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Neurotropic alphaherpesviruses initiate infection in exposed mucosal tissues and, unlike most viruses, spread rapidly to sensory and autonomic nerves where life-long latency is established1. Recurrent infections arise sporadically from the peripheral nervous system throughout the life of the host, and invasion of the central nervous system may occur, with severe outcomes2. These viruses directly recruit cellular motors for transport along microtubules in nerve axons, but how the motors are manipulated to deliver the virus to neuronal nuclei is not understood. Here, using herpes simplex virus type I and pseudorabies virus as model alphaherpesviruses, we show that a cellular kinesin motor is captured by virions in epithelial cells, carried between cells, and subsequently used in neurons to traffic to nuclei. Viruses assembled in the absence of kinesin are not neuroinvasive. The findings explain a critical component of the alphaherpesvirus neuroinvasive mechanism and demonstrate that these viruses assimilate a cellular protein as an essential proviral structural component. This principle of viral assimilation may prove relevant to other virus families and offers new strategies to combat infection. Herpes simplex virus type I and pseudorabies virus assimilate kinesin from host epithelial cells and repurpose the motor to traffic to the nuclei of neurons in the peripheral nervous system.

Neurotropic alphaherpesviruses initiate infection in exposed mucosal tissues and, unlike most viruses, spread rapidly to sensory and autonomic nerves where life-long latency is established

Ettlia is a green algal genus comprised of several economically important species that have contributed to a taxonomic nightmare for phycologists – the recognition that coccoid green algae are polyphyletic on a grand scale. This taxonomic confusion is slowly being resolved with the aid of molecular evidence and, in some cases, new structural data. The most recent investigation using 18S ribosomal (r)DNA data corroborated an extraordinarily close alliance between Haematococcus pluvialis, a predominantly flagellate unicell, and the coccoid alga, Ettlia carotinosa. This putative evolutionary relationship between the green algal species H. pluvialis and E. carotinosa has, once again, placed coccoid algae at the center of systematic debate. The only apparent similarity between these two species is the ability to produce astaxanthin. Because the 18S rDNA results were not particularly robust, additional data from the internal transcribed spacer 2 rRNA and 26S rRNA genes were collected. Results from ana...

Alginic acid was converted to a variety of ammonium alginate derivatives carrying diverse chemical cargo such as analgesics, antibiotics, and enzymes. These functional polymers could be fashioned into nanofibrous mats by electrostatic spinning. The therapeutic payload could be released in functional form by a simple ion exchange mechanism. Prospects in wound healing are discussed.