Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 11, 2026

Using Zebrafish Models of Human Influenza A Virus Infections to Screen Antiviral Drugs and Characterize Host Immune Cell Responses
Published on: January 20, 2017
Interplay between influenza A virus and host factors: targets for antiviral intervention
Shashank Tripathi1, Jyoti Batra, Sunil K Lal
1Microbiology Department, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.
Abstract:
Influenza A viruses (IAVs) pose a major public health threat worldwide. Recent experience with the 2013 H7N9 outbreak in China and the 2009 "swine flu" pandemic have shown that antiviral vaccines and drugs fall short of controlling the spread of disease in a timely and effective manner. Major problems include rapid emergence of drug-resistant influenza virus strains and the slow process of vaccine production. With the threat of a highly pathogenic H5N1 bird-flu pandemic looming large, it is crucial to develop novel ways of combating influenza A viruses. Targeting the host factors critical for influenza A virus replication has shown promise as a strategy to develop novel antiviral molecules with broad-spectrum protection. In this review, we summarize the role of currently identified host factors that play a critical role in the influenza A virus life cycle and discuss the most promising candidates for anti-influenza therapeutics.
Related Concept Videos
Influenza
Inhibitors of Viral Protein Synthesis
Pharmacokinetics: Drug–Food and Drug–Viral Interactions
Immune Response Against Viral Pathogens
NK Cells
NK cells are a crucial part of our innate immune system, acting as the first line of defense against viral infections. These cells can recognize and kill infected cells without prior exposure to the virus, effectively slowing down the spread of infection. Additionally, NK cells produce proinflammatory...
Viral Recombination
Leaky Scanning

