Objective This joint research project is based on specific collaboration between two laboratories in Ukraine, one in Russia and three in the European adenovirus research network (Scotland, Sweden, Germany). The study involves a molecular dissection of the proteins of human adenovirus type 4 - a virus which causes epidemic conjunctivitis.As a first step, an analysis of the sequence of events which occur in standard cell lines on infection with the virus will be undertaken and thereby provide a framework for the collaborative studies. In parallel, attention will be focused on two of the major structural components of the virus, viz. hexon and fibre and particularly on the role that they play in defining a host cell specificity, e.g. do conjunctival cells provide particularly favourable host components to enhance the permissivity of the virus?To facilitate this analysis, monoclonal antibodies will be prepared and mapped on these components by exploiting phage peptide libraries and other techniques. Fibre and hexon gene components will be cloned and expressed in procaryotic and poxvirus systems. In this way it should be possible to construct affinity matrices to identify cell receptors to ascertain whether cell tropism at the level of the receptor is a significant factor. Other parameters which could influence cell tropism, such as the role of type specific hexon epitopes, the ability of the virus to influence cell signalling patterns and the nature of the virus mitigator sequences will also be studied. These investigations should throw some light on the critical early events in virus infection and thereby provide important information on some of the factors determining virus virulence and a route to rational therapy. Knowledge of the parameters controlling virus entry will also be important in advancing gene therapy via adenovirus vectors. Programme(s) IC-INTAS - International Association for the promotion of cooperation with scientists from the independent states of the former Soviet Union (INTAS), 1993- Topic(s) 42 - Physical Chemical Biology Call for proposal Data not available Funding Scheme Data not available Coordinator University of St Andrews EU contribution No data Address KY16 9AJ St Andrews United Kingdom See on map Total cost No data Participants (4) Sort alphabetically Sort by EU Contribution Expand all Collapse all National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine Ukraine EU contribution No data Address 252143 Kiev See on map Total cost No data Russian Academy of Sciences Russia EU contribution No data Address 117334 Moscow See on map Total cost No data Ukrainian Centre of Medical Ukraine EU contribution No data Address 252039 Kiev See on map Total cost No data University of Umeå Sweden EU contribution No data Address 90185 Umeå See on map Total cost No data
