Adrianus "Jacco" Boon, PhD

Assistant Professor of Medicine

Adrianus "Jacco" Boon, PhD, joined the division of Infectious Diseases in 2011. He received his PhD from the erasmus University in The Netherlands in 2003 for his thesis on T-cell mediated immunity to influenza virus. Afterwards he did his Postdoctoral training at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in memphis, TN. His research interests are influenza viruses, including highly pathogenic H5N1, viral pathogenesis and host-pathogen interactions.

Research Interests

Influenza A virus is a collective name for a large number of different viruses with variable pathogenic potential for humans; non- or low pathogenic influenza A viruses that infect predominantly avian species, moderately pathogenic viruses that can infect humans and other mammals and finally the highly pathogenic influenza A viruses, often referred to as "Bird Flu", with a case fatality rate of 60%. The mechanism and molecular determinants of virulence and pathogenesis are poorly understood and one of the main questions in the laboratory. We will apply reverse genetics technology to generate novel influenza viruses carrying one or more genes of the more pathogenic strains of influenza. In vitro and in vivo testing of these novel viruses will enable us to identify the molecular markers and mechanisms associated with more severe pathology.

We are also very interested in the host and how immune status and genetic polymorphisms of the host affect pathology after infection with influenza virus. Genetically modified mice will be used to study the function of different host proteins hypothesized to play an important role during influenza virus infection. Viral titers, production of inflammatory mediators and the cellular immune response will be quantified after intranasal infection allowing us to dissect the function of the host protein during an infection. In addition, we will determine how certain host proteins affect the ecology and evolution of the virus.

Finally, we are interested in the third component of viral pathogenesis, the environment. The nutritional status, age, chronic viral infections and commensal bacterial flora of the host all affect disease progression after infection. The mechanism of how each of these components individually and combined affect pathogenesis will be studied.

Biographical Sketch

Link to PubMed for selected publications

Office Location:
Washington University School of Medicine
7264 McDonnell Pediatric Reserch Building
660 S. Euclid Ave, Campus Box 8051
St. Louis, MO 63110

Telephone: (314) 286-0857
Fax: (314) 286-2784
Email: jboon@dom.wustl.edu