiviral RNAs, and some of these plants have passed regulatory control and are currently being grown in fields: virus-resistant root stocks have been constructed to protect grapes; transformed bone marrow cells have become an efficient weapons against AIDS; vaccines can be efficiently produced in plants; modified viruses are used to cope with insect pests. Although public acceptance of these technologies is currently often a problem, the future will certainly open many opportunities to foster health and help to provide sufficient food for the world’s population. This issue aim to collect original research publications on the most recent biotechnological advances in  these fields.

Prof. Dr. Thomas Hohn
Associate Editor, Section 'Viruses of Plants, Fungi and Protoza'

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Viruses is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.


Keywords

  • transgenics
  • virus resistance
  • gene technology
  • RNA silencing
  • Biotechnology

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

2055 KiB  
Article
Synthetic RNAs Mimicking Structural Domains in the Foot-and-Mouth Disease Virus Genome Elicit a Broad Innate Immune Response in Porcine Cells Triggered by RIG-I and TLR Activation
by Belén Borrego, Miguel Rodríguez-Pulido, Concepción Revilla, Belén Álvarez, Francisco Sobrino, Javier Domínguez and Margarita Sáiz
Viruses 2015, 7(7), 3954-3973; https://doi.org/10.3390/v7072807 - 17 Jul 2015
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 5577
Abstract
The innate immune system is the first line of defense against viral infections. Exploiting innate responses for antiviral, therapeutic and vaccine adjuvation strategies is being extensively explored. We have previously described, the ability of small in vitro RNA transcripts, mimicking the sequence and [...] Read more.
The innate immune system is the first line of defense against viral infections. Exploiting innate responses for antiviral, therapeutic and vaccine adjuvation strategies is being extensively explored. We have previously described, the ability of small in vitro RNA transcripts, mimicking the sequence and structure of different domains in the non-coding regions of the foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) genome (ncRNAs), to trigger a potent and rapid innate immune response. These synthetic non-infectious molecules have proved to have a broad-range antiviral activity and to enhance the immunogenicity of an FMD inactivated vaccine in mice. Here, we have studied the involvement of pattern-recognition receptors (PRRs) in the ncRNA-induced innate response and analyzed the antiviral and cytokine profiles elicited in swine cultured cells, as well as peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Gene Technology and Resistance to Viruses)
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1078 KiB  
Article
IFITMs from Mycobacteria Confer Resistance to Influenza Virus When Expressed in Human Cells
by William J. Melvin, Temet M. McMichael, Nicholas M. Chesarino, Jocelyn C. Hach and Jacob S. Yount
Viruses 2015, 7(6), 3035-3052; https://doi.org/10.3390/v7062759 - 12 Jun 2015
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 6711
Abstract
Interferon induced transmembrane proteins (IFITMs) found in vertebrates restrict infections by specific viruses. IFITM3 is known to be essential for restriction of influenza virus infections in both mice and humans. Vertebrate IFITMs are hypothesized to have derived from a horizontal gene transfer from [...] Read more.
Interferon induced transmembrane proteins (IFITMs) found in vertebrates restrict infections by specific viruses. IFITM3 is known to be essential for restriction of influenza virus infections in both mice and humans. Vertebrate IFITMs are hypothesized to have derived from a horizontal gene transfer from bacteria to a primitive unicellular eukaryote. Since bacterial IFITMs share minimal amino acid identity with human IFITM3, we hypothesized that examination of bacterial IFITMs in human cells would provide insight into the essential characteristics necessary for antiviral activity of IFITMs. We examined IFITMs from Mycobacterium avium and Mycobacterium abscessus for potential antiviral activity. Both of these IFITMs conferred a moderate level of resistance to influenza virus in human cells, identifying them as functional homologues of IFITM3. Analysis of sequence elements shared by bacterial IFITMs and IFITM3 identified two hydrophobic domains, putative S-palmitoylation sites, and conserved phenylalanine residues associated with IFITM3 interactions, which are all necessary for IFITM3 antiviral activity. We observed that, like IFITM3, bacterial IFITMs were S-palmitoylated, albeit to a lesser degree. We also demonstrated the ability of a bacterial IFITM to co-immunoprecipitate with IFITM3 suggesting formation of a complex, and also visualized strong co-localization of bacterial IFITMs with IFITM3. However, the mycobacterial IFITMs lack the endocytic-targeting motif conserved in vertebrate IFITM3. As such, these bacterial proteins, when expressed alone, had diminished colocalization with cathepsin B-positive endolysosomal compartments that are the primary site of IFITM3-dependent influenza virus restriction. Though the precise evolutionary origin of vertebrate IFITMs is not known, our results support a model whereby transfer of a bacterial IFITM gene to eukaryotic cells may have provided a selective advantage against viral infection that was refined through the course of vertebrate evolution to include more robust signals for S-palmitoylation and localization to sites of endocytic virus trafficking. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Gene Technology and Resistance to Viruses)
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2187 KiB  
Article
Ageratum enation virus—A Begomovirus of Weeds with the Potential to Infect Crops
by Muhammad Tahir, Imran Amin, Muhammad Saleem Haider, Shahid Mansoor and Rob W. Briddon
Viruses 2015, 7(2), 647-665; https://doi.org/10.3390/v7020647 - 10 Feb 2015
Cited by 27 | Viewed by 10111
Abstract
Samples of two Ageratum conyzoides, one Sonchus oleraceus and one turnip (Brassica rapa var. rapa) exhibiting virus-like symptoms were collected from Pakistan and Nepal. Full-length begomovirus clones were obtained from the four plant samples and betasatellite clones from three of [...] Read more.
Samples of two Ageratum conyzoides, one Sonchus oleraceus and one turnip (Brassica rapa var. rapa) exhibiting virus-like symptoms were collected from Pakistan and Nepal. Full-length begomovirus clones were obtained from the four plant samples and betasatellite clones from three of these. The begomovirus sequences were shown to be isolates of Ageratum enation virus (AEV) with greater than 89.1% nucleotide sequence identity to the 26 AEV sequences available in the databases. The three betasatellite sequences were shown to be isolates of Ageratum yellow leaf curl betasatellite (AYLCB) with greater than 90% identity to the 18 AYLCB sequences available in the databases. The AEV sequences were shown to fall into two distinct strains, for which the names Nepal (consisting of isolates from Nepal, India, and Pakistan—including the isolates identified here) and India (isolates occurring only in India) strains are proposed. For the clones obtained from two AEV isolates, with their AYLCB, infectivity was shown by Agrobacterium-mediated inoculation to Nicotiana benthamiana, N. tabacum, Solanum lycopersicon and A. conyzoides. N. benthamiana plants infected with AEV alone or betasatellite alone showed no symptoms. N. benthamiana plants infected with AEV with its associated betasatellite showed leaf curl symptoms. The findings show that AEV is predominantly a virus of weeds that has the capacity to infect crops. AYLCB appears to be the common partner betasatellite of AEV and is associated with diseases with a range of very different symptoms in the same plant species. The inability to satisfy Koch’s postulates with the cloned components of isolate SOL in A. conyzoides suggests that the etiology may be more complex than a single virus with a single betasatellite. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Gene Technology and Resistance to Viruses)
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3249 KiB  
Article
Mutations in the Reverse Transcriptase and Protease Genes of Human Immunodeficiency Virus-1 from Antiretroviral Naïve and Treated Pediatric Patients
by Dinesh Bure, Muzamil A. Makhdoomi, Rakesh Lodha, Somi Sankaran Prakash, Rajesh Kumar, Hilal A. Parray, Ravinder Singh, Sushil K. Kabra and Kalpana Luthra
Viruses 2015, 7(2), 590-603; https://doi.org/10.3390/v7020590 - 10 Feb 2015
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 5765
Abstract
The success of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) is challenged by the emergence of resistance-associated mutations in human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1). In this study, resistance associated mutations in the reverse transcriptase (RT) and protease (PR) genes in antiretroviral therapy (ART) naïve and treated [...] Read more.
The success of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) is challenged by the emergence of resistance-associated mutations in human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1). In this study, resistance associated mutations in the reverse transcriptase (RT) and protease (PR) genes in antiretroviral therapy (ART) naïve and treated HIV-1 infected pediatric patients from North India were evaluated. Genotyping was successfully performed in 46 patients (30 ART naive and 16 treated) for the RT gene and in 53 patients (27 ART naive and 26 treated) for PR gene and mutations were identified using Stanford HIV Drug Resistance Database. A major drug resistant mutation in RT gene, L74I (NRTI), and two such mutations, K101E and G190A (NNRTI), were observed in two ART naïve patients, while M184V was detected in two ART treated patients. Overall, major resistance associated mutations in RT gene were observed in nine (30%) and seven (36%) of ART naïve and treated children respectively. Minor mutations were identified in PR gene in five children. Few non-clade C viral strains (≈30%) were detected, although subtype C was most predominant. The screening of ART naïve children for mutations in HIV-1 RT and protease genes, before and after initiation of ART is desirable for drug efficacy and good prognosis. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Gene Technology and Resistance to Viruses)
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1012 KiB  
Article
Apple Latent Spherical Virus Vector as Vaccine for the Prevention and Treatment of Mosaic Diseases in Pea, Broad Bean, and Eustoma Plants by Bean Yellow Mosaic Virus
by Nozomi Satoh, Tatsuya Kon, Noriko Yamagishi, Tsubasa Takahashi, Tomohide Natsuaki and Nobuyuki Yoshikawa
Viruses 2014, 6(11), 4242-4257; https://doi.org/10.3390/v6114242 - 07 Nov 2014
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 8691
Abstract
We investigated the protective effects of a viral vector based on an Apple latent spherical virus (ALSV) harboring a segment of the Bean yellow mosaic virus (BYMV) genome against mosaic diseases in pea, broad bean, and eustoma plants caused by BYMV infection. [...] Read more.
We investigated the protective effects of a viral vector based on an Apple latent spherical virus (ALSV) harboring a segment of the Bean yellow mosaic virus (BYMV) genome against mosaic diseases in pea, broad bean, and eustoma plants caused by BYMV infection. In pea plants pre-inoculated with the ALSV vaccine and challenge inoculated with BYMV expressing green fluorescence protein, BYMV multiplication occurred in inoculated leaves, but was markedly inhibited in the upper leaves. No mosaic symptoms due to BYMV infection were observed in the challenged plants pre-inoculated with the ALSV vaccine. Simultaneous inoculation with the ALSV vaccine and BYMV also prevented mosaic symptoms in broad bean and eustoma plants, and BYMV accumulation was strongly inhibited in the upper leaves of plants treated with the ALSV vaccine. Pea and eustoma plants were pre-inoculated with BYMV followed by inoculation with the ALSV vaccine to investigate the curative effects of the ALSV vaccine. In both plant species, recovery from mosaic symptoms was observed in upper leaves and BYMV accumulation was inhibited in leaves developing post-ALSV vaccination. These results show that ALSV vaccination not only prevents mosaic diseases in pea, broad bean, and eustoma, but that it is also effective in curing these diseases. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Gene Technology and Resistance to Viruses)
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