The work shows how this viral protein mimics the structure
of a host cell protein to defeat the defense mechanisms of the organism
being infected by the virus. A research team led by Dr. Michael Kennedy
of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), with colleagues there
and at the University of Toronto and the National Institutes of Health,
has determined the structure of a myxoma virus protein involved in modulating
immune response to the virus. Myxoma virus causes a lethal infection in
European rabbits and knowledge of its mode of infection could help in understanding
the action of a range of related viruses. The researchers used several
of the high performance nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectrometers
in the
Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL),
a national scientific user facility located at PNNL. The structure is featured
on the cover of a recent issue of the Journal of Molecular Biology, the
most prominent journal in the field. The major instrumentation capabilities
of the EMSL are made available to investigators from universities, national
laboratories, and other institutions on a competitive proposal basis.
Program Contact:
Paul Bayer
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1/29/03