Centennial Honors College
Western Illinois University
Undergraduate Research Day 2014
Poster Presentation
Measles Virus Inducted of Autophagy
Malaney M. Abel
Faculty Mentor: Catherine Miller-Hunt
Biology
Measles is a highly contagious acute respiratory disease caused by the Measles virus
(MV) and characterized by a rash and delayed immune suppression, leading to
potentially fatal secondary infections. It has been shown that the MV receptors, CD46
and SLAMF1, can recruit and activate multiple proteins involved in a process called
autophagy. Autophagy involves the degradation of unnecessary or dysfunctional cellular
host components within vesicles. Because SLAMF1 is a receptor for MV and is also
capable of initiating autophagy, we hypothesize that MV binding to SLAMF1 will trigger
autophagy in host cells. We will test our hypothesis using VHS (Vero Human SLAMF1)
cells (originally derived from the African green monkey kidney). SLAMF1 directly binds
to MV, allowing the virus to fuse with the host cell, and for infection to proceed. MV can
only bind to and enter the VHS cells through SLAMF1, allowing us to specifically study
the cellular effects resulting from MV use of SLAMF1. Then we will allow MV to bind to
the surface of VHS cells in the presence or absence of an antibody that blocks viral
binding to SLAMF1. Drugs that inhibit or stimulate autophagy will be used as negative
and positive controls, respectively. This data would provide preliminary evidence that
our hypothesis is correct. This knowledge will further our understanding of how RNA
viruses use autophagy for optimal viral replication. Additionally, these findings could aid
in developing novel anti-viral therapeutics that target MV replication in host cells.