On June 14, at the invitation of Shi Zhengli, researcher of the Wuhan Institute of Virology, Dr. Zhang Xuming, from Department of Microbiology and Immunology of University of Arkansas, the United States, came to have a one-day exchange visit. During the visit, he presented an excellent academic report titled as “Molecular Mechanism of Coronavirus Pathogenesis: The Yin and Yang of Virus-Host Cell Interactions” to all the teachers and students of the institute.

In his report, Professor Zhang mainly introduced the important progresses his research team had made on the interactions between Mouse Hepatitis Virus (MHV) and host cells. The report explained the physiological and biochemical processes of MHV infection and pathogenesis in four aspects: MHV infection of the glial cells, secretion and regulation of proinfammatory cytokines, innate immune anti-viral process of the host, and persistent MHV infection. After the report, Professor Zhang carried out heated discussions with present teachers and students on some related issues of the report.