Researchers from Trinity College Dublin have discovered some new and surprising ways that viral RNA and influenza virus are detected by human lung cells, which has potential implications for treating people affected by such viruses.
Influenza viruses remain a major threat to human health and can cause severe symptoms in young, elderly, and immuno-compromised populations, leading to annual epidemics which endanger between 3 and 5 million people of severe illness and cause 290,000 to 650,000 deaths worldwide.
These viruses primarily target respiratory epithelial cells to replicate, where they cause cell damage and death. Scientists have become aware that these epithelial cells are not mere passive barriers, helpless to attack, but instead are vital in driving the antiviral immune response.
However, until now, our understanding of the mechanism underpinning that response has been very limited. Now, thanks to work performed by PhD student Coralie Guy, in the research team of Andrew Bowie, Professor of Innate Immunology in Trinity’s School of Biochemistry and Immunology, some answers have arisen.
The team discovered that viral RNA and influenza viruses stimulate two different molecular pathways in which specific proteins set off chain reactions that result in two proteins called “gasdermin D” and “gasdermin E” being processed in such a way that they form membrane pores in the epithelial cells.
These pores allow the release of special agent “cytokines” charged with