Word: cullens
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Until now, research has generally concentrated on keeping HSV1 inactive - and preventing cold sores from ever showing up. But the Duke researchers took the opposite tack: figuring out precisely how to switch the virus from latency to its active stage. That's important, says lead author Dr. Bryan Cullen, professor of molecular genetics and microbiology at Duke, "because unless you activate the virus, you can't kill...
...Cullen and his team were able to replicate the intricate process using lab mice. They started by identifying the tiniest components of the HSV-1 strain. In its latent stage, HSV-1 produces a single molecular product, called latency-associated transcript RNA, or LAT RNA. Unlike most messenger RNA, LAT RNA doesn't produce proteins, so scientists have never been able to determine LAT RNA's exact function. But by inserting the LAT RNA into mice, Cullen found that it breaks down into even smaller strands called microRNA. Researchers then discovered that it was the microRNA that blocked production...
Understanding how to override the microRNA could allow scientists to activate the virus and then kill it using acyclovir. "Once the virus sticks its head up over the fence, you whack it off for good," Cullen says. "Yes, the person has to have one last cold sore, but it'd be worth it to most people to cure them forever...
...They're Dressy Cutoffs! Bravo to Lisa Takeuchi Cullen for her article "What (Not) to Wear to Work" [June 9]. I have distributed it to every student I train for internship placement at a college-prep high school in San Diego. Unfortunately, many students think shorts are acceptable work attire. When students come to my office in shorts for an interview, I will not proceed - at which time they try to explain that they're wearing "dress shorts"! Jill Wien Badger, Bonita, Calif...
Bravo to Lisa Takeuchi Cullen for her article "What (Not) to Wear to Work" [June 9]. I have distributed it to every student I train for internship placement at a college-prep high school in San Diego. Unfortunately, many students think shorts are acceptable work attire. When students come to my office in shorts for an interview, I will not proceed--at which time they try to explain that they're wearing "dress shorts"! Jill Wien Badger, BONITA, CALIF...