Transient suppression of equine immune responses by equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV).
Abstract: Suppression of the immune system is a common aspect of the disease pathogenesis associated with retroviral infections in both man and animals. We have measured transient suppression of the equine immune system as a loss or decrease in antigen-specific and polyclonal lymphocyte proliferation following experimental infection of ponies with three variants of equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV) with difference virulence characteristics. The transient suppression of proliferative responses was temporally associated with recurrent febrile episodes, which are the hallmark symptom of EIAV-induced disease. Decreased proliferative responses occurred at all times when EIAV viremia was identified, based on the detection of an infectious virus in plasma or viral proteins on peripheral blood mononuclear cells. The immunosuppression was observed most frequently in ponies infected with virulent variants of EIAV which suggested that this effect may contribute to disease pathogenesis. Suppression of polyclonal proliferative responses was induced in vitro by the addition of either infectious or heat-inactivated EIAV to cultures, demonstrating that the viral structural proteins were immunosuppressive in the absence of infection. These studies indicated that EIAV is similar to other retroviruses in that it has the ability to suppress the immune system.
Publication Date: 1991-09-01 PubMed ID: 1651604DOI: 10.1016/0042-6822(91)90821-rGoogle Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Research Support
- U.S. Gov't
- P.H.S.
- Animal Health
- Animal Science
- Clinical Pathology
- Diagnosis
- Disease Diagnosis
- Disease Etiology
- Equine Diseases
- Equine Health
- Equine Infectious Anemia
- Equine Science
- Experimental Methods
- Immune Response
- Immune System
- Infection
- Infectious Disease
- Laboratory Methods
- Pathogenesis
- Veterinary Medicine
- Veterinary Research
- Virology
- Virus
Summary
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The research article discusses how the equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV) causes a temporary suppression of the immune system in horses, particularly during episodes of fever, and that this suppression may contribute to the progression of the disease.
Exploring EIAV’s Impact on Immune System
- The researchers monitored the conditions of ponies following experimental infection with three variants of equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV).
- The variants were with different virulence properties – i.e., their capability to cause disease differed from one another.
- During their investigation, they observed a temporary suppression of the equine immune system, indicated by a loss or decrease in antigen-specific and polyclonal lymphocyte proliferation – that is, the growth or development of large quantities of lymphocytes – a type of white blood cells that are an essential part of the immune system.
The Link With Febrile Episodes and Viremia
- This temporary immune suppression correlated with recurrent episodes of fever, a common symptom of EIAV-induced disease.
- The decreased lymphocyte responses were evident during periods when EIAV viremia was detected – this refers to the presence of the virus in the blood.
- Detection of EIAV viremia was done by identifying an infectious virus in the plasma or viral proteins on peripheral blood mononuclear cells, another type of immune cells.
Role in Disease Pathogenesis and Viral Structural Proteins
- Ponies infected with more virulent variants of EIAV exhibited this immune suppression more frequently, implying that this could be a key factor in the progression of the disease.
- Viral proteins, when added to cultures, demonstrated an immunosuppressive effect even without infection, suggesting that the structure of the virus itself is capable of suppressing the immune response.
- This characteristic of EIAV mirrors that of other retroviruses – a type of virus that uses RNA (instead of DNA) as its genetic material and has the capacity to suppress the immune system.
Cite This Article
APA
Newman MJ, Issel CJ, Truax RE, Powell MD, Horohov DW, Montelaro RC.
(1991).
Transient suppression of equine immune responses by equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV).
Virology, 184(1), 55-66.
https://doi.org/10.1016/0042-6822(91)90821-r Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge 70803.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Antigens, Viral / immunology
- Equine Infectious Anemia / immunology
- Flow Cytometry
- Horses
- Immunosuppression Therapy
- Infectious Anemia Virus, Equine / immunology
- Infectious Anemia Virus, Equine / pathogenicity
- Infectious Anemia Virus, Equine / physiology
- Lymphocyte Activation
- Lymphocytes / immunology
- Viremia / immunology
- Virulence / immunology
- Virus Replication
Grant Funding
- AI25850 / NIAID NIH HHS
Citations
This article has been cited 7 times.- Hu Z, Guo K, Du C, Sun J, Naletoski I, Chu X, Lin Y, Wang X, Barrandeguy M, Samuel M, Wang W, Lau PI, Wernery U, Raghavan R, Wang X. Development and evaluation of a blocking ELISA for serological diagnosis of equine infectious anemia.. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2023 May;107(10):3305-3317.
- Patel JR, Heldens JG, Bakonyi T, Rusvai M. Important mammalian veterinary viral immunodiseases and their control.. Vaccine 2012 Feb 27;30(10):1767-81.
- Fraser DG, Leib SR, Zhang BS, Mealey RH, Brown WC, McGuire TC. Lymphocyte proliferation responses induced to broadly reactive Th peptides did not protect against equine infectious anemia virus challenge.. Clin Diagn Lab Immunol 2005 Aug;12(8):983-93.
- Mealey RH, Sharif A, Ellis SA, Littke MH, Leib SR, McGuire TC. Early detection of dominant Env-specific and subdominant Gag-specific CD8+ lymphocytes in equine infectious anemia virus-infected horses using major histocompatibility complex class I/peptide tetrameric complexes.. Virology 2005 Aug 15;339(1):110-26.
- Mealey RH, Zhang B, Leib SR, Littke MH, McGuire TC. Epitope specificity is critical for high and moderate avidity cytotoxic T lymphocytes associated with control of viral load and clinical disease in horses with equine infectious anemia virus.. Virology 2003 Sep 1;313(2):537-52.
- Hammond SA, Cook SJ, Lichtenstein DL, Issel CJ, Montelaro RC. Maturation of the cellular and humoral immune responses to persistent infection in horses by equine infectious anemia virus is a complex and lengthy process.. J Virol 1997 May;71(5):3840-52.
- Sellon DC, Fuller FJ, McGuire TC. The immunopathogenesis of equine infectious anemia virus.. Virus Res 1994 May;32(2):111-38.
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