Newcastle disease virus hemagglutinin-neuraminidase protein (NDV HN)

The Newcastle disease virus hemagglutinin-neuraminidase (HN) protein is a multifunctional type II transmembrane glycoprotein essential for the viral life cycle (UniProt: P04842). It serves three primary roles: recognizing and binding to sialic acid-containing receptors on the host cell surface, promoting membrane fusion by interacting with the viral fusion (F) protein, and acting as a neuraminidase to cleave sialic acid from progeny virions to prevent self-aggregation and facilitate release (PubMed: 11160734). Because of its critical role in infection, HN is a major target for the development of avian vaccines and antiviral drugs (PubMed: 22438551). Furthermore, the HN protein is a key component in oncolytic virotherapy research, as it can induce apoptosis in tumor cells and stimulate a robust anti-tumor immune response (Wikipedia: Newcastle disease virus). Therapeutic strategies often focus on inhibiting its neuraminidase activity or blocking its receptor-binding domain to neutralize the virus.

Other names

HN proteinHemagglutinin-neuraminidaseNDV-HNViral surface glycoprotein HN

Inhibition of neuraminidase activity to prevent viral release and blocking of hemagglutinin activity to prevent viral attachment to host cell sialic acid receptors.