Virulence Factor Made by Influenza A Virus Is Potential Target for Vaccine Drug Development

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. - Aug. 14, 2017 - PRLog -- A new study describes how NS1, a protein produced by influenza A viruses, suppresses the body's immune responses to viral infection. Researchers present the potential to develop a live attenuated vaccine based on an engineered influenza A virus lacking NS1 and to design antiviral drugs that target NS1. The study is published in Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research (JICR) from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers (http://www.liebertpub.com/). The article is available free on the JICR (http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/jir.2017.0032) website until September 14, 2017.

In the article entitled "Interactions Between NS1 of Influenza A Viruses and Interferon-α/β: Determinants for Vaccine Development (http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/jir.2017.0032),"coauthors Ben Wang and Eleanor Fish, University Health Network and University of Toronto, Canada, examine the body's first line of defense against infectious agents such as viruses—the interferon (IFN)-α/ß response. The researchers describe the effects of IFN-α/ß on influenza A virus replication, how NS-1 inhibits IFN-α/ß production, and the potential for using IFN-α/ß or blocking NS-1 activity as a treatment for influenza A virus infection.

"Influenza viruses remain a major cause of human morbidity and mortality. This article suggests potential new approaches to combat these viruses," says Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research Co-Editor-in-Chief Ganes C. Sen, Department of Immunology, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH.

About the Journal
Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research (JICR), (http://www.liebertpub.com/jir) led by Co-Editors-in-Chief Ganes C. Sen, PhD and Thomas A. Hamilton, PhD, Department of Immunology, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published monthly online with open access options and in print that covers all aspects of interferons and cytokines from basic science to clinical applications. Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research is an official journal of the International Cytokine & Interferon Society (http://cytokinesociety.org/). Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the JICR (http://www.liebertpub.com/jir) website.

About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers (http://www.liebertpub.com/) is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Viral Immunology, AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses, and DNA and Cell Biology. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's 80 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers (http://www.liebertpub.com/) website.