Expert on highly infectious viruses gave a seminar at the Foundation

March 24, 2008

On Monday 24th March, Dr. Ute Ströher, Head of the Molecular Virology and Antiviral Approches unit, Special Pathogens Program from the Public Health Agency of Canada was invited to give a special seminar at the Foundation about “Progress towards the development of treatments against Ebola virus and other emerging filoviruses”.

In the presentation, this outstanding Filovirus and Arenavirus investigator showed her most recent results on the inhibitory efficiency of different antiviral agents against the Ebola, Marburg and Lassa viruses. These studies were performed in containment level 4 laboratories.

For Dr. Nicole Tischler, associated investigator of the Fundación Ciencia para la Vida who leads the hantavirus group that is specialized in studying the cell entry mechanism used by hantaviruses to invade target cell, the results of Dr. Ströher are important references for the development of cell entry inhibitors against other highly infectious viruses such as hantaviruses.