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Importance: Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is the causative agent of several B cell malignancies and Kaposi's sarcoma. We analyzed the function of K8.1, the major antigenic component of the KSHV virion in the infection of different cells. To do this, we deleted K8.1 from the viral genome. It was found that K8.1 is critical for the infection of certain epithelial cells, e.g., a skin model cell line but not for infection of many other cells. K8.1 was found to mediate attachment of the virus to cells where it plays a role in infection. In contrast, we did not find K8.1 or a related protein from a closely related monkey virus to activate fusion of the viral and cellular membranes, at least not under the conditions tested. These findings suggest that K8.1 functions in a highly cell-specific manner during KSHV entry, playing a crucial role in the attachment of KSHV to, e.g., skin epithelial cells., Competing Interests: Alexander Hahn is also employed by GSK. GSK did not have any influence on this study.

The quantification of coronary calcifications using noncontrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) as well as coronary CT angiography (cCTA) have rapidly evolved in the recent years. Nowadays, both techniques are increasingly clinically accepted regarding risk stratification and accurate exclusion of significant coronary artery disease (CAD). The higher acceptance of cCTA is mainly based on the higher robustness, lower radiation exposure through continuous technical innovations as well as by the growing scientific evidence. The poor predictive value of cCTA for predicting the hemodynamic significance of detected coronary artery stenosis may be improved by continuous technical developments in the area of functional imaging. The aim of this educational article is to summarize the current clinical status of calcium scoring and morphological cCTA and to provide an overview on novel functional CT techniques.