Absence of viral antigens on the surface of equine herpesvirus-1-infected peripheral blood mononuclear cells: a strategy to avoid complement-mediated lysis.
Abstract: Equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) may cause abortion in vaccination- and infection-immune horses. EHV-1-infected peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) play an important role in virus immune evasion. The mechanisms by which infected PBMCs can avoid destruction by EHV-1-specific antibody and equine complement were examined. The majority of EHV-1-infected PBMCs (68.6 %) lacked surface expression of viral antigens and these cells were not susceptible to complement-mediated lysis. In infected PBMCs with surface expression of viral antigens, 63 % showed focal surface expression, whereas 37 % showed general surface expression. General surface expression rendered infected PBMCs susceptible to lysis by antibody and complement (from 5.4 to 31.2 % lysed cells depending on the concentration of antibody and complement). Infected PBMCs with focal surface expression showed significant lysis only in the presence of high concentrations of antibody and complement. Thus, the absence of surface expression protects infected PBMCs against complement-mediated lysis.
Publication Date: 2003-01-21 PubMed ID: 12533704DOI: 10.1099/vir.0.18864-0Google Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
Summary
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The research article explores how the equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) avoids being destroyed by horses’ immune systems, primarily by not displaying viral antigens on the surfaces of infected peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), making these infected cells unsusceptible to attack.
Experiment Setup
- The researchers aimed to examine how infected PBMCs manage to evade destruction from EHV-1 specific antibodies and equine complement, a part of the immune system that aids (or complements) the ability of antibodies to clear pathogens from an organism.
- They infected PBMCs with the EHV-1 virus and analysed them to determine whether viral antigens were being expressed on their surface, which would typically flag them for destruction by the immune system.
Findings
- They found that the majority (68.6%) of the EHV-1-infected PBMCs did not express viral antigens on their surface, hence making them invulnerable to complement-mediated lysis, a type of cell destruction.
- Of the PBMCs that did have surface expression of viral antigens, 63% showed focal expression (limited to a certain point or region on the cell surface) and 37% showed general expression (spread all over the cell surface).
- It was demonstrated that general surface expression made the infected PBMCs susceptible to lysis by antibodies and complement, with the percentage of cell lysis ranging from 5.4% to 31.2%, depending on the concentration of the antibody and complement.
- Infected PBMCs with focal surface expression only showed significant lysis in the presence of high concentrations of antibodies and complement.
Conclusion
- The key takeaway from this study is the discovery of a survival mechanism employed by EHV-1. By not showing antigen markers on infected cells, the virus can potentially evade the immune system, which explains why it can cause disease in horses even after vaccination or previous infection.
- Understanding this mechanism could be crucial in the development of effective treatments or vaccines against EHV-1, and perhaps other viruses that employ similar evasive strategies.
Cite This Article
APA
van der Meulen KM, Nauwynck HJ, Pensaert MB.
(2003).
Absence of viral antigens on the surface of equine herpesvirus-1-infected peripheral blood mononuclear cells: a strategy to avoid complement-mediated lysis.
J Gen Virol, 84(Pt 1), 93-97.
https://doi.org/10.1099/vir.0.18864-0 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Laboratory of Virology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent UniversitySalisburylaan 133, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium.
- Laboratory of Virology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent UniversitySalisburylaan 133, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium.
- Laboratory of Virology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent UniversitySalisburylaan 133, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Antibodies, Viral / immunology
- Antibody-Dependent Cell Cytotoxicity
- Antigens, Viral / immunology
- Antigens, Viral / metabolism
- Cells, Cultured
- Complement System Proteins / immunology
- Herpesviridae Infections / immunology
- Herpesviridae Infections / veterinary
- Herpesviridae Infections / virology
- Herpesvirus 1, Equid / immunology
- Horse Diseases / immunology
- Horse Diseases / virology
- Horses
- Leukocytes, Mononuclear / virology
Citations
This article has been cited 15 times.- Van Crombrugge E, Vanbeylen E, Van Cleemput J, Van den Broeck W, Laval K, Nauwynck H. Bacterial Toxins from Staphylococcus aureus and Bordetella bronchiseptica Predispose the Horse's Respiratory Tract to Equine Herpesvirus Type 1 Infection. Viruses 2022 Jan 14;14(1).
- Zarski LM, Weber PSD, Lee Y, Soboll Hussey G. Transcriptomic Profiling of Equine and Viral Genes in Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells in Horses during Equine Herpesvirus 1 Infection. Pathogens 2021 Jan 7;10(1).
- Pavulraj S, Kamel M, Stephanowitz H, Liu F, Plendl J, Osterrieder N, Azab W. Equine Herpesvirus Type 1 Modulates Cytokine and Chemokine Profiles of Mononuclear Cells for Efficient Dissemination to Target Organs. Viruses 2020 Sep 8;12(9).
- Van Cleemput J, Poelaert KCK, Laval K, Vanderheijden N, Dhaenens M, Daled S, Boyen F, Pasmans F, Nauwynck HJ. An Alphaherpesvirus Exploits Antimicrobial β-Defensins To Initiate Respiratory Tract Infection. J Virol 2020 Mar 31;94(8).
- Anand SP, Finzi A. Understudied Factors Influencing Fc-Mediated Immune Responses against Viral Infections. Vaccines (Basel) 2019 Aug 30;7(3).
- Anand SP, Grover JR, Tolbert WD, Prévost J, Richard J, Ding S, Baril S, Medjahed H, Evans DT, Pazgier M, Mothes W, Finzi A. Antibody-Induced Internalization of HIV-1 Env Proteins Limits Surface Expression of the Closed Conformation of Env. J Virol 2019 Jun 1;93(11).
- Van Cleemput J, Poelaert KCK, Laval K, Nauwynck HJ. Unravelling the first key steps in equine herpesvirus type 5 (EHV5) pathogenesis using ex vivo and in vitro equine models. Vet Res 2019 Feb 18;50(1):13.
- Laval K, Favoreel HW, Poelaert KC, Van Cleemput J, Nauwynck HJ. Equine Herpesvirus Type 1 Enhances Viral Replication in CD172a+ Monocytic Cells upon Adhesion to Endothelial Cells. J Virol 2015 Nov;89(21):10912-23.
- Kurtz BM, Singletary LB, Kelly SD, Frampton AR Jr. Equus caballus major histocompatibility complex class I is an entry receptor for equine herpesvirus type 1. J Virol 2010 Sep;84(18):9027-34.
- Cornelissen E, Dewerchin HL, Van Hamme E, Nauwynck HJ. Absence of antibody-dependent, complement-mediated lysis of feline infectious peritonitis virus-infected cells. Virus Res 2009 Sep;144(1-2):285-9.
- Cornelissen E, Dewerchin HL, Van Hamme E, Nauwynck HJ. Absence of surface expression of feline infectious peritonitis virus (FIPV) antigens on infected cells isolated from cats with FIP. Vet Microbiol 2007 Mar 31;121(1-2):131-7.
- Dewerchin HL, Cornelissen E, Nauwynck HJ. Replication of feline coronaviruses in peripheral blood monocytes. Arch Virol 2005 Dec;150(12):2483-500.
- Mohamed E, Van Cleemput J, Şahin B, Van den Broeck W, Boyen F, Nauwynck H. Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus Supernatant Containing Streptolysin S Alters the Equine Nasal and Vaginal Mucosa, Modulating Equine Herpesvirus 1, 3 and 4 Infections. Viruses 2025 Jul 14;17(7).
- Mohamed E, Zarak I, Vereecke N, Theuns S, Laval K, Nauwynck H. Genomic analysis and replication kinetics of the closely related EHV-1 neuropathogenic 21P40 and abortigenic 97P70 strains. Vet Res 2025 Jan 13;56(1):12.
- Portaels J, Van Crombrugge E, Van Den Broeck W, Lagrou K, Laval K, Nauwynck H. Aspergillus Fumigatus Spore Proteases Alter the Respiratory Mucosa Architecture and Facilitate Equine Herpesvirus 1 Infection. Viruses 2024 Jul 27;16(8).
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