Potential "cure" for viral infections

[Idle Mind]

This is pretty interesting:

http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2011/antiviral-0810.html

Rider drew inspiration for his therapeutic agents, dubbed DRACOs (Double-stranded RNA Activated Caspase Oligomerizers), from living cells’ own defense systems.

When viruses infect a cell, they take over its cellular machinery for their own purpose — that is, creating more copies of the virus. During this process, the viruses create long strings of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA), which is not found in human or other animal cells.

Rider had the idea to combine a dsRNA-binding protein with another protein that induces cells to undergo apoptosis (programmed cell suicide) — launched, for example, when a cell determines it is en route to becoming cancerous. Therefore, when one end of the DRACO binds to dsRNA, it signals the other end of the DRACO to initiate cell suicide.

Thoughts? Are there viruses that this type of treatment would not work for?

 

[Pete]

It could only work on viruses that use double stranded RNA (dsRNA).

Viruses can be DNA or RNA based.

I'm pretty sure that DNA viruses don't make dsRNA.

RNA viruses can be single stranded or double stranded.
I think that ssRNA viruses mostly have to make dsRNA as a replication step, but I seem to recall that retroviruses (like HIV) do not - they turn their ssRNA into ssDNA and go from there.

 

[Idle Mind]

The researcher in the article seems to think that it should work for all viruses, but I don't know enough about the life-cycle of each type of virus to comment. Once upon a time I probably could have rattled mechanisms off, but my field of study has changed greatly since then and much of the details have long been forgotten.

A quick wiki scan didn't really help clear things up, but I don't have the time at the moment as I'm at work.

 

[leopold]

It could only work on viruses that use double stranded RNA (dsRNA).

Viruses can be DNA or RNA based.

wait a minute.
DNA based?
DNA based means it can replicate iself.
the last i heard a virus cannot reproduce without the DNA from its host.

 

[Enmos]

wait a minute.
DNA based?
DNA based means it can replicate iself.
the last i heard a virus cannot reproduce without the DNA from its host.

DNA-based viruses also need the cells replication machinery in order to replicate.

 

[Believe]

I think that this would be great for the flu, but wouldn't it kill you if you had AIDS/Herpies where most of/ a butt load of your cells are infected with the virus?

 

[Varda]

If you have herpes, you'd probably end up with large chunks of insensitive tissue, right?