Mitochondria are multifunctional eukaryotic organelles with diverse roles, including energy production and distribution, apoptosis, innate immunity, metabolic regulation, cell-cycle control and signal transduction. The interactions between viruses and the host mitochondria are crucial for virus replication and pathogenicity. Yang Yang et al. found that Enterovirus A71 (EV-A71) infection resulted in a perinuclear redistribution of the mitochondria, and the microtubule skeleton and the dynein motor complex were required for this redistribution. They further revealed that the interaction between EV-A71 2BC protein and mitochondrial Rho GTPase 1 played a crucial role in the regulation of mitochondrial motility, and the mitochondria redistribution was required for EV-A71 replication and proliferation. Their study reports a novel function of the EV-A71 2BC protein and provides an insight into the regulation of organelle transport in the EV-A71-infected cells. Please see page 397–411 for details.
Acinetobacter baumannii causes serious infections especially in immunocompromised and/or hospitalized patients. Several A. baumannii strains are multidrug resistant and infect wounds, bones, and the respiratory tract. Current studies are focused on finding new effective agents against A. baumannii. Phage therapy is a promising means to fight this bacterium and many studies on procuring and applying new phages against A. baumannii are currently being conducted. As shown in animal models, phages against multidrug-resistant A. baumannii may control bacterial infections caused by this pathogen and may be a real hope to solve this dangerous health problem.
乙型肝炎病毒(hepatitis B virus, HBV)基因组的开放阅读框相互重叠,因此,HBV多聚酶上的耐药抗性突变可引起HBV表面蛋白的终止密码子突变。这些突变株往往与野生型毒株共存。然而,突变株和野生株的共存如何影响HBV复制尚不清晰。在本研究中,我们对几个常见的逆转录酶耐药突变/表面抗原终止密码子突变rtA181T/sW172*、rtV191I/sW182*、rtM204I/sW196*单独存在及与其野生株共存时的复制情况进行了分析。通过转染不同比例的突变株质粒和野生株质粒、并加入核苷类似物进行处理,我们发现,当没有核苷类似物处理时,逆转录酶耐药突变/表面抗原终止密码子突变毒株表达及分泌病毒表面蛋白的能力明显降低,且对野生病毒颗粒的分泌有剂量依赖性的抑制效果;然而,当有核苷类似物作用时,突变株与野生株的共存可以维持病毒复制,且野生株的存在可以拯救突变HBV病毒颗粒的产生。这些结果揭示出野生毒株与突变HBV毒株互补维持核苷类似物作用下的病毒复制。
The Lorne Infection and Immunity Conference is one of five scientific meetings held during each month of February at the Cumberland resort in the picturesque seaside town of Lorne, on the Great Ocean Road in Victoria (Australia). The specific aim of the meeting is to bring together basic, clinical and translational researchers—those who examine microbes and their impact on the innate or adaptive immune response, researchers who study the mechanisms that regulate immune responses, and those who apply this knowledge to preventing and treating infectious and inflammatory diseases. The average number of attendees is 220, with registrants appreciative of the welcoming and relaxed atmosphere (Fig. 1).