Influenza A antigen

Fusion proteins have been constructed from peptide epitopes from influenza A antigens and the binding and translocation domains of Pseudomonas exotoxin A (Donelly ef al., 1993). When target cells were incubated with these fusion proteins, and subsequently exposed to cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) specific for the relevant epitopes, a CTL mediate lysis of the target cells was observed. These experiments suggest that the translocation machinery supplied by protein toxins may be useful tools for bringing peptides into cells for presentation via the major histocompatibility class I (MHC I) system. It should be noted that no direct evidence was provided that the translocation occurred by the toxin pathway, and it cannot be excluded that the toxin was only instrumental in accumulating the peptide on the surface of the cells and in the endocytic pathway. 

Influenza (surface antigen) Allantoic fluid from embryonated hens eggs infected with Influenza viruses A and B 1 Inactivation and disruption 2 Separation of haemagglutinin and neuraminidase 3 Blending of haemagglutinins and neuraminidase of different serotypes Assay of haemagglutinin content by immunodiffusion Inoculation of embryonated hens eggs to exclude live virus... 

Debes GF, Bonhagen K, Wolff T, et al. CC chemokine receptor 7 expression by effector/memory CD4+ T cells depends on antigen specificity and tissue localization during influenza A virus infection. J Virol 2004 78 7528-7535. 

The adamantane moiety is of medicinal chemical interest because of its inertness, compactness relative to lipid solubilizing character, and symmetry. Considerable interest, therefore, was engendered by the finding that amantadine (78) was active for the chemoprophylaxis of influenza A in man. There are not many useful chemotherapeutic agents available for the treatment of communicable viral infections, so this finding led to considerable molecular manipulation. The recent abrupt end of the National Influenza Immunization program of 1976 prompted a new look at the nonvaccine means for prophylaxis or treatment of respiratory tract infections due to influenza A, especially in that the well-known antigenic shift or drift of the virus obviates usefulness of the vaccine but not amantadine. 

Scientists have also since demonstrated that DNA (coated on microscopic gold beads) propelled into the epidermis of test animals with a gene gun , is expressed in the animal s skin cells. Furthermore, the introduction in this fashion of DNA coding for human influenza viral antigens... 

Amantadine Symmetrel) is a synthetic tricyclic amine, and rimantadine (Flumadine) is its a-methyl derivative. Both drugs inhibit the replication of the three antigenic subtypes of influenza A (HlNl, H2N2 and H3N2) and have negligible activity against influenza B. 

Ozaki H, Sugita S, Kida H. A rapid and highly sensitive method for diagnosis of equine influenza by antigen detection using immuno-PCR. Jpn J Vet Res 2001 48(4) 191-196. 

The genome in influenza A and B types is enclosed within an outer lipoprotein envelope (Fig. 17.1). The Ml protein lines the inside of the envelope and is chemically bound to the ribonucleoprotein [14], The Ml protein plays an important role in the mediation of nuclear export of viral ribonucleoproteins and also in virus assembly and budding during the infectious cycle [5, 14, 15], An antigenic protein M2, which functions as a proton-selective ion channel, is present in the viral membrane of influenza A viruses [6, 13], In influenza B, the ion channel activity to aid virus uncoating in the endosome is carried out by the similar integral membrane protein BM2 [11],... 

In a pilot study of HIV-infected adults, hypericin was administered at doses of 0.25 mg/kg or 0.5 mg/kg intravenously twice weekly, 0.25 mg/kg intravenously thrice weekly, or 0.5 mg/kg/d orally for up to 24 wk. No regimen displayed antiretroviral activity based on CD4 lymphocyte counts, p24 antigen, or HIV RNA titers (Gulick et al., 1999). In vitro studies suggest that St. John s wort may have activity against cytomegalovirus(CMV), herpes simplex, influenza A (USP, 1998a), and methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (Schempp et al., 1999). 

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