UT researchers discover new target in flu fight

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UT researchers discover new target in flu fight

Research could lead to antiviral drugs for deadliest kinds of flu.

By Ann Roser, AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

University of Texas scientists have discovered a new target in the

fight against bird flu and other severe influenza strains that have

caused global epidemics, or pandemics, according to a paper published

online Monday.

The paper, which also will appear in a print issue of the Proceedings

of the National Academy of Sciences, was done in collaboration with

Rutgers University in New Jersey, where paper co-author Krug

previously worked. Krug is now a UT professor and chairman of

molecular genetics and microbiology.

" What's significant is we now know what the target looks like, and

we've proven that it's common to all influenza A viruses, " Krug said.

The discovery is a culmination of 10 years of work, he said.

The teams in Texas and New Jersey discovered that all influenza A

viruses, which infect people during pandemics and some seasonal flu

outbreaks, have a " tricky protein " that grabs hold of a protein in

human cells and prevents the immune system from mounting a defense

against the virus.

The researchers discovered the " sweet spot " where this binding occurs,

and Krug genetically engineered substances in the lab that stop the

flu virus from latching on to proteins, said Gaetano Montelione, a

professor of molecular biology and biochemistry at Rutgers. Those

substances " would potentially become drugs that could treat people

with influenza. "

Krug said the next step is to make antiviral drugs from scratch that

could treat influenza. Antivirals kill viruses or inhibit their

ability to reproduce, unlike vaccines, which stimulate the immune

system to produce antibodies to fight a disease. Existing medications

won't work because the target is new, Krug said. Getting a new drug to

market would take five to seven years, Krug and Montelione estimated.

In the case of a flu pandemic, antivirals are seen as a key line of

defense because it probably would take months to develop a vaccine and

be impossible to provide enough to inoculate everyone.

" This is a great step forward, " said Dr. Turley, a

pediatrician and director of clinical trials and clinical research at

the Sealy Center for Vaccine Development at UT Medical Branch in

Galveston. " It's an early stage discovery ... but the more we

understand about the structure of that (virus) and the interactions of

the proteins at the molecular level, the more we'll be able to develop

good drugs. "

Turley, who is not involved in Krug's work, is doing her own flu

research. Her quest for a universal influenza A vaccine is showing

promise in early clinical trials, she said. The study involved 60

young adults and now has to be proved in the general population.

If the vaccine works, the world would notice, Krug said. " Many people

have been trying. If they're successful, I'd be very happy. But I'd

like to see the data. There are theoretical reasons why it wouldn't work. "

Turley said her paper isn't complete, but initial results will be

presented Oct. 25-28 at a joint meeting of the Infectious Diseases

Society of America and the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial

Agents and Chemotherapy in Washington.

http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/08/26/0826flu.html