A naturally processed rat major histocompatibility complex class I-associated viral peptide as target structure of borna disease virus-specific CD8+ T cells

IFN-γ-Based ELISpot as a New Tool to Detect Human Infections with Borna Disease Virus 1 (BoDV-1): A Pilot Study

More than 40 human infections with the zoonotic Borna disease virus 1 (BoDV-1) have been reported to German health authorities from endemic regions in southern and eastern Germany. Diagnosis of a confirmed case is based on the detection of BoDV-1 RNA or BoDV-1 antigen. In parallel, serological assays such as ELISA, immunoblots, and indirect immunofluorescence are in use to detect the seroconversion of Borna virus-reactive IgG in serum or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). As immunopathogenesis in BoDV-1 encephalitis appears to be driven by T cells, we addressed the question of whether an IFN-γ-based ELISpot may further corroborate the diagnosis. For three of seven BoDV-1-infected patients, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) with sufficient quantity and viability were retrieved. For all three patients, counts in the range from 12 to 20 spot forming units (SFU) per 250,000 cells were detected upon the stimulation of PBMC with a peptide pool covering the nucleocapsid protein of BoDV-1. Additionally, individual patients had elevated SFU upon stimulation with a peptide pool covering X or phosphoprotein. Healthy blood donors (n = 30) and transplant recipients (n = 27) were used as a control and validation cohort, respectively. In this pilot study, the BoDV-1 ELISpot detected cellular immune responses in human patients with BoDV-1 infection. Its role as a helpful diagnostic tool needs further investigation in patients with BoDV-1 encephalitis.

MHC Class I Immunopeptidome: Past, Present, and Future

In the 35 years since the revelation that short peptides bound to major histocompatibility complex class I and II molecules are the secret of the major histocompatibility complex–restricted nature of T-cell recognition, there has been enormous progress in characterizing the immunopeptidome, the repertoire of peptide presented for immunosurveillance. Here, the major milestones in the journey are marked, the contribution of proteasome-mediated splicing to the immunopeptidome is discussed, and exciting recent findings relating the immunopeptidome to the translatome revealed by ribosome profiling (RiboSeq) is detailed. Finally, what is needed for continued progress is opined about, which includes the infusion of talented young scientists into the antigen-processing field, currently undergoing a renaissance; thanks in part to the astounding success of T-cell–based cancer immunotherapy.

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Concise history of the discoveries leading to the molecular explanation for the phenomenon of the MHC class I–restricted nature of T-cell recognition.

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Historical review of how MS became a critical technique for defining MHC class I–associated peptides and understanding how peptides are generated from proteins biosynthesized by the antigen-presenting cell.

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Critical review of recent findings linking the translatome to the MHC class I immunopeptidome and the controversy regarding contribution of proteasome-mediated peptide splicing to the immunopeptidome.

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Speculative discussion of the future contributions of MS to understanding the generation of the MHC class I immunopeptidome.

Vaccination to prevent T cell subversion can protect against persistent hepacivirus infection

Efforts to develop an effective vaccine against the hepatitis C virus (HCV; human hepacivirus) have been stymied by a lack of small animal models. Here, we describe an experimental rat model of chronic HCV-related hepacivirus infection and its response to T cell immunization. Immune-competent rats challenged with a rodent hepacivirus (RHV) develop chronic viremia characterized by expansion of non-functional CD8⁺ T cells. Single-dose vaccination with a recombinant adenovirus vector expressing hepacivirus non-structural proteins induces effective immunity in majority of rats. Resolution of infection coincides with a vigorous recall of intrahepatic cellular responses. Host selection of viral CD8 escape variants can subvert vaccine-conferred immunity. Transient depletion of CD8⁺ cells from vaccinated rats prolongs infection, while CD4⁺ cell depletion results in chronic viremia. These results provide direct evidence that co-operation between CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ T cells is important for hepacivirus immunity, and that subversion of responses can be prevented by prophylactic vaccination.

Development of a HCV vaccine is hampered by a lack of appropriate small animal models. Here, Hartlage et al. describe a rat model of hepacivirus persistence and show that persistence can be prevented by vaccination with viral non-structural proteins.

The pathogenesis of proventricular dilatation disease

Bornaviruses cause neurologic diseases in several species of birds, especially parrots, waterfowl and finches. The characteristic lesions observed in these birds include encephalitis and gross dilatation of the anterior stomach — the proventriculus. The disease is thus known as proventricular dilatation disease (PDD). PDD is characterized by extreme proventricular dilatation, blockage of the passage of digesta and consequent death by starvation. There are few clinical resemblances between this and the bornaviral encephalitides observed in mammals. Nevertheless, there are common virus-induced pathogenic pathways shared across this disease spectrum that are explored in this review. Additionally, a review of the literature relating to gastroparesis in humans and the control of gastric mobility in mammals and birds points to several plausible mechanisms by which bornaviral infection may result in extreme proventricular dilatation.

The pathogenesis of bornaviral diseases in mammals

Natural bornavirus infections and their resulting diseases are largely restricted to horses and sheep in Central Europe. The disease also occurs naturally in cats, and can be induced experimentally in laboratory rodents and numerous other mammals. Borna disease virus-1 (BoDV-1), the cause of most cases of mammalian Borna disease, is a negative-stranded RNA virus that replicates within the nucleus of target cells. It causes severe, often lethal, encephalitis in susceptible species. Recent events, especially the discovery of numerous new species of bornaviruses in birds and a report of an acute, lethal bornaviral encephalitis in humans, apparently acquired from squirrels, have revived interest in this remarkable family of viruses. The clinical manifestations of the bornaviral diseases are highly variable. Thus, in addition to acute lethal encephalitis, they can cause persistent neurologic disease associated with diverse behavioral changes. They also cause a severe retinitis resulting in blindness. In this review, we discuss both the pathological lesions observed in mammalian bornaviral disease and the complex pathogenesis of the neurologic disease. Thus infected neurons may be destroyed by T-cell-mediated cytotoxicity. They may die as a result of excessive inflammatory cytokine release from microglia. They may also die as a result of a ‘glutaminergic storm’ due to a failure of infected astrocytes to regulate brain glutamate levels.

Long-term immunity against actual poxviral HLA ligands as identified by differential stable isotope labeling

Viral peptides are presented by HLA class I on infected cells to activate CD8(+) T cells. Several immunogenic peptides have been identified indirectly by epitope prediction and screening of T cell responses to poxviral vectors, including modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA) currently being tested as recombinant or smallpox vaccines. However, for the development of optimal vaccination and immunomonitoring strategies, it is essential to characterize the actual viral HLA ligand repertoire of infected cells. We used an innovative approach to identify naturally processed MVA HLA ligands by differential HPLC-coupled mass spectrometry. We describe 12 viral peptides presented by HLA-A*0201 and 3 by HLA-B*0702. All HLA-A*0201 ligands participated in the memory response of MVA-immune donors, and several were immunogenic in Dryvax vaccinees. Eight epitopes were novel. Viral HLA ligand presentation and viral protein abundance did not correlate. All ligands were expressed early during the viral life cycle, and a pool of three of these mediated stronger protection against a lethal challenge in mice as compared with late epitopes. This highlights the reliability of the comparative mass spectrometry-based technique to identify relevant viral CD8(+) T cell epitopes for optimizing the monitoring of protective immune responses and the development of effective peptide-based vaccines.

Vaccinia peptides eluted from HLA-DR1 isolated from virus-infected cells are recognized by CD4+ T cells from a vaccinated donor

Class II MHC proteins bind peptides and present them to CD4 (+) T cells as part of the immune system's surveillance of bodily tissues for foreign and pathogenic material. Antigen processing and presentation pathways have been characterized in detail in normal cells, but there is little known about the actual viral peptides that are presented to CD4 (+) T cells that signal infection. In this study, two-dimensional LC-MS/MS was used to identify vaccinia virus-derived peptides among the hundreds to thousands of peptide antigens bound to the human class II MHC protein HLA-DR1 on the surface of vaccinia virus-infected cells. The peptides, derived from the I6L, D6R, and A10L viral proteins, were 15 residues in length, bound efficiently to HLA-DR1 as synthetic peptides, and were recognized by vaccinia-specific CD4 (+) T cells obtained from an immunized donor.

Identification of HLA-DR-bound peptides presented by human bronchoalveolar lavage cells in sarcoidosis

Sarcoidosis is an inflammatory disease of unknown etiology, most commonly affecting the lungs. Activated CD4+ T cells accumulate in the lungs of individuals with sarcoidosis and are considered to be of central importance for inflammation. We have previously shown that Scandinavian sarcoidosis patients expressing the HLA-DR allele DRB1*0301 are characterized by large accumulations in the lungs of CD4+ T cells expressing the TCR AV2S3 gene segment. This association afforded us a unique opportunity to identify a sarcoidosis-specific antigen recognized by AV2S3+ T cells. To identify candidates for the postulated sarcoidosis-specific antigen, lung cells from 16 HLA-DRB1*0301pos patients were obtained by bronchoalveolar lavage. HLA-DR molecules were affinity purified and bound peptides acid eluted. Subsequently, peptides were separated by reversed-phase HPLC and analyzed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. We identified 78 amino acid sequences from self proteins presented in the lungs of sarcoidosis patients, some of which were well-known autoantigens such as vimentin and ATP synthase. For the first time, to our knowledge, we have identified HLA-bound peptides presented in vivo during an inflammatory condition. This approach can be extended to characterize HLA-bound peptides in various autoimmune settings.

Tracking antigen-specific CD8+ T cells in the rat using MHC class I multimers

Studies of the quantitative and qualitative aspects of anti-microbial, anti-tumoral or autoreactive immune responses have been greatly facilitated by the possibility to stain antigen-specific CD8(+) T cells using fluorescently labeled multimeric major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I/peptide complexes. So far, this technology has been developed for human and mouse, but not yet in the rat. Here, we describe the generation of the first rat MHC multimer. We produced a rat RT1(l) Pro5 MHC Pentamer combined with the immunodominant peptide for Borna disease virus (BDV), in order to study the characteristics of the antiviral CD8(+) T cell response. BDV is an RNA virus that can cause persistent infections of the central nervous system (CNS), often associated with prominent brain inflammation. In adult Lewis rats, of the RT1(l) MHC haplotype, BDV infection leads to severe immune-mediated neurological symptoms. The pathogenic role of the immune response is due primarily to antiviral CD8(+) T cells, many of them being specific for an immunodominant epitope located in the BDV nucleoprotein (N(230-238)). Ex vivo flow cytometry analyses revealed that 3 to 12% of CD8(+) T cells found in the brains of BDV-infected rats stained positively with the BDV-Pentamer. Interestingly, the frequency of Pentamer-positive cells increased up to 3.3 fold after a short resting period in culture. Virus-specific CD8(+) T cells were mainly detected in the brain and were virtually undetectable in peripheral lymphoid organs. This novel rat Pro5 MHC Pentamer represents an attractive tool for the detection, isolation and characterization of antigen-specific CD8(+) T cell responses in the rat.

Contribution of mass spectrometry-based proteomics to immunology

Antigen processing forwards various information about the cellular status and the proteome to the cell surface for scrutiny by the cellular immune system. Thus the repertoire of major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-bound peptides and the MHC ligandome, indirectly mirrors the proteome in order to make alterations instantly detectable and, if necessary, to oppose them. Mass spectrometry is the core technology for analysis of both proteome and MHC ligandome and has evoked several strategies to gain qualitative and quantitative insight into the MHC-presented peptide repertoire. After immunoaffinity purification of detergent-solubilized peptide-MHC complexes followed by acid elution of peptides, liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry is applied to determine individual peptide sequences and, thus, allow qualitative characterization of the MHC-bound repertoire. Differential quantification based on stable isotope labeling enables the relative comparison of two samples, such as diseased and healthy tissue. Targeted searches for certain natural ligands, such as the 'predict-calibrate-detect' strategy, include motif-based epitope prediction and calibration with reference peptides. Thus, various approaches are now available for exposing and understanding the intricacies of the MHC ligand repertoire. Analysis of differences in the MHC ligandome under distinct conditions contributes to our understanding of basic cellular processes, but also enables the formulation of immunodiagnostic or immunotherapeutic strategies.

Constitutive activation of the transcription factor NF-kappaB results in impaired borna disease virus replication

The inducible transcription factor NF-kappaB is commonly activated upon RNA virus infection and is a key player in the induction and regulation of the innate immune response. Borna disease virus (BDV) is a neurotropic negative-strand RNA virus, which replicates in the nucleus of the infected cell and causes a persistent infection that can lead to severe neurological disorders. To investigate the activation and function of NF-kappaB in BDV-infected cells, we stably transfected the highly susceptible neuronal guinea pig cell line CRL with a constitutively active (IKK EE) or dominant-negative (IKK KD) regulator of the IKK/NF-kappaB signaling pathway. While BDV titers were not affected in cells with impaired NF-kappaB signaling, the expression of an activated mutant of IkappaB kinase (IKK) resulted in a strong reduction in the intracellular viral titer in CRL cells. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays and luciferase reporter gene assays revealed that neither NF-kappaB nor interferon regulatory factors (IRFs) were activated upon acute BDV infection of wild-type or vector-transfected CRL cells. However, when IKK EE-transfected cells were used as target cells for BDV infection, DNA binding to an IRF3/7-responsive DNA element was detectable. Since IRF3/7 is a key player in the antiviral interferon response, our data indicate that enhanced NF-kappaB activity in the presence of BDV leads to the induction of antiviral pathways resulting in reduced virus titers. Consistent with this observation, the anti-BDV activity of NF-kappaB preferentially spread to areas of the brains of infected rats where activated NF-kappaB was not detectable.

Vaccine-induced protection against Borna disease in wild-type and perforin-deficient mice

Borna disease virus (BDV) can persistently infect the central nervous system and induce CD8+ T-cell-mediated neurological disease in MRL mice. To determine whether specific immune priming would prevent disease, a prime-boost immunization protocol was established in which intramuscular injection of a recombinant parapoxvirus expressing BDV nucleoprotein (BDV-N) was followed by intraperitoneal infection with vaccinia virus expressing BDV-N. Immunized wild-type and perforin-deficient mice remained healthy after intracerebral infection with BDV and contained almost no virus in the brain at 5 weeks post-challenge. Immunization failed to induce resistance against BDV in mice lacking mature CD8+ T cells. Immunization of perforin-deficient mice with a poxvirus vector expressing mutant BDV-N lacking the known CD8+ T-cell epitope did not efficiently block multiplication of BDV in the brain and did not prevent neurological disease, indicating that vaccine-induced immunity to BDV in wild-type and perforin-deficient mice resulted from the action of CD8+ T cells.

Prevention of virus persistence and protection against immunopathology after Borna disease virus infection of the brain by a novel Orf virus recombinant

The Parapoxvirus Orf virus represents a promising candidate for novel vector vaccines due to its immune modulating properties even in nonpermissive hosts such as mouse or rat. The highly attenuated Orf virus strain D1701 was used to generate a recombinant virus (D1701-VrVp40) expressing nucleoprotein p40 of Borna disease virus, which represents a major antigen for the induction of a Borna disease virus-specific humoral and cellular immune response. Infection with Borna disease virus leads to distinct neurological symptoms mediated by the invasion of activated specific CD8+ T cells into the infected brain. Usually, Borna disease virus is not cleared from the brain but rather persists in neural cells. In the present study we show for the first time that intramuscular application of the D1701-VrVp40 recombinant protected rats against Borna disease, and importantly, virus clearance from the infected brain was demonstrated in immunized animals. Even 4 and 8 months after the last immunization, all immunized animals were still protected against the disease. Initial characterization of the immune cells attracted to the infected brain areas suggested that D1701-VrVp40 mediated induction of B cells and antibody-producing plasma cells as well as T cells. These findings suggest the induction of various defense mechanisms against Borna disease virus. First studies on the role of antiviral cytokines indicated that D1701-VrVp40 immunization did not lead to an enhanced early response of gamma or alpha interferon or tumor necrosis factor alpha. Collectively, this study describes the potential of the Orf virus vector system in mediating long-lasting, protective antiviral immunity and eliminating this persistent virus infection without provoking massive neuronal damage.

Precursors of Borna disease virus-specific T cells in secondary lymphatic tissue of experimentally infected rats

Borna disease in rats represents an experimental model to study the immunopathological role of T cells in central nervous system disease. Adoptive transfer experiments were performed to investigate homing properties of T cells that infiltrate the brains of infected animals. Lymphocytes isolated from the brains of diseased rats were labelled with 5,6-carboxyfluorescein diacetate succinimidyl ester (CFSE) and transferred into immunosuppressed infected recipients. In recipient rats displaying neurological disease, labeled lymphocytes were demonstrated in the vicinity of brain cell lesions, suggesting that the neuronal destruction was dependent on the presence of transferred lymphocytes. Furthermore, the presence of virus-specific cytotoxic T cells was scrutinized in secondary lymphatic tissue and the functional activity of lymphocytes isolated from spleens, cervical lymph nodes, and mesenteric lymph nodes of infected animals was tested immediately after isolation and after in vitro restimulation. The data presented here indicate that precursors of Borna disease virus (BDV)-specific CD8(+) T cells are present and cytotoxic activity was demonstrated after in vitro cocultivation with infected cells in cervical lymph nodes and spleens but not in mesenteric lymphoid tissue. Adoptive transfer of in vitro restimulated T cells induced alterations in BDV-infected, immunosuppressed rats that resemble the well-defined clinical symptoms and neuropathology of Borna disease. This report provides for the first time formal evidence that virus-specific cytotoxic T cells are primed in the periphery after BDV infection, a disease that exclusively manifests itself in the central nervous system.

Two major histocompatibility complex class I-restricted epitopes of the Borna disease virus p10 protein identified by cytotoxic T lymphocytes induced by DNA-based immunization

Borna disease virus (BDV) infection of Lewis rats is the most studied animal model of Borna disease, an often fatal encephalomyelitis. In this experimental model, BDV-specific CD8(+) cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) play a prominent role in the immunopathogenesis of infection by the noncytolytic, persistent BDV. Of the six open reading frames of BDV, CTLs to BDV X (p10) and the L-polymerase have never been studied. In this study, we used plasmid immunization to investigate the CTL response to BDV X and N. Plasmid-based immunization was a potent CTL inducer in Lewis rats. Anti-X CTLs were primed by a single injection of the p10 cDNA. Two codominant p10 epitopes, M(1)SSDLRLTLL(10) and T(8)LLELVRRL(16), associated with the RT1.A(l) major histocompatibility complex class I molecules of the Lewis rats, were identified. In addition, immunization with a BDV p40-expressing plasmid confirmed the previously reported RT1.A(l)-restricted A(230)SYAQMTTY(238) peptide as the CTL target for BDV N. In contrast to the CTL responses, plasmid vaccination was a poor inducer of an antibody response to p10. Three injections of a recombinant eukaryotic expression plasmid of BDV p10 were needed to generate a weak anti-p10 immunoglobulin M response. However, the antibody response could be optimized by a protein boost after priming with cDNA.

High-dose Borna disease virus infection induces a nucleoprotein-specific cytotoxic T-lymphocyte response and prevention of immunopathology

Experimental Borna disease virus (BDV) infection of rats and natural infection of horses and sheep leads to severe central nervous system disease based on immunopathological pathways. The virus replicates slowly, and the cellular immune response results in immunopathology. CD8(+) T cells exert effector cell functions, and their activity results in the destruction of virus-infected cells. Previously, Oldach and colleagues (D. Oldach, M. C. Zink, J. M. Pyper, S. Herzog, R. Rott, O. Narayan, and J. E. Clements, Virology 206:426-434, 1995) have reported protection against Borna disease after inoculation of high-dose cell-adapted BDV. Here we show that the outcome of the infection, i.e., immunopathology versus protection, is simply dependent on the amount of virus used for infection. High-dose BDV (10(6) FFU) triggers an early virus-specific reaction of the immune system, as demonstrated by strong cellular and humoral responses. In particular, the early presence and function of nucleoprotein-specific CD8(+) T cells could be demonstrated in the brain. We present evidence that in a noncytolytic and usually persistent virus infection, high-dose input virus mediates early control of the pathogen due to an efficient induction of an antiviral immune mechanism. From these data, we conclude that immune reactivity, in particular the cytotoxic T-cell response, determines whether the virus is controlled with prevention of the ensuing immunopathological disease or whether a persistent infection is established.