Hussein Naim is a Lebanese-Swiss

biochemist Biochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. They study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. Biochemists study DNA, proteins and Cell (biology), cell parts. The word "biochemist" is a portmanteau of ...

and

molecular virologist Virology is the scientific study of biological viruses. It is a subfield of microbiology that focuses on their detection, structure, classification and evolution, their methods of infection and exploitation of host cells for reproduction, their ...

, known for his research in cell biology (membrane protein sorting and internalization) and virology (

measles Measles is a highly contagious infectious disease caused by measles virus. Symptoms usually develop 10–12 days after exposure to an infected person and last 7–10 days. Initial symptoms typically include fever, often greater than , cough, ...

, SARS, HIV and

Influenza Influenza, commonly known as "the flu", is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These symptoms ...

). He has held several leading positions at prominent universities and biotechnology centers.

Scientific career

Hussein Naim received his Ph.D. degree in biochemistry from the University of Bern, Switzerland in 1989. After being appointed at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, his research focused on the (i) basis of enveloped viruses assembly, and (ii) the mechanisms of membrane protein sorting and

endocytosis Endocytosis is a cellular process in which substances are brought into the cell. The material to be internalized is surrounded by an area of cell membrane, which then buds off inside the cell to form a vesicle containing the ingested material. E ...

in polarized epithelial cells. His research was instrumental towards understanding the intracellular mechanisms of viral and membrane protein sorting in epithelial cells and the cell-surface assembly of several

RNA viruses ''Orthornavirae'' is a kingdom of viruses that have genomes made of ribonucleic acid (RNA), those genomes encoding an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp). The RdRp is used to transcribe the viral RNA genome into messenger RNA (mRNA) and to repli ...

. He was appointed as a faculty member at the institute of molecular biology of the University of Zurich. His research focused on the development of novel viral vectors and therapeutic molecules that paved the way towards translational research (live recombinant vaccines and cancer virotherapy). Later, he became the director of vaccine research at Berna Biotech (now

Crucell Janssen Vaccines, formerly Crucell, is a biotechnology company specializing in vaccines and biopharmaceutical technologies. It was formed when Johnson & Johnson acquired the Dutch biotech company Crucell based in Leiden and placed it in their ph ...

Publications

* Characteristics of the internalization signal in the Y543 influenza virus hemagglutinin suggest a model for recognition of internalization signals containing tyrosine. J. Biol. Chem. 269, 3928-3933 * Apical and basolateral coated pits of MDCK cells differ in their rates of maturation into coated vesicles, but not in the ability to distinguish between hemagglutinin proteins with different internalization signals. J. Cell Biol. 129, 1241–1250. * Mutations in the Middle of the Transmembrane Domain Reverse the Polarity of Transport of the Influenza Virus Hemagglutinin in MDCK Epithelial Cells. J. Cell Biol. 142, 51–57. * Tyrosine-based Membrane Protein Sorting Signals Are Differentially Interpreted by Polarized Madin-Darby Canine Kidney and LLC-PK1 Epithelial Cells. J. Biol. Chem. 273, 26862-26869 * O-linked glycans mediate apical sorting of human intestinal sucrase-isomaltase through association with lipid rafts. Current Biology 9, 593–596. * Effects of altering palmitylation sites on the biosynthesis and function of the Influenza virus Hemagglutinin. J. Virol. 66, 7585–7588. * Basis for selective incorporation of glycoproteins into influenza virus envelope. J. Virol. 67, 4831-4841 * Measles Viruses with Altered Envelope Protein Cytoplasmic Tails Gain Cell Fusion Competence.J. Virol. 72, 1224–1234. * Chimeric Measles Viruses with a Foreign Envelope. J. Virol. 72, 2150–2159. * Gene Transfer into Neurons from Hippocampal Slices. Mol. Cell. Neurosci. 17, 855-871 * Measles virus spreads in rat hippocampal neurons by cell-to-cell contact and in a polarized fashion. J. Virol. 76, 5720–5728. * Oncolytic measles virus in cutaneous T-cell lymphomas mount anti-tumor immune responses in vivo and target interferon resistant tumor cells. Blood, 106: 2287–2294. * Use of viral vectors for the development of vaccines. Exp. Rev. Vaccines, 6 (2): 255–266. * Reverse genetics of measles virus and resulting multivalent recombinant vaccines. Curr. Topics Microbiol. Immun. 329, 129–162. * Measles virus matrix protein specifies apical virus release and glycoprotein sorting in epithelial cells. EMBO J. 19, 3576-3585

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Naim, Hassan Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Scientists from Beirut Swiss virologists Lebanese emigrants to Switzerland University of Bern alumni University of Texas Medical Branch alumni Academic staff of the University of Zurich Swiss biochemists