University Medical Center Utrecht, The Netherlands
Student: Hendrik de Buhr, M.Sc., Ph.D. fellow
Supervisor: Prof. Emmanuel J.H.J. Wiertz, D.V.M., Ph.D.
Co-supervisor: Assistant Prof. Robert Jan Lebbink, Ph.D.
Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a herpesvirus that causes common infections in humans; more than 90% of the adult population is infected with the virus. Besides causing infectious mononucleosis (Pfeiffer's disease), EBV is an oncovirus responsible for ±200,000 new cancer cases per year, resulting in ±140,000 deaths annually. Upon infection via e.g. saliva transfer, EBV establishes a ‘resting’ infection in white blood cells (B lymphocytes) from where it can awaken (‘reactivate’) to generate new virus particles that can spread to other individuals.
EBV is a DNA virus with a relatively large genome, carrying ±70 protein-encoding genes. Besides these, EBV holds 25 microRNA (miRNA) genes that give rise to ±40 different mature miRNAs in an infected cell. MicroRNAs are small RNA molecules that can regulate the expression of other genes from either the virus or the host cell. As such, viral miRNAs control many important steps during EBV infection, latency and reactivation in the host cell.
Although functions for several EBV miRNAs are known, the majority of the miRNA targets, and hence functions, remain elusive. This project focusses on the identification of EBV miRNA functions during infection, with an emphasis on miRNAs that act in oncogenesis and aid the virus to evade immune responses targeted towards virus-infected cells.
Our aim is to decipher the molecular and pathological mechanisms of EBV miRNAs and translate these findings into therapeutic or preventive options for EBV-associated diseases.
Contact details
Emmanuel J.H.J. Wiertz, Professor of Medical Microbiology / Experimental Virology
Department of Medical Microbiology
University Medical Center Utrecht
G04.647
Heidelberglaan 100
3584 CX Utrecht
The Netherlands
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Assistant Prof. Robert Jan Lebbink
Department of Medical Microbiology
University Medical Center Utrecht
G04.522
Heidelberglaan 100
3584 CX Utrecht
The Netherlands
Phone: +31 887 55 0627
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