Our Research
Major Histocompatibility Complex class I (MHC-I) molecules are essential for orchestrating immune responses to tumours and pathogen-infected cells. They do this by presenting protein fragments (peptides) from pathogen and tumour proteins at the cell surface for surveillance by immune cells. When CD8+ T cells detect a foreign (viral) peptide presented by MHC-I, they will proceed to lysing the target cell.
Immunogenic peptides are generated and selected for presentation in the MHC-I antigen processing and presentation pathway. To evade immune detection, viruses have evolved strategies to manipulate MHC-I molecules directly or to interfere with other proteins in the antigen processing and pathway. We are interested in exploring the MHC-I antigen processing and presentation pathway in virus infections to i) gain a better understanding of immune detection of virus-infected cells and ii) to explore novel strategies by which viruses evade MHC-I pathway proteins. Ultimately, characterisation of these dynamics can inform development of novel vaccines and therapeutics.
Publications
- AF Altenburg#, JL Morley, J Bauer, JS Walz, LH Boyle#. Reanalysis of immunopeptidomics datasets provides mechanistic insight into TAPBPR-mediated peptide editing on HLA-A, -B and -C molecules. doi: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.20738.1. 2024. Wellcome Open Research.
- DM Depierreux*, AF Altenburg*, L Soday, A Fletcher-Etherington, R Antrobus, BJ Fergusson, MP Weekes, GL Smith. Selective modulation of cell surface proteins during vaccinia infection: implications for immune evasion strategies. doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1010612. 2022. PLoS Pathogens.
- RD de Vries*, AF Altenburg*, NJ Nieuwkoop, E de Bruin, SE van Trierum, MR Pronk, M Richard, DF Nieuwenhuijse, MPG Koopmans, JHCM Kreijtz, RAM Fouchier, ADME Osterhaus, G Sutter, GF Rimmelzwaan. Induction of cross-clade antibody and T-cell responses by an MVA-based influenza H5N1 vaccine in a randomized phase I/IIa clinical trial. doi: 10.1093/infdis/jiy214. 2018. Journal of Infectious Diseases.
- AF Altenburg, SE van Trierum, E de Bruin, D de Meulder, CE van de Sandt, FRM van der Klis, RAM Fouchier, MPG Koopmans, GF Rimmelzwaan, RD de Vries. Effects of pre-existing orthopoxvirus-specific immunity on the performance of Modified Vaccinia virus Ankara-based influenza vaccines. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-24820-2. 2018. Scientific Reports.
- AF Altenburg*, CE van de Sandt*, BWS Li, RJ MacLoughlin, RAM Fouchier, G van Amerongen, A Volz, RW Hendriks, RL de Swart, G Sutter, GF Rimmelzwaan, RD de Vries. Modified Vaccinia virus Ankara preferentially targets antigen presenting cells in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-08719-y. 2017. Scientific Reports.
- AF Altenburg, CE van de Sandt, SE van Trierum, HL De Gruyter, PR van Run, RA Fouchier, K Roose, X Saelens, A Volz, G Sutter, RD de Vries, GF Rimmelzwaan. Increased protein degradation improves influenza virus nucleoprotein-specific CD8+T cell activation in vitro but not in C57BL/6 mice. doi: 10.1128/JVI.01633-16. 2016. Journal of Virology.
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Group members
Dominic Nolan (Research Assistant)