A rendering illustrates the FEAR antiviral immune pathway, which was discovered by UT Southwestern researchers and appears to work against a broad array of viruses. The image depicts cellular FACT complexes, made up of cellular proteins SSRP1 (dark blue) and Spt16 (orange). Poxvirus A51R proteins (cyan) inhibit FACT complex formation by binding to Spt16 proteins in poxvirus-infected cells.

Don Gammon, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Microbiology at UT Southwestern, shown working with graduate student researcher Emily Rex in the Gammon Lab, said a greater understanding of the FEAR pathway could lead to more effective vaccines and new drugs to fight viral infections.