Public Thesis Defense - LIBST

Biophysical studies of reovirus attachment to host cell receptors using atomic force microscopy by Rita DOS SANTOS

Pour l’obtention du grade académique de Doctorat en Sciences agronomiques et Ingénierie biologique

Viruses pose significant threats to public health and play a critical role in pandemics due to their ability to cause emerging infectious diseases. As obligate intracellular pathogens, viral particles must infect host cells to replicate. A crucial step of the viral life cycle is the attachment to host cell receptors.

Here, we investigate reovirus attachment to host cells, using atomic force microscopy (AFM). The main objective is to elucidate the mechanisms underlying reovirus interaction with cell surface receptors, at the single-molecule level.

The first study reveals a stabilizing mechanism in the reovirus T1L – JAM-A complex through addition of GM2 glycans. We also found that conformational changes in the σ1 attachment protein can enhance binding to the JAM-A receptor. Furthermore, insights were gained into the dynamics of NgR1 binding by reovirus capsid proteins, as well as demonstrated that reovirus stably binds to murine NgR1 at the single-molecule level. Lastly, we provided the first biophysical characterization of the interaction between reovirus and NRP1.

Collectively, these studies contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of reovirus infection, which may provide important insights for the development of improved antiviral strategies.

Jury members :

• Prof. David Alsteens (UCLouvain) (Supervisor)
• Prof. Bernard Hallet (UCLouvain) (Chairperson)
• Prof. Patrice Soumillion (UCLouvain) (Secretary)
• Prof. Annika Gillis (UCLouvain)
• Prof. Terence Dermody (Univ. Pittsburgh, U.S.A.)
• Prof. Ricardo Garcia (CSIC, Spain)

Pay attention : the public defense of Rita DOS SANTOS wll also take place in the form of a videoconference

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