Membrane fusion induced by Vesicular Stomatitis Virus

The work presented here by Dr. Fabiana Carneiro aimed to elucidate the mechanism of entry of enveloped viruses, using the vesicular stomatitis virus as a model. The entry of enveloped viruses into their host cells always involves a membrane fusion step, either with the cell plasma membrane or with that of the endocytic vesicle. In this context, the work aims to understand the structure of the surface glycoprotein present on the envelope, as well as the amino acids involved in the fusion process. To this end, different types of lipids were used in experiments involving biophysical techniques such as fluorescence, circular dichroism and calorimetry. Molecular dynamics analyses were carried out to study interactions on nanometric scales and mass spectrometry identified the sequence responsible for this fusion between membranes. A complete thesis, described in 6 published scientific articles.

Autorentext

Licenciada en Ciencias Biológicas - UFRJ (1999), Máster en Química Biológica - UFRJ (2000), Doctora en Química Biológica - UFRJ y Universidad Libre de Bruselas (2004). Post-doc en Virología - Universidad de Nueva York (2006), Biofísica - Universidad de Lisboa (2008) y Dinámica Molecular - UFRJ (2009). Actualmente es Profesor Adjunto en la UFRJ.