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Biosecurity News in Brief
Recent Discoveries May Lead to New Smallpox Treatment and SARS VaccineBy David Press and Crystal Franco, August 11, 2006 In an August 4 news release, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine announced the discovery of a smallpox virus enzyme which may provide clues to the development of new drugs to target the virus.[1] The smallpox virus is one of the most deadly in the world, with a mortality rate of approximately 20–30%. Smallpox was eradicated from nature in 1980, but it is still feared as a potential bioterrorism agent.[2] The researchers released their study in the August 4, 2006, edition of the journal Molecular Cell. [2] The University of Pennsylvania researchers were able to discover the three-dimensional structure of the enzyme known as topoisomerase by using a technique called X-ray crystalography. The smallpox virus produces topoisomerase enzymes during its replication process in order to uncoil viral DNA strands, which is an essential step in viral replication. With the structure of this enzyme in hand, researchers believe they may have identified a way to create new antiviral drugs with a structure similar to the enzyme. These drugs would directly target and bind to viral DNA in order to inhibit the replication process. Researchers hope that blockage of this critical step will, in turn, prevent the survival of the virus in human cells.[1] In other countermeasures development news, an August 8 report on News-Medical.Net revealed that scientists from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (UTMB) have discovered a protein target within the SARS coronavirus which might be used to create a vaccine for SARS.[3] Researchers at UTMB reported that in human SARS infections, a virus protein called nsp1 breaks down the host DNA messaging system, called messenger RNA (mRNA). Messenger RNA’s role is to send instructions for production of proteins that are critical to strengthening the immune system. UTMB scientists believe that this viral mechanism may be what makes this coronavirus so lethal. Many other viruses interfere with messenger RNA; however, according to the News-Medical.Net report, the only other virus known to actually break down host mRNA is the herpes simplex virus.[3] UTMB scientists hope that this discovery will aid in the creation of a vaccine in the event that SARS resurfaces. References
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