Xenotropic murine retrovirus (XMRV) has recently been associated with chronic fatigue syndrome as well as prostate carcinoma in humans (1-3). XMRV is a murine endogenous virus found in the genome of mice and until recently has been thought to be absent from the human population. It is now becoming clear that XMRV has transmitted to humans by a process of zoonosis, presumably from mice, and appears to be associated with a variety of diseases not previously associated with viral infection.
1. We will establish quantitative PCR assays and serology assays including enzyme linked immunosorbant assays (ELISA) to detect and quantify XMRV. Importantly, assays used to detect related murine leukaemia viruses in the lab are expected to be suitable.
2. We will use these assays to measure XMRV load in chronic fatigue patient samples as well as, well but XMRV infected control samples, with a view to establishing whether viral load relates to disease, episodes of illness and/or severity.
3. The receptor for XMRV has been identified. We will seek human polymorphism in the xenotropic receptor and assess which human cells express it. We will also establish which cells in vivo in blood express the receptor and which cells are infected with XMRV by quantitative PCR on sorted subsets of B and T cells from XMRV infected individuals.
This project proposes to address some of the most important questions surrounding the recently described XMRV infection of humans and to seek a therapeutic strategy for XMRV treatment. We expect it to be a competitive project and the experiments performed are likely to be influenced by ongoing studies published as we go. We expect that the candidate will be fully trained in modern techniques of molecular virology during the course of this project.