From: Steven Eiger (eiger@montana.edu)
Date: Fri Jan 05 2001 - 13:40:01 PST
Message-Id: <l03102800b67be84e3c9d@[153.90.150.107]> Date: Fri, 5 Jan 2001 14:40:01 -0700 From: Steven Eiger <eiger@montana.edu> Subject: Re: Pinhole Digest #545 - 12/29/00
David, Viruses of course use our proteins to enter cells, replicate etc.
Shingles virus hangs out in cells, am I right in thinking them nerve
cells?, perhaps incorporated into our DNA (I'm not sure), and erupts now
and then. I remember reading that viruses can use proteins that are
expressed as a result of cytokine (immune signals) communication to enter
epithelial cells lining the lung. Thus if a vaccine either directly or
indirectly were to cause a cell to express new protein and by poor luck the
virus had intercalated into your friend's DNA near the promoter for this
protein, then the vaccine could trigger a shingles attack. One can
envision other scenarios, various molecular mimicry evnts coupled with
unfortunate intercalations, but without some testing one does not know -
but you wanted hypothesis, so those are mine. Steve
>Can shingles be triggered by a flu vaccine? A friend, who is a doctor,
>recently came down with a case of the shingles soon after a flu shot. He
>thinks there may be a connection. Perhaps someone can propose an hypothesis.
>Maybe the strains this year are similar to the chicken pox virus and his
>immune system went nuts.
> David Lauter
>
Steven Eiger, Ph.D.
Department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience and the WWAMI Medical Education
Program
PO Box 173148
Montana State University - Bozeman
Bozeman, MT 59717-3148
Voice: (406) 994-5672
E-mail: eiger@montana.edu
FAX: (406) 994-7077
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