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Biotech / Medical : Indications -- Hepatitis -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: keokalani'nui who wrote (33)	4/3/2003 12:58:54 PM
From: tuck	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 312

>>Published online before print April 3, 2003 Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 10.1073/pnas.0831128100 Biochemistry L-SIGN (CD 209L) is a liver-specific capture receptor for hepatitis C virus Jason P. Gardner , Robert J. Durso , Robert R. Arrigale , Gerald P. Donovan , Paul J. Maddon , Tatjana Dragic , and William C. Olson *Progenics Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 777 Old Saw Mill River Road, Tarrytown, NY 10591; and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, 1300 Morris Park Avenue, Bronx, NY 10461 Communicated by Samuel J. Danishefsky, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, February 25, 2003 (received for review November 28, 2002) Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infects nearly 3% of the population of the world and is a major cause of liver disease. However, the mechanism whereby the virus targets the liver for infection remains unknown, because none of the putative cellular receptors for HCV are both expressed specifically in the liver and capable of binding HCV envelope glycoproteins. Liver/lymph node-specific intercellular adhesion molecule-3-grabbing integrin (L-SIGN) is a calcium-dependent lectin expressed on endothelial cells of liver and lymph nodes. Dendritic cell-specific intercellular adhesion molecule-3-grabbing nonintegrin (DC-SIGN), a homologous molecule expressed on dendritic cells, binds HIV and promotes infection. By using a virus-binding assay, we demonstrate that L-SIGN and DC-SIGN specifically bind naturally occurring HCV present in the sera of infected individuals. Further studies demonstrate that binding is mediated by the HCV envelope glycoprotein E2 and is blocked by specific inhibitors, including mannan, calcium chelators, and Abs to the lectin domain of the SIGN molecules. Thus, L-SIGN represents a liver-specific receptor for HCV, and L-SIGN and DC-SIGN may play important roles in HCV infection and immunity.<< I would guess only the antibody represents something PGNX can profit from -- unless they can get IP related to this discovery. Aren't mannan and calcium chelators already out there? The full text might give clues as to which inhibitors show the most strength. Cheers, Tuck