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Christopher Berndsen: HIV Prevention
4-VA Annual Report
(2017)
Abstract
In August, 2013, Dr. Christopher Berndsen was awarded a 4-VA mini-grant called Structure of human BST-2 with BST-2 antagonist Vpu to determine the structure of a human anti-viral protein in collaboration with Dr. Carla Slebodnick at VT. The primary goal was to determine the crystal structure of the human protein BST-2 in a complex with a protein from the HIV-1 genome.
The research also developed into a teaching and training collaboration of students in X-ray crystallography. Students were able to use facilities at VT to study the protein which increased their ability to analyze data collected from VT. The work was carried out entirely by two undergraduates and was published in 2016 with plans to seek external funding.
Although the team wasn’t able to determine a structure, they were able to use modeling and solution techniques to provide evidence for tetherin function. In fact, they discovered that interactions between two tetherin molecules strengthen the link between cell and virus, preventing the spread of HIV.
Student researcher Kadir Ozcan is writing an article slated for publication in 2017 that builds on an earlier study by Kelly Du Pont, which was published in 2016 by the American Chemical Society in the journal Biochemistry. This new work is providing novel and surprising insights into the antiviral activity of BST-2.
Disciplines
Publication Date
February, 2017
Citation Information
JMU CGEMS. "Christopher Berndsen: HIV Prevention" 4-VA Annual Report (2017) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/jmu-cgems/11/
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