Proteomic analyses of how ZIKV infection modulates the expression of astrocytic proteins involved in synaptogenesis and other synaptic controls

Zika virus (ZIKV), one of the re-emerging viruses, is transmitted via a mosquito vector. It is an obligate micro-organism that requires host cells to replicate. To date, 87 countries show evidence of mosquito-borne ZIKV transmission. In Canada, 31,587 cases have been reported in 2018 with 3,473 of them having been confirmed via the lab results. Climate change potentially increases the incidence of mosquitoes impacting the viral transmission (Aedes aegyti prefers warm and rainy weather conditions). So far, no vaccine/treatment exists for ZIKV infection and its infection leads to numerous neurological conditions like microcephaly, abnormal brain development, Guillain-Barre syndrome, eye abnormalities, fetal growth impairment and fetal death. Inside the brain, specialized cells called astrocytes support neurons. Since these cells are one of the major brain cell populations and ZIKV is known to infect these cells, many of the above mentioned neurological diseases are associated with ZIKV impairing the astrocytic function and protein expression. According to my recently published data in 2019, ZIKV has been found to alter the expression of many such proteins like SPARC, STAT3, HSD17B10 and THBS 1/2, most of which are involved in the regulation of synapses. Therefore, this current project aims to focus on performing a proteomic screen looking at the impact of ZIKV infection in human astrocytic cells using mass spectrometry. Through this project, specific proteins inside ZIKV infected human astrocytes will be identified and their role in ZIKV replication, protein synthesis and assembly will be studied. This is crucial in understanding the mechanism of action of ZIKV as it will enable us to find novel therapeutic targets for various Zika antiviral treatments in the future.