Category: Biotechnology - Sci-Tech Bulletin

Scientists Discover New Paths to Antiviral Therapies Against Nipah Virus

Scientists mapped the interaction network between Nipah virus and human proteins using affinity purification and mass spectrometry. The study highlights strong nuclear colocalization of viral W protein with PRP19 complex, altering p53 activity and host gene expression while its matrix protein M interacts with the DICER1–TARBP2 complex linked to RNA interference. 101 such human–Nipah virus protein interactions were studied that revealed how Nipah virus interferes with cellular pathways and highlight potential host targets and existing drugs that could guide the development of new antiviral therapies.

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A Simpler Way to Harvest Skin Stem Cells with Microfluidic Technology in 45 Minutes

Isolation and enrichment of skin stem cells, especially CD34+cells along with dermal and epidermal cells, using two-stage microfluidic technology can now generate significant levels of hair follicles and sebaceous glands. The microfluidic devices coated with degradable antibody-functionalized hydrogels enables direct isolation and injection of CD34+ skin stem cells without prior labelling, completing the process in about 45 minutes. This technology, when scaled & multiplexed to rapidly separate large amounts of cell mixture, may improve the practicality and efficiency of regenerative therapies and future hair transplantation procedures.

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Cryo-electron microscopy reveals the structure of Nipah virus replication machinery

Study conducted by scientist at The Hormel Institute, University of Minnesota revealed the 2.9-Å cryo-electron microscopy structure of the Nipah virus L–P polymerase complexes. The L protein complex consists of conserved N-terminal domain, RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), and GDP poly ribonucleotidyltransferase while the P protein complex consists of central oligomerization domain and the C-terminal X domain. These interact using the flexible antiparallel β-sheets domain of the P protomers and the fingers subdomain of RdRp forming a tetrameric organization crucial for replication and transcription mechanisms of the virus.

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Nipah Virus–Pseudotyped Lentiviral Vectors: A Promising Strategy for Precision Gene Therapy

Engineered Nipah virus glycoproteins pseudotyped onto lentiviral vectors enable highly selective and efficient gene delivery. These vectors achieve up to 10–100-fold higher titers than measles-based systems, resist antibody neutralization, and preferentially target membrane-proximal receptors, significantly enhancing transduction efficiency and demonstrating strong potential for targeted gene therapy applications.

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Preclinical Screening of T-Cell Therapies

Preclinical screening strategy for T-cell therapies, developed by Sanderson and colleagues at the (Adaptimmune (ADAPY), provides a comprehensive framework to evaluate the safety and efficacy of T-cell therapies like CAR-T and SPEAR- T therapies, helping to minimize the unexpected toxicities before advancing engineered T cells into human trials.

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