Ben Hale
benhale.bsky.social
Ben Hale
@benhale.bsky.social
Professor of Medical Virology, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
My research group studies molecular mechanisms of the interferon system, interferon deficiencies, and viral disease.
I very much enjoyed my time in St Andrews, Scotland as a PhD student. If I was still considered an Early-Career Researcher just starting my own laboratory (in my head, I am!), I would certainly be interested in this fellowship opportunity...
November 5, 2025 at 7:26 AM
Thank-you @casanovalab.bsky.social for the kind invitation to be a participant at your celebratory Novo Nordisk Prize Symposium. I appreciated being able to present alongside a great array of leading researchers, & to meet so many welcoming people in the field of Inborn Errors of Immunity! Congrats!
1/ We are celebrating the Novo Nordisk Prize Symposium: Inborn Errors of Immunity – a huge success yesterday at the @institutimagine.bsky.social in Paris featuring talks by 19 leading European researchers on human IEI
September 26, 2025 at 11:54 AM
'TRIM28 is a target for paramyxovirus V proteins'. Work led by Gauthier Lieber seeks to address whether host activation of endogenous retroelements contributes to antiviral defences. In support of this idea, he describes a viral mechanism that might limit this host response.
doi.org/10.1371/jour...
TRIM28 is a target for paramyxovirus V proteins
Author summary Host recognition of viral nucleic acids is fundamental for stimulating antiviral immunity. To prevent aberrant immune activation, cells must precisely differentiate “non-self” from “sel...
doi.org
September 9, 2025 at 8:46 AM
Reposted by Ben Hale
Regulated localization of transposable element #RNA during #influenza A #virus #infection.

-> www.embopress.org/doi/full/10....
June 16, 2025 at 1:09 PM
Now in press: Marie Lork & our collaborators studied host transposable elements during influenza A virus infection. We found evidence that some produce dsRNA, but that these host dsRNAs are limited from reaching the cytosol by the viral NS1 protein. @emboreports.org
www.embopress.org/doi/full/10....
Regulated localization of transposable element RNA during influenza A virus infection | EMBO reports
imageimageInfluenza A virus infection increases host transposable element (TE) expression. This study provides evidence that some infection-induced TEs form double-stranded RNAs that accumulate in the...
www.embopress.org
June 16, 2025 at 10:32 AM
Reposted by Ben Hale
A nice photo from last week’s ’Celebration of 50 years of Virology’ in St Andrews - marking a milestone in the distinguished career of Rick Randall - a great virologist, colleague and friend - congratulations Rick!
May 20, 2025 at 8:10 PM
Anti-interferon autoantibodies are always on my mind....even at Easter!
April 22, 2025 at 6:31 AM
Reposted by Ben Hale
Type I interferon autoantibody footprints reveal neutralizing mechanisms and allow inhibitory decoy design. New study from Kevin Groen, Benjamin Hale (@benhale.bsky.social) and colleagues @virology.uzh.ch: rupress.org/jem/article/...

#Autoimmunity #Immunodeficiency #InfectiousDisease
March 27, 2025 at 1:46 PM
Reposted by Ben Hale
An atlas of protein phosphorylation dynamics during interferon signaling @benhale.bsky.social
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
March 27, 2025 at 3:39 AM
Reposted by Ben Hale
A follow up on @benhale.bsky.social and colleagues' research published in @jem.org : How "decoy molecules" intercept harmful auto-antibodies, restoring antiviral immunity.
www.news.uzh.ch/en/articles/...
Decoys Restore Antiviral Immune Defense
www.news.uzh.ch
March 26, 2025 at 9:54 AM
Reposted by Ben Hale
AutoAbs neutralizing IFN-Is exacerbate severe viral diseases. Groen, @benhale.bsky.social et al. @virology.uzh.ch identify IFN-I regions commonly targeted by these autoAbs and develop a proof-of-concept decoy strategy to alleviate pathogenic effects. rupress.org/jem/article/...
March 20, 2025 at 8:12 PM
Interferon research has a long history at the University of Zurich, Switzerland.

Charles Weissmann, Professor of Molecular Biology, led the group that first cloned interferon genes. This allowed large-scale production and facilitated the medical use of interferon.

@uzh-ch.bsky.social
[January 16th, 1980] Scientists at Biogen have successfully produced human interferon, a natural virus fighter, in a laboratory using gene-splicing techniques, potentially making it a more affordable treatment for various viral infections and cancers.

#history #1980s
March 5, 2025 at 12:31 PM
In our most recent work, Kevin Groen from the lab made AIR cells for rapid & sensitive functional detection of interferon types I, II & III. AIR cells can be used with a live cell luciferase substrate, are highly sensitive & can detect autoantibodies neutralising interferons.
doi.org/10.1002/eji....
Highly sensitive reporter cell line for detection of interferon types I–III and their neutralization by antibodies
Interferons (IFNs) are a critical component of innate immune defenses and limit viral disease severity. To advance studies on IFNs and their neutralization by pathogenic autoantibodies, we generated ...
doi.org
November 20, 2024 at 7:21 AM
Congratulations to Samira Schiefer from the lab whose use of proximity proteomics to comprehensively survey and characterise the type I interferon signalling pathway has just been published. Many new associations found.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Proximal protein landscapes of the type I interferon signaling cascade reveal negative regulation by PJA2 - Nature Communications
Type I IFN is vital for antiviral defense. Here, the authors use TurboID-based proximity labeling to comprehensively map the protein landscapes surrounding core IFN signaling members. Among factors un...
www.nature.com
May 28, 2024 at 6:39 AM