Grant: Operating Grant

Influenza remains a significant public health concern, primarily because the virus mutates and thus most anti-viral and vaccine strategies have limited effectiveness. We are examining host cells to find key proteins that the virus requires, but that the host cell may not, as a possible new anti-viral strategy. Our 3-pronged approach is to: (1) measure how host proteins in physiologically relevant primary cells are affected; (2) focus on a small manageable number of these to determine how altering the proteins affects virus growth and disease; and (3) test some genes we have identified as likely candidates in mouse models of disease.