Herpes simplex virus drug screen

摘要

Host Cell Factor (HCF), a eukaryotic cellular protein involved in transcription, nucleic acids encoding HCF, and methods of using HCF and HCF-encoding nucleic acids are provided. HCF activity is disclosed to comprise a collection of polypeptides encoded by a structural gene encoding a parent protein of 2039 amino acids. HCF-specific binding compounds are disclosed including antibodies to HCF epitopes. Because HCF is required for the transcription of a number of viral genes such as the immediate early genes of Herpes Simplex Virus, the invention provides HCF-based pharmaceutical compositions and HCF-based methods for screening chemical libraries for regulators of viral transcription. Such compositions are used in the treatment of viral infections by modulating the transcription of certain viral genes.