Researchers make computerized proteins that can block flu virus
Lisa Schnirring Staff Writer
May 12, 2011 (CIDRAP News) – In detailing a new process that might someday speed the development of antivirals and other disease-fighting tools, researchers said today that they can design protein-protein interactions from scratch with a computer and bind them to the surface of the 1918 pandemic influenza virus.
They focused on a conserved patch on the surface of the virus’ hemagglutinin (HA) stem, a region found to be conserved among all group 1 flu strains (H1, H2, H5, H6, H8, H9, H11, H12, H13, and H16 types). The group from the University of Washington in Seattle and Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, Calif., described their findings today in Science.
Currently, researchers use animal immune systems to generate antibodies or they must screen “libraries” of proteins to identify binding candidates.
