Lauren Kerfoot
About
My research project
Using Clinical Isolates to re-evaluate how HSV-1 counteracts dsRNA response.To date, the majority of HSV-1 research has used lab strains such as Sc16,S17,KOS and F. Using these strains of HSV-1 - which have somewhat unknown passage histories - antagonists to the dsRNA sensing pathways have been identified and characterised. However, within the literature there are conflicting results regarding the effects of dsRNA sensing antagonist knockdowns. In addition, there are also discrepancies in the growth phenotypes of different lab strains in Human vs non-Human cells. These conflicting results in lab strains are concerning, and so in the aim to create a more accurate understanding of how these dsRNA sensing antagonists function in WT HSV-1 I will be using clinical isolates (with a very short and fully transparent passage history) in clinically relevant cell lines, to re-evaluate the mechanisms by which HSV-1 counteracts dsRNA sensing.
Supervisors
To date, the majority of HSV-1 research has used lab strains such as Sc16,S17,KOS and F. Using these strains of HSV-1 - which have somewhat unknown passage histories - antagonists to the dsRNA sensing pathways have been identified and characterised. However, within the literature there are conflicting results regarding the effects of dsRNA sensing antagonist knockdowns. In addition, there are also discrepancies in the growth phenotypes of different lab strains in Human vs non-Human cells. These conflicting results in lab strains are concerning, and so in the aim to create a more accurate understanding of how these dsRNA sensing antagonists function in WT HSV-1 I will be using clinical isolates (with a very short and fully transparent passage history) in clinically relevant cell lines, to re-evaluate the mechanisms by which HSV-1 counteracts dsRNA sensing.