Human Host Factors Required for Influenza Virus Replication

The small coding capacity of the influenza A virus demands that the virus use the host cellular machinery for many aspects of its life cycle. An integrated systems approach, based on genome-wide RNA interference screening, is now used to identify 295 cellular cofactors required for early-stage influenza virus replication. Knowledge of these host cell requirements provides further targets that could be pursued for antiviral drug development.