Bio Briefs

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Matt Nelson

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Feb 01, 2010
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Tobacco plant-made therapeutic thwarts west nile virus

Tags: arizona state university, bioagriculture, biodesign institute, infectious disease, vaccines

[Source: ScienceDaily] - A new therapeutic made from tobacco plants has been shown to arrest West Nile virus infection, according to a new study by Arizona State University scientist Qiang Chen and his colleagues.

Chen, a researcher at Arizona State University's Biodesign Institute and professor in the PolyTechnic Campus' College of Technology and Innovation, is the first to demonstrate a plant-derived treatment to successfully combat West Nile virus after exposure and infection. The research appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (advanced online edition).

There are currently no available vaccines against West Nile, nor effective therapeutics for human use, so the current findings are a considerable advancement and may offer the best hope thus far that the West Nile virus infection can be stopped, even several days after viral infection.

For more information: Tobacco Plant-Made Therapeutic Thwarts West Nile Virus