Marcela Kudelova
Institute of Virology Slovak Academy of Sciences
Title: Murine gammaherpesvirus – newly discovered properties of MHV-68
Biography
Biography: Marcela Kudelova
Abstract
The murine γ-herpesvirus 68 (MHV-68) known naturally infect rodents still actually provides a unique experimental model for dissecting important topics of human immunity to large DNA viruses that persist in B lymphocytes. Three scopes of interest related to MHV-68 are addressed by our laboratory and produce new knowledge about this virus. The first addresses the hypothesis that ticks, known to transmit multiple pathogens which can cause diseases in humans and animals, have a role in MHV-68 circulation in nature. The second is whether it is possible that MHV-68 might transform mouse cells in vitro. And the third addresses to the hypothesis that MHV-68 might induce the production of growth factor related compounds described for some herpesviruses. Recently we were the first to report the detection of MHV-68 in Dermacentor reticulatus ticks and of a live virus in their organs. Along with previous finding of MHV-68 in Ixodes ricinus ticks these results allow suggest MHV-68 as a potential arbovirus, the second one known as its own DNA genome. More, we prepared MHV-68 transformed mouse fibroblast cell line that acquired transformed phenotype after infection with UV irradiated MHV-68. In transformed cell line, viral antigen and DNA could be detected indicating that it might be oncogenic. In medium of these cells we identified compounds resembling growth factors which have displayed transforming and transformed phenotype suppressing activity in normal and tumor cells. Bivalent properties of compounds have been blocked entirely by antisera against MHV-68 and monoclonal antibodies against glycoprotein B suggesting their viral origin.