Images could aid diarrhea vaccine research

Sixty of the protein spikes stud the surface of the soccer ball-shaped virus responsible for diarrhea and vomiting in children. Researchers at Children's Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School used a combination of X-ray crystallography (in white) and electron microscopy (in blue) to reconstruct the movements of the diarrhea-inducing rotavirus as it broke into cells in the digestive tract. The spikes harden when exposed to digestive enzymes, and then bind to targeted cells. The protein then performs an acrobatic folding procedure that allows the virus to enter the cell, scientists speculate. The images provide a first detailed view of the spikes, a potential target for a new vaccine against the disease that kills 440,000 children worldwide each year.

CAROLYN Y. JOHNSON