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Faculty Detail    
Name ELENA I. FROLOVA
  
Campus Address BBRB 276 Zip 2170
Phone  (205) 934-9339
E-mail  efrolova@uab.edu
Other websites
     

Education
Undergraduate  Novosibirsk State University, Novosibirsk, Russia    1985  B.S./M.S. 
Graduate  Novosibirsk Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry of Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia     1992  Ph.D. 


Faculty Appointment(s)
Appointment Type Department Division Rank
Primary  Microbiology  Microbiology Professor Emeritus



Research/Clinical Interest
Title
Virus-host interaction, virus replication
Description
Our research interests are geared towards expanding our understanding of alphavirus pathogenesis at the molecular and cellular levels. Alphaviruses are circulating in the Central, South and North Americas and cause periodic, extensive equine epizootics and epidemics of encephalitis with frequent lethal outcomes and neurological sequelae in humans. The main objective of out lab is to investigate the functions of virus-specific nonstructural and structural proteins in virus replication and inhibition of the cellular antiviral response. Our studies have demonstrated that geographically isolated New World alphaviruses, such as Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus and Old World alphaviruses, such as Sindbis and chikungunya viruses, have developed fundamental differences in their mechanisms for downregulating cellular transcription and translation, which represent the main means of alphavirus inactivation of antiviral genes. The detailed characterizasion of these mechanisms provides a strong basis for the rational design of recombinant alphaviruses with programmed, irreversibly attenuated, cell-restricted phenotypes. These genetically modified aphaviruses can, subsequently, be safely used for vaccine development. Other projects in the lab are aimed at the production and purification of alphavirus nonstructural proteins, characterization of their enzymatic activities and design of assays for screening small molecule libraries in order to identify new antiviral drugs.

Selected Publications 
Publication PUBMEDID
Frolov I, Garmashova N, Atasheva S, Frolova EI. Random insertion mutagenesis of Sindbis virus nsP2 and selection of variants incapable of downregulating cellular transcription. J Virol. 2009 Sept; 83(18):9031-44.  19570872 
Atasheva S, Fish A, Fornerod M, Frolova EI. Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus capsid protein forms a tetrameric complex with CRM1 and Importin  that obstructs nuclear pore complex function. J Virol. 2010 May;84(9):4158-71.  20147401 
Atasheva S, Krendelchtchikova V, Liopo A, Frolova E, Frolov I. Interplay of acute and persistent infections caused by Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus encoding mutated capsid protein. J Virol. 2010 Oct;84(19):10004-15.  20668087 
Frolova EI, Gorchakov R, Pereboeva L, Atasheva S, Frolov I. Functional Sindbis virus replicative complexes are formed at the plasma membrane. J Virol. 2010 84(22):11679-95.   20826696 
Kim DY, Atasheva S, Foy NJ, Wang E, Frolova EI, Weaver S, Frolov I. (2011) Design of Chimeric Alphaviruses with a Programmed, Attenuated, Cell Type-Restricted Phenotype. J Virol. 85(9):4363-76.   21345954 
Kim DY, Firth AE, Atasheva S, Frolova EI, Frolov I. (2011) Conservation of a packaging signal and the viral genome RNA packaging mechanism in alphavirus evolution. J Virol. 85(16):8022-36.   21680508 
Frolov I, Akhrymuk M, Atasheva S, Akhrymuk I, Frolova EI. (2012) Early events in alphavirus replication determine the outcome of the infection. J Virol. 86(9):5055-66.  22345447 
Akhrymuk I, Kulemzin S, Frolova EI. (2012) Evasion of the Innate Immune Response: the Old World Alphavirus nsP2 Protein Induces Rapid Degradation of Rpb1, a Catalytic Subunit of RNA Polymerase II. J Virol. 86(13):7180-91.   22514352 
Atasheva S, Akhrymuk M, Frolova EI, Frolov I. (2012) New PARP gene with an anti-alphavirus function. J Virol. 2012 May 23. [Epub ahead of print]  22623789 
Atasheva S, Kim DY, Akhrymuk M, Morgan DG, Frolova EI, Frolov I. (2012) Pseudoinfectious Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus. A new means of alphavirus attenuation. J Virol. 2012 Dec 5. [Epub ahead of print]  23221545 
Foy NJ, Akhrymuk M, Akhrymuk I, Atasheva S, Waffo AB, Frolov I, Frolova EI. Hypervariable domains of nsP3 proteins of the New World and the Old World alphaviruses mediate formation of distinct, virus-specific protein complexes. J Virol. 2012 Dec 5. [Epub ahead of print]  23221551 
 

Keywords
Virology, alphaviruses, virus replication, virus-host interaction, transcription, translation, innate immune response, helicase, protease