Quinine and its use to generate innate immune response
AssigneesThe Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania, Monell Chemical Senses Center, Geneone Life Science, Inc.
InventorsNoam A. Cohen, Robert J. Lee, Susan R. Weiss, Joel N. Maslow, Christine C. Roberts, Sara Cherry, Michael Kohanski, Nithin D. Adappa, James N. Palmer, Li Hui Tan
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Abstract
The invention provides methods and compositions for assaying infectivity of viruses and potential treatments of such viruses in the upper respiratory tract using an air-liquid interface model with nasal epithelium cells; and treatment of viral infections of the upper respiratory tract by treating with bitter taste receptor agonists that stimulate NO production and/or antimicrobial protein production.
Claims14
A method of treating a viral infection in a subject having an upper respiratory infection, comprising:
- dispersing as particulate a formulation of a bitter taste receptor agonist;
- applying the dispersed formulation onto the mucosal surface of an upper respiratory cavity of the subject;
- and
- generating NO production or stimulating antimicrobial peptide production, or both, through the stimulation of bitter taste receptors.
A method of detecting viral infection of nasal epithelium using an air-liquid interface, comprising:
- establishing a cell culture of undifferentiated human sinonasal epithelial cells grown to confluence in culture flask;
- infecting the epithelial cells on the apical surface with a virus strain known to infect upper respiratory tract of a mammal;
- treating the sinonasal epithelial cells with a bitter taste receptor agonist;
- incubating the sinonasal epithelia cells;
- and
- analyzing level of viruses released by the sinonasal epithelial cell culture.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.