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Scientists See Norwalk Virus' Achilles Heel

Date:
March 20, 2008
Source:
Canadian Light Source/University of Saskatchewan
Summary:
Using the Canadian Light Source synchrotron, researchers have determined the detailed structure of the enzyme the Norwalk virus uses to make copies of its genetic code in order to replicate itself. The information is crucial to developing drugs that could be used to treat outbreaks of Norwalk and other related viruses.
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Using the Canadian Light Source synchrotron, an international team led by University of Calgary researcher Ken Ng has determined the detailed structure of the enzyme the Norwalk virus uses to make copies of its genetic code in order to replicate itself. The information is crucial to developing drugs that could be used to treat outbreaks of Norwalk and other related viruses.

The Norwalk virus uses the enzyme, RNA polymerase, to make new strands of RNA using an existing RNA strand as a template. The copying, which occurs within an area of the enzyme called an active site, can be blocked--or inhibited--with a drug molecule shaped to fit the site, like a key in a key hole.

"These are the first structures showing the enzyme doing its job interacting with RNA," says Professor Ng. "These structures provide ideas of how we could develop new antiviral drugs that block the enzyme's activity."

The group includes scientists from the University of Calgary, University of Oviedo (Spain), Penn State University, the University of Kansas and the Canadian Light Source located on the University of Saskatchewan campus.

Outbreaks of Norwalk virus are notorious for the havoc they can cause to people living in close quarters, from cruise ships to hospital wards, often causing severe dehydration due to vomiting and diarrhea. The currently untreatable bug belongs to a superfamily of viruses that stores their genetic code as RNA, including polio, hepatitis C, foot-and-mouth disease and even the common cold. The problem with all of these viruses is the lack of effective treatments.

"The best doctors can do with Norwalk patients is treat the symptoms. We have the polio vaccine, but many other serious diseases, like hepatitis C, lack effective treatments," explains Professor Ng. "This polymerase is closely related in all of these viruses, so an inhibitor drug that works against Norwalk virus could also work in treating hepatitis C."

Journal reference: Dmitry F. Zamyatkin, Francisco Parra, Jose M. Martin Alonso, Daniel A. Harki, Blake R. Peterson, Pawel Grochulski and Kenneth K.-S. Ng. 2008. Structural insights into mechanisms of catalysis and inhibition in Norwalk Virus polymerase. Journal of Biological Chemistry, Vol. 283, Number 12, pp. 7705-7712. DOI: 10.1074/jbc.M709563200.

This research was supported by the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research, Alberta Ingenuity Centre for Carbohydrate Science, Alberta Synchrotron Institute, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, Canadian Institutes of Health Research and U.S. National Institutes of Health.


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Materials provided by Canadian Light Source/University of Saskatchewan. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


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Canadian Light Source/University of Saskatchewan. "Scientists See Norwalk Virus' Achilles Heel." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 20 March 2008. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080319085355.htm>.
Canadian Light Source/University of Saskatchewan. (2008, March 20). Scientists See Norwalk Virus' Achilles Heel. ScienceDaily. Retrieved March 28, 2024 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080319085355.htm
Canadian Light Source/University of Saskatchewan. "Scientists See Norwalk Virus' Achilles Heel." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080319085355.htm (accessed March 28, 2024).

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