New Delhi, July 21: Every year, 3 to 5 million people worldwide are affected by influenza, leading to approximately 650,000 deaths. The influenza A virus has been responsible for several major pandemics. Recently, scientists achieved a significant breakthrough in understanding how this virus spreads within human cells and manipulates them to its advantage. This study was published in the journal Nature Microbiology.
Researchers from the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Hamburg and the Leibniz Research Institute for Molecular Pharmacology (FMP) have discovered how the flu virus interacts with proteins inside infected human cells. Using a specialized technique, they observed how the virus and human cell proteins connect and how the virus exploits this interaction.
Typically, when scientists study the interactions between viruses and cells, they must break open the cells to examine the proteins inside. However, this method has a drawback. Once the cell is broken, many connections may appear that never actually existed in the body, while some crucial and fragile connections may be destroyed.
To overcome this issue, scientists employed a modern technique called cross-linking mass spectrometry (XL-MS). This method allows researchers to see which proteins are interacting without breaking the infected cell.
Scientists at EMBL Hamburg noted that this approach enabled them to observe direct interactions between the flu virus and human cells in the same conditions as during an infection.
Following this, researchers used computer modeling to understand how the virus and human proteins structurally connect. They utilized a special version of the AlphaFold technique, which is considered vital for understanding protein structures.
The study revealed two significant findings. First, the virus’s primary protein, hemagglutinin, establishes its pathway within human cells. This protein aids the virus in attaching to and entering the cell.
The research found that certain human cell proteins assist hemagglutinin in properly folding and developing its structure. Previously, little information was available about the role of some of these proteins. Researchers believe this discovery could help develop new targets for antiviral drugs in the future.
The second important finding relates to paraspeckles present in the cell nucleus. The study found that the influenza A virus disrupts these structures during infection.
Paraspeckles are frameworks within the cell nucleus that play roles in several critical processes, including those involving RNA-associated proteins. During viral infection, these paraspeckles are broken down, allowing the proteins inside to escape, which the virus can then use to replicate.
Scientists believe that eliminating paraspeckles provides a dual advantage to the virus. It gains necessary resources for replication while simultaneously weakening the cell’s natural defense mechanisms against the virus.
Researchers assert that this method will not be limited to studying the flu virus. In the future, it could also be applied to understand other dangerous viruses, including those capable of causing pandemics.
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