Development of Immunotherapeutics for Heartland Virus

Abstract

Heartland virus is an emerging tick-born disease and is of significant concern to public health due to the severity of disease, as well as the geographic expansion of its insect vector. Infection with Heartland can result in a potentially fatal disease and frequently requires hospitalization. To date, little is known about the biology or ecology of Heartland virus, and there are no available treatments or vaccines. In addition, there are no commercially available diagnostic tests, making the study of this virus difficult. Antibody-based therapies have been shown to be beneficial for treatment of a wide variety of viral infections including COVID-19, MERS, Ebola, HIV, Influenza, and Zika. However, to date, none have been developed for Heartland virus. Here we aim to develop therapeutic antibodies to treat Heartland virus infection. These antibodies will also be useful for diagnostic testing and surveillance, as well as furthering our knowledge of this poorly understood virus.

Document Details

Document Type
DoD Grant Award
Publication Date
Jan 04, 2024
Source ID
HT94252310202

Entities

People

  • Corey Balinsky

Organizations

  • Naval Medical Research Center
  • United States Army

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Biology
  • Medicine

Readers

  • Canadian European Scientific Immigration and Epilepsy Clearance Studies
  • Infectious Disease/Epidemiology
  • Systems Analysis and Design

Technology Areas

  • Biotechnology