Project List

Previous Projects

Assessment of the Primate Virus Herbesvirus Saimiri as a Human Pathogen

Principal:
Alexander Tsygankov
Microbiology

H. saimiri may act as a human pathogen if it is deliberately modified to be spread via transmission routes other than natural, leading perhaps to an epidemic of lymphoid cancer. This project serves as an example of the research targeted at assessing non-human infectious agents when these agents are deliberately modified to render them capable of infecting humans.

Funding Source:
Temple University OVPR, January 2005-June 2006

Recent Accomplishments :

• The transformation potential of human T-cell lines immortalized by H. saimiri is being assessed in immunodeficientmice, which are a classical animal system for determining tumorigenic potential of allogeneic cells.
• Several human cell lines were expanded in vitro using standard conditions for growth of H. saimiri-transformed cells. These experiments show that H. saimiri-transformed cell lines differ greatly in their ability to grow in vitro.
• Sufficient numbers of cells were obtained for most aggressively growing lines and were injected into immunodeficient (SCID/NOD) mice. Currently, these mice are being monitored suing peripheral blood sample from per-orbital plexus. In several weeks the animals will be euthanized, and their spleens and peritoneal liquid will also be studied for the presence of H. saimiri-transformed cells.