Functional comparison of the NSs virulence factors from the genus Phlebovirus (B06)

• Subject Area: Virology
• Term: since 2013
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 197785619

Phleboviruses would not withstand innate immunity without their IFN antagonist NSs. For Rift Valley fever virus, we had identified (i) the RNA structures that activate IFN induction, and (ii) the ubiquitin ligases that are recruited by NSs to inhibit IFN induction and the antiviral kinase PKR via proteasomal destruction. Now, we want to elucidate the molecular determinants of PKR activation, and investigate further NSs mechanisms including those of less pathogenic phleboviruses that we found to sequester host factors rather than destroy them. Comparing the NSs strategies of different phleboviruses may give new insights into the relation between anti-IFN mechanisms and viral pathogenicity.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 1021: RNA Viruses: RNA Metabolism, Host Response and Pathogenesis
• Applicant Institution: Philipps-Universität Marburg
• Project Head: Professor Dr. Friedemann Weber