James Morrison, PhD

Professional Titles

• Research Scientist

Research Interests

My areas of research focus include mammalian innate immunity, virology, viral nucleic acid sensing, and host-virus protein interactions involved in restriction, and immunometabolism. I have worked on numerous co-evolved interactions between viral pathogens and host factors, including both viral dependency proteins and innate immune restriction factors.

Publications

• Miller CM, Morrison JH, Bankers L, Dran R, Kendrick JM, Briggs E, Ferguson VL, Poeschla EM. ADAR1 haploinsufficiency and sustained picornaviral RdRp dsRNA synthesis synergize to dysregulate RNA editing and cause multi-system interferonopathy. mBio. 2025 Aug 13;16(8):e0149225. PubMed PMID: 40693792
• Morrison JH, Poeschla EM. The Feline Immunodeficiency Virus Envelope Signal Peptide Is a Tetherin Antagonizing Protein. mBio. 2023 Apr 25;14(2):e0016123. PubMed PMID: 36927083
• Yang Q, Meyerson NR, Paige CL, Morrison JH, Clark SK, Fattor WT, Decker CJ, Steiner HR, Lian E, Larremore DB, Perera R, Poeschla EM, Parker R, Dowell RD, Sawyer SL. Human mRNA in saliva can correctly identify individuals harboring acute infection. mBio. 2023 Dec 19;14(6):e0171223. PubMed PMID: 37943059
• Guo K, Barrett BS, Morrison JH, Mickens KL, Vladar EK, Hasenkrug KJ, Poeschla EM, Santiago ML. Interferon resistance of emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2022 Aug 9;119(32):e2203760119. PubMed PMID: 35867811
• Niemeyer BF, Miller CM, Ledesma-Feliciano C, Morrison JH, Jimenez-Valdes R, Clifton C, Poeschla EM, Benam KH. Broad antiviral and anti-inflammatory efficacy of nafamostat against SARS-CoV-2 and seasonal coronaviruses in primary human bronchiolar epithelia. Nano Sel. 2022 Feb;3(2):437-449. PubMed PMID: 34541574
• Rebensburg SV, Wei G, Larue RC, Lindenberger J, Francis AC, Annamalai AS, Morrison J, Shkriabai N, Huang SW, KewalRamani V, Poeschla EM, Melikyan GB, Kvaratskhelia M. Sec24C is an HIV-1 host dependency factor crucial for virus replication. Nat Microbiol. 2021 Apr;6(4):435-444. PubMed PMID: 33649557
• Bester SM, Wei G, Zhao H, Adu-Ampratwum D, Iqbal N, Courouble VV, Francis AC, Annamalai AS, Singh PK, Shkriabai N, Van Blerkom P, Morrison J, Poeschla EM, Engelman AN, Melikyan GB, Griffin PR, Fuchs JR, Asturias FJ, Kvaratskhelia M. Structural and mechanistic bases for a potent HIV-1 capsid inhibitor. Science. 2020 Oct 16;370(6514):360-364. PubMed PMID: 33060363
• Morrison JH, Miller C, Bankers L, Crameri G, Wang LF, Poeschla EM. A Potent Postentry Restriction to Primate Lentiviruses in a Yinpterochiropteran Bat. mBio. 2020 Sep 15;11(5). PubMed PMID: 32934084
• Bankers L, Miller C, Liu G, Thongkittidilok C, Morrison J, Poeschla EM. Development of IFN-Stimulated Gene Expression from Embryogenesis through Adulthood, with and without Constitutive MDA5 Pathway Activation. J Immunol. 2020 May 15;204(10):2791-2807. PubMed PMID: 32277054
• Miller CM, Barrett BS, Chen J, Morrison JH, Radomile C, Santiago ML, Poeschla EM. Systemic Expression of a Viral RdRP Protects against Retrovirus Infection and Disease. J Virol. 2020 Apr 16;94(9). PubMed PMID: 32051266
• Decker CJ, Steiner HR, Hoon-Hanks LL, Morrison JH, Haist KC, Stabell AC, Poeschla EM, Morrison TE, Stenglein MD, Sawyer SL, Parker R. dsRNA-Seq: Identification of Viral Infection by Purifying and Sequencing dsRNA. Viruses. 2019 Oct 14;11(10). PubMed PMID: 31615058
• Kumar S, Morrison JH, Dingli D, Poeschla E. HIV-1 Activation of Innate Immunity Depends Strongly on the Intracellular Level of TREX1 and Sensing of Incomplete Reverse Transcription Products. J Virol. 2018 Aug 15;92(16). PubMed PMID: 29769349
• Painter MM, Morrison JH, Zoecklein LJ, Rinkoski TA, Watzlawik JO, Papke LM, Warrington AE, Bieber AJ, Matchett WE, Turkowski KL, Poeschla EM, Rodriguez M. Antiviral Protection via RdRP-Mediated Stable Activation of Innate Immunity. PLoS Pathog. 2015 Dec;11(12):e1005311. PubMed PMID: 26633895
• Fadel HJ, Morrison JH, Saenz DT, Fuchs JR, Kvaratskhelia M, Ekker SC, Poeschla EM. TALEN knockout of the PSIP1 gene in human cells: analyses of HIV-1 replication and allosteric integrase inhibitor mechanism. J Virol. 2014 Sep 1;88(17):9704-17. PubMed PMID: 24942577
• Morrison JH, Guevara RB, Marcano AC, Saenz DT, Fadel HJ, Rogstad DK, Poeschla EM. Feline immunodeficiency virus envelope glycoproteins antagonize tetherin through a distinctive mechanism that requires virion incorporation. J Virol. 2014 Mar;88(6):3255-72. PubMed PMID: 24390322
• Meehan AM, Saenz DT, Guevera R, Morrison JH, Peretz M, Fadel HJ, Hamada M, van Deursen J, Poeschla EM. A cyclophilin homology domain-independent role for Nup358 in HIV-1 infection. PLoS Pathog. 2014 Feb;10(2):e1003969. PubMed PMID: 24586169
• Meehan AM, Saenz DT, Morrison J, Hu C, Peretz M, Poeschla EM. LEDGF dominant interference proteins demonstrate prenuclear exposure of HIV-1 integrase and synergize with LEDGF depletion to destroy viral infectivity. J Virol. 2011 Apr;85(7):3570-83. PubMed PMID: 21270171
• Llano M, Morrison J, Poeschla EM. Virological and cellular roles of the transcriptional coactivator LEDGF/p75. Curr Top Microbiol Immunol. 2009;339:125-46. PubMed PMID: 20012527
• Meehan AM, Saenz DT, Morrison JH, Garcia-Rivera JA, Peretz M, Llano M, Poeschla EM. LEDGF/p75 proteins with alternative chromatin tethers are functional HIV-1 cofactors. PLoS Pathog. 2009 Jul;5(7):e1000522. PubMed PMID: 19609362