Science publication: key protein relevant for viral infection and hereditary disease discovered

September 9, 2022 - 13:30

The starting point of the research project was the search for host factors necessary for RNA viruses, such as SARS-CoV-2, to replicate. Genome-wide CRISPR/Cas knock-out screens in human cell cultures were used to investigate which cells survive after infection with certain viruses. In this way, Sabrina Jabs, a Schleswig-Holstein Excellence Chair junior research group leader at IKMB, together with working groups from Stanford and Hamburg, not only found important host factors for viral infections, but also discovered a protein – called LYSET – whose function was previously unknown. It is crucial for the proper functioning of lysosomes and enables insights into the development of a rare lysosomal storage disorder. In a companion paper published back-to-back in Science that Jabs is also a co-author on, the same protein was discovered using a different approach to be important for the growth of tumor cells, emphasizing the broad physiological relevance of this discovery.

Original publications
Christopher M. Richards*, Sabrina Jabs*, Wenjie Qiao* et al. The human disease gene LYSET is essential for lysosomal enzyme transport and viral infection. Science (2022). Published online first on September 8, 2022. DOI: 10.1126/science.abn5648
* These authors contributed equally to the publication.
Catarina Pechincha, et al. Lysosomal enzyme trafficking factor LYSET enables nutritional usage of extracellular proteins. Science (2022). Published online first on September 8, 2022. DOI: 10.1126/science.abn5637

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