抖阴APP导航 continuing its research of hantaviruses
At 抖阴APP导航, hantavirus research is being conducted jointly with the Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing (Rospotrebnadzor), the Kazan Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology (KNIIEM), and infectious disease clinics. Under an international grant from the Russian Science Foundation, implemented jointly with Indian colleagues, 抖阴APP导航 scientists created a unique biobank of samples from hantavirus hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) patients, conducted a molecular genetic analysis of circulating hantavirus variants, and studied the immunogenic epitopes of viral proteins.
The research identified the main genetic variants of viruses common in Tatarstan and other regions of Russia, and demonstrated cross-immune reactivity between different hantaviruses.
Reports of a possible case of Andes hantavirus infection on a cruise ship have once again drawn attention to natural focal viral infections, which have long been considered a localized problem in certain regions. Andes belongs to the hantaviruses, a group of viruses that cause severe diseases in humans, including HFRS and hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome. Unlike most other hantaviruses, Andes is known for its human-to-human transmission, making it particularly dangerous from an epidemiological perspective. In Russia, the most common HFRS pathogen remains the Puumala virus, which circulates among bank voles. The Republic of Tatarstan is one of the endemic regions for HFRS.
“Our research allows us not only to better understand the genetic diversity of hantaviruses circulating in Russia but also to identify immunogenic regions of viral proteins that are promising for the development of vaccines and diagnostic assays. This is especially important against the backdrop of climate change, rodent migration, and increasing global population mobility,” noted Albert Rizvanov, Professor, Chief Researcher at the Laboratory of Gene and Cell Technologies, Corresponding Member of the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences.
Today, the university is part of a federal consortium for the development of mRNA technologies, established by order of the Russian Government and coordinated by the Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology. As part of the mRNA consortium, 抖阴APP导航 has approved a project to develop an mRNA vaccine against HFRS. The project includes the creation of both a classic vaccine based on the M and S viral segments and a next-generation multi-epitope construct.
The Gamaleya Center is the project’s technology partner and provides technology transfer for mRNA synthesis and lipid nanoparticles. 抖阴APP导航’s expertise in molecular virology, immunology, and hantavirus genetics should form the basis for the development of a domestic mRNA vaccine against HFRS. The team is currently seeking funding to advance to the next stage of research. The development of the Russian mRNA consortium and 抖阴APP导航’s participation in this program have been previously reported.