No description available.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Colorado State University, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2005. / Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages; contains xvii, 230 p.; also includes graphics. Includes bibliographical references (p. 200-230). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center

Doctorat en Sciences médicales / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 130-152).

Human T-cell lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) is a retrovirus that is the causative agent of the fatal disease adult T-cell leukemia (ATL). HTLV-I silently infects over twenty million people worldwide; up to ten percent of these will develop ATL in their lifetime. There are currently no effective treatments for this disease. HTLV-I expresses its genome as polypeptides that must be processed in order to produce infectious virions. Like other retroviruses, HTLV-I encodes an aspartic acid protease to process these polypeptides into mature form. Because the protease is essential in the virus life cycle, it is an attractive target for the treatment of HTLV-I-induced ATL. The present work examines the structure and function of HTLV-I protease. A theoretical structure of the protease is presented, and the function of the C-terminal extension is considered. In order to determine which residues are involved in binding substrate, two experiments were performed: first, several residues were mutated to the corresponding residues in HIV-1 protease to determine whether HTLV-I protease can be made to process an HIV-1 protease substrate; second, an alanine scan was performed to knock out individual residues to assess their importance in binding substrate. This work builds knowledge of the structure and function of HTLV-I protease. By understanding which residues play a role in binding substrate and by developing a clearer picture of the structure of the protease, it will be possible to develop specific inhibitors for HTLV-I protease.

No description available.

This thesis presents studies on the interaction between the human T cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) Tax protein and the 20S proteasome and the role of the interaction in cellular processes and the cytotoxic T cell (CTL) response against HTLV-1. The rapid translocation of Tax into the nucleus is described. Tax accumulates in the nucleus and forms unique bodies involved in transcriptional activation. It was further found that Tax associated with assembled nuclear 20S proteasomes and stimulated the chymotryptic and tryptic activities of the 20S proteasome, independent of the induction of the LMP2 and LMP7 proteasome subunits. Confocal microscopy revealed a partial colocalisation of Tax with nuclear proteasomes. A panel of Tax mutants was generated and their subcellular localisation and association with the 20S proteasome analysed. This analysis revealed that both the N- and C-terminus of Tax play a role in proteasome binding of Tax and further showed that proteasome binding was not sufficient for nuclear localisation of Tax. Therefore, Tax probably translocates into the nucleus prior to and independent of proteasome association. Tax specific CTL clones were generated and characterised using tetrameric MHC class I/peptide complexes. These CTL clones were used to investigate the requirements for processing and presentation of Tax for recognition by CTL. It was found that Tax was a metabolically very stable protein and that the presentation of the immunodominant Tax 11-19 epitope was dependent on the transporter associated with antigen presentation (TAP), independent of the expression of LMP2 and LMP7 proteasome subunits and resistant to treatment with the proteasome inhibitor lactacystin. It is proposed that the interaction between Tax and the 20S proteasome plays a role in Tax mediated transcriptional activation, leading to cellular activation and proliferation, and may not determine the immunodominance of Tax in the CTL response against HTLV-1.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2004. / Document formatted into pages; contains 237 p. Includes bibliographical references. Abstract available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center; full text release delayed at author's request until 2005 Aug. 13.

Made available in DSpace on 2013-08-07T18:42:00Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 000412832-Texto+Completo-0.pdf: 399603 bytes, checksum: 31eb2515ec0e5f58e8fa88f141783a51 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009 / Lymphocytes of human T-lymphotropic virus type-I (HTLV-I) infected patients could be tolerant to mitogenic stimuli as well as glucocorticoid-induced immunomodulation. These data suggest that common signaling events are impaired during this infection. The mitogenactivated protein kinases (MAPKs), lymphocyte subsets and cytokines are potential candidates for these effects. We investigated the role of (i) p38 and ERK MAPKs, (ii) lymphocyte subpopulations, (iii) and cytokines implicated in antigen or glucocorticoidinduced immunomodulation. Twenty-one asymptomatic carriers (AC), 19 patients with HTLV-I-associated myelophathy / tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP) and 21 healthy subjects took part in this study. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were isolated and cultured in vitro to assess lymphocyte proliferation and sensitivity to dexamethasone. The expression of phospho-MAPKs, lymphocyte subsets and cytokines were assessed by flow cytometry. Patients with HAM/TSP had a higher p38/ERK ratio associated with a reduced response to mitogens and higher sensitivity to dexamethasone. HAM/TSP patients presented higher levels of activated T cells and CD8+CD28- regulatory T cells, being negatively related to the mitogenic response. These results suggest that multiple underlying mechanisms could be involved with HTLV-related immunomodulation and altered cellular sensitivity to GCs. / Linfócitos de pacientes infectados com o vírus linfotrópico de células T humanas tipo I (HTLV-I) podem apresentar anergia a estimulação e simultaneamente resistência relativa ao efeito imunossupressor dos glicocorticóides (GCs). Isto sugere que estas variáveis são influenciadas por vias de sinalização em comum. As quinases ativadas por mitógenos (MAPKs), subtipos de linfócitos e citocinas são candidatos potenciais para estes efeitos. Portanto, neste trabalho nós avaliamos o envolvimento das (i) MAPKs p38 e ERK, (ii) subpopulações de linfócitos (iii) e citocinas na anergia e na imunomodulação induzida por GCs. Vinte e um portadores assintomáticos (AC), dezenove pacientes com mielopatia associada ao HTLV-I / paraparesia espástica tropical (HAM/TSP) e vinte e um indivíduos controles não infectados fizeram parte deste estudo. As células mononucleares do sangue periférico destes indivíduos foram isoladas e mantidas em cultura para a avaliação da proliferação e da sensibilidade a dexametasona.A expressão das fosfo-MAPKs, dos marcadores extracelulares e das citocinas foi avaliada por citometria de fluxo. Pacientes HAM/TSP apresentaram uma razão p38/ERK elevada que influenciou na baixa resposta aos mitógenos e na alta sensibilidade aos GCs nestes indivíduos. Eles também apresentaram proporções elevadas de células T ativadas e reguladoras CD8+CD28- que correlacionaram-se negativamente com as respostas aos mitógenos. Esses resultados sugerem que muitos mecanismos podem estar envolvidos na imunomodulação relacionada a infecção pelo HTLVI e na alteração da sensibilidade aos GCs.