Viral evasion of the MHC class I antigen presentation pathway
Praest, Patrique
- Promoter:
- Prof.dr E.J.H.J. (Emmanuel) Wiertz
- Research group:
- Wiertz
- Date:
- May 13, 2020
- Time:
- 12:45 h
Summary
Herpesviruses escape immune surveillance through the use of multiple immunemodulatory mechanisms, thereby facilitating lifelong infections. The longstanding evolutionary race between pathogen and host has resulted in large number of immune evasins. In this thesis, we study the interactions between viral evasins and host proteins and aim to understand how these impact host cellular pathways. We highlight approaches to identify viral proteins interfering with the MHC class I antigen presentation pathway, give insight into the structural composition of the peptide loading complex and its manipulation by viral immune evasins, aim to elucidate the structures of herpesvirus TAP inhibitors, identify a peptide with antiviral activity, and elucidate key players in HCMV-mediated MHC class I downregulation.