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Mallikarjun A, Swartz B, Kane SA, Gibison M, Wilson I, Collins A, Moore MB, Charendoff I, Ellis J, Murphy LA, Nichols T, Otto CM. Canine detection of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in laboratory and field settings. Prion 2023; 17:16-28. [PMID: 36740856 PMCID: PMC9904315 DOI: 10.1080/19336896.2023.2169519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a fatal transmissible spongiform encephalopathy that affects both free-ranging and farmed cervid species, including mule deer, white-tailed deer, and elk (Odocoileus hemionus, Odocoileus virginianus, and Cervus canadensis). Due to the long incubation period and variability of clinical signs, CWD can expand and spread to new areas before they reach diagnostically detectable levels. Antemortem testing methods currently available can be difficult to obtain and to be applied to the large numbers required for adequate surveillance. However, key volatile biomarkers could be harnessed for non-invasive antemortem surveillance. Detection dogs are the most effective tool currently available for volatile detection; dogs can effectively complete wildlife surveys at rates surpassing that of humans. This study is the first to demonstrate that trained detection dogs can be used as an antemortem test for CWD. First, we trained three dogs to differentiate between CWD-positive and CWD-negative white-tailed deer faeces in a laboratory setting. Dogs spent significantly more time at the positive sample than the negative samples, suggesting that they differentiated between the positive and negative volatile signatures. We then trained the same dogs to search for CWD-positive faecal samples in a more naturalistic field setting. In the field, dogs found 8/11 CWD-positive samples and had an average false detection rate of 13%. These results suggest that dogs can be trained to differentiate CWD-positive faeces from CWD-negative faeces in both laboratory and field settings. Future studies will compare canine accuracy to other antemortem methods, as well as improved canine training methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amritha Mallikarjun
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Penn Vet Working Dog Center, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA,CONTACT Amritha Mallikarjun School of Veterinary Medicine, Penn Vet Working Dog Center, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA
| | - Ben Swartz
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Penn Vet Working Dog Center, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA
| | - Sarah A. Kane
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Penn Vet Working Dog Center, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA
| | - Michelle Gibison
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Wildlife Futures Program, New Bolton Center, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA
| | - Isabella Wilson
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Penn Vet Working Dog Center, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA
| | - Amanda Collins
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Penn Vet Working Dog Center, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA
| | - Madison B. Moore
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Penn Vet Working Dog Center, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA
| | - Ila Charendoff
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Penn Vet Working Dog Center, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA
| | - Julie Ellis
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Wildlife Futures Program, New Bolton Center, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA
| | - Lisa A. Murphy
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Wildlife Futures Program, New Bolton Center, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA
| | - Tracy Nichols
- United States Department of Agriculture, Washington D.C, WA, USA
| | - Cynthia M. Otto
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Penn Vet Working Dog Center, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA,School of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Clinical Sciences and Advanced Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA
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2
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Benavente R, Reed JH, Lockwood M, Morales R. PMCA screening of retropharyngeal lymph nodes in white-tailed deer and comparisons with ELISA and IHC. Sci Rep 2023; 13:20171. [PMID: 37978312 PMCID: PMC10656533 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-47105-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion disease affecting cervids. CWD diagnosis is conducted through enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) in retropharyngeal lymph nodes. Unfortunately, these techniques have limited sensitivity against the biomarker (CWD-prions). Two in vitro prion amplification techniques, real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC) and protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA), have shown promise in detecting CWD-prions in tissues and bodily fluids. Recent studies have demonstrated that RT-QuIC yields similar results compared to ELISA and IHC. Here, we analyzed 1003 retropharyngeal lymph nodes (RPLNs) from Texas white-tailed deer. PMCA detected CWD at a higher rate compared to ELISA/IHC, identified different prion strains, and revealed the presence of CWD-prions in places with no previous history. These findings suggest that PMCA exhibits greater sensitivity than current standard techniques and could be valuable for rapid and strain-specific CWD detection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebeca Benavente
- Department of Neurology, McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - J Hunter Reed
- Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Kerrville, TX, USA
| | | | - Rodrigo Morales
- Department of Neurology, McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA.
- Centro Integrativo de Biologia y Quimica Aplicada (CIBQA), Universidad Bernardo O'Higgins, Santiago, Chile.
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3
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Chang SC, Hannaoui S, Arifin MI, Huang YH, Tang X, Wille H, Gilch S. Propagation of PrP Sc in mice reveals impact of aggregate composition on prion disease pathogenesis. Commun Biol 2023; 6:1162. [PMID: 37964018 PMCID: PMC10645910 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-05541-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2022] [Accepted: 11/03/2023] [Indexed: 11/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Infectious prions consist of PrPSc, a misfolded, aggregation-prone isoform of the host's prion protein. PrPSc assemblies encode distinct biochemical and biological properties. They harbor a specific profile of PrPSc species, from small oligomers to fibrils in different ratios, where the highest infectivity aligns with oligomeric particles. To investigate the impact of PrPSc aggregate complexity on prion propagation, biochemical properties, and disease pathogenesis, we fractionated elk prions by sedimentation velocity centrifugation, followed by sub-passages of individual fractions in cervidized mice. Upon first passage, different fractions generated PrPSc with distinct biochemical, biophysical, and neuropathological profiles. Notably, low or high molecular weight PrPSc aggregates caused different clinical signs of hyperexcitability or lethargy, respectively, which were retained over passage, whereas other properties converged. Our findings suggest that PrPSc quaternary structure determines an initial selection of a specific replication environment, resulting in transmissible features that are independent of PrPSc biochemical and biophysical properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheng Chun Chang
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Samia Hannaoui
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Maria Immaculata Arifin
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Yuan-Hung Huang
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Xinli Tang
- Department of Biochemistry, Center for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Holger Wille
- Department of Biochemistry, Center for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Sabine Gilch
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
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4
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Spitzer R, Åström C, Felton A, Eriksson M, Meisingset EL, Solberg EJ, Rolandsen CM. Coprophagy in moose: A first observation. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e9757. [PMID: 36699571 PMCID: PMC9852938 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9757] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2022] [Revised: 01/04/2023] [Accepted: 01/06/2023] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Coprophagy, the eating of feces, has been documented in a wide range of species but appears to be rare or difficult to detect in deer (Cervidae). Here, we report the first observation of coprophagy in moose Alces alces, which was recorded using camera collars on free-ranging moose in Norway. The footage shows an instance of allocoprophagy by an adult female moose in spring (May). We summarize the current knowledge about coprophagy in deer and briefly discuss potential drivers and possible implications for disease transmission. Further research is needed to determine whether coprophagy occurs frequently in moose and whether this behavior is positive (e.g., increased intake of nutrients) or negative (increased infection by parasites or pathogens).
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert Spitzer
- Department of Wildlife, Fish and Environmental StudiesSwedish University of Agricultural SciencesUmeåSweden
| | - Cecilia Åström
- Department of Wildlife, Fish and Environmental StudiesSwedish University of Agricultural SciencesUmeåSweden
| | - Annika Felton
- Southern Swedish Forest Research CentreSwedish University of Agricultural SciencesAlnarpSweden
| | - Monica Eriksson
- Department of Wildlife, Fish and Environmental StudiesSwedish University of Agricultural SciencesUmeåSweden
| | - Erling L. Meisingset
- Department of Forestry and Forestry ResourcesNorwegian Institute of Bioeconomy ResearchTingvollNorway
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Kraft CN, Denkers ND, Mathiason CK, Hoover EA. Longitudinal detection of prion shedding in nasal secretions of CWD-infected white-tailed deer. J Gen Virol 2023; 104:001825. [PMID: 36748533 PMCID: PMC10233467 DOI: 10.1099/jgv.0.001825] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2022] [Accepted: 12/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is an emergent prion disease spreading in cervid populations in North America, South Korea and Scandinavia. Rapid detection of CWD prions shed by live animals using minimally invasive methods remains an important need. Previous studies in deer, elk and hamsters have demonstrated prion replication in the nasal olfactory mucosa, yet the temporal profile of CWD prion shedding in nasal secretions has not been well characterized. Here we report nasal prion shedding in 18 deer orally exposed to low doses of CWD prions and monitored longitudinally by several parameters. Serially collected nasal swabs were assayed for CWD prion seeding activity using iron oxide magnetic extraction and real-time quaking-induced conversion (IOME RT-QuIC). These findings were correlated with the results from longitudinal tonsil biopsies, terminal tissues and PRNP genotype. We detected nasal prion shedding 3-16 months after the first positive tonsil biopsy in ten of the 18 deer; detectable shedding persisted thereafter in nine of the ten animals. Surprisingly, nasal swabs were negative in eight deer, even though all were CWD-infected as determined by tonsil biopsies and terminal tissue assays. Nasal shedding was detected more often in deer that were homozygous for glycine at codon 96, and those that were near or demonstrating symptoms of clinical disease shed earlier and more frequently, irrespective of prion exposure dose. The results of this study demonstrate nasal shedding of CWD prions that can be detected using minimally invasive nasal swab sampling and RT-QuIC analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caitlyn N. Kraft
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Nathaniel D. Denkers
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Candace K. Mathiason
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Edward A. Hoover
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
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Koyama S, Noguchi H, Yagita K, Hamasaki H, Shijo M, Yoshimura M, Inoshita K, Sasagasako N, Honda H. Characteristic distribution and molecular properties of normal cellular prion protein in human endocrine and exocrine tissues. Sci Rep 2022; 12:15289. [PMID: 36088465 PMCID: PMC9464206 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-19632-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2022] [Accepted: 08/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
AbstractPrion disease is an infectious and fatal neurodegenerative disease. Human prion disease autopsy studies have revealed abnormal prion protein (PrPSc) deposits in the central nervous system and systemic organs. In deer, chronic wasting disease has also become a global problem, with PrPSc in saliva and feces. Therefore, understanding normal cellular prion proteins (PrPc) characteristics in human systemic organs is important since they could be a PrPSc source. This study used western blotting and immunohistochemistry to investigate endocrine and exocrine tissues, such as the human pituitary, adrenal, submandibular glands and the pancreas. All tissues had 30–40 kDa PrP signals, which is a slightly higher molecular weight than normal brain tissue. Most cytoplasmic PrP-positive adenohypophyseal cells were immunopositive for nuclear pituitary-specific positive transcription factor 1. The adrenal medulla and islet cells of the pancreas were PrP-positive and colocalized with chromogranin A. The duct epithelium in the submandibular gland and pancreas were immunopositive for PrP. This study reports the characteristic molecular properties and detailed tissue localization of PrPc in endocrine and exocrine tissues, which is important for infection control and diagnosis.
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Hanley BJ, Carstensen M, Walsh DP, Christensen SA, Storm DJ, Booth JG, Guinness J, Them CE, Ahmed MS, Schuler KL. Informing Surveillance through the Characterization of Outbreak Potential of Chronic Wasting Disease in White-Tailed Deer. Ecol Modell 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2022.110054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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Transmission, Strain Diversity, and Zoonotic Potential of Chronic Wasting Disease. Viruses 2022; 14:v14071390. [PMID: 35891371 PMCID: PMC9316268 DOI: 10.3390/v14071390] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2022] [Revised: 06/11/2022] [Accepted: 06/12/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion disease affecting several species of captive and free-ranging cervids. In the past few decades, CWD has been spreading uncontrollably, mostly in North America, resulting in a high increase of CWD incidence but also a substantially higher number of geographical regions affected. The massive increase in CWD poses risks at several levels, including contamination of the environment, transmission to animals cohabiting with cervids, and more importantly, a putative transmission to humans. In this review, I will describe the mechanisms and routes responsible for the efficient transmission of CWD, the strain diversity of natural CWD, its spillover and zoonotic potential and strategies to minimize the CWD threat.
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Islam MR, Bulut U, Feria-Arroyo TP, Tyshenko MG, Oraby T. Modeling the Impact of Climate Change on Cervid Chronic Wasting Disease in Semi-Arid South Texas. FRONTIERS IN EPIDEMIOLOGY 2022; 2:889280. [PMID: 38455276 PMCID: PMC10910938 DOI: 10.3389/fepid.2022.889280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2022] [Accepted: 04/01/2022] [Indexed: 03/09/2024]
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a spongiform encephalopathy disease caused by the transmission of infectious prion agents. CWD is a fatal disease that affects wild and farmed cervids in North America with few cases reported overseas. Social interaction of cervids, feeding practices by wildlife keepers and climate effects on the environmental carrying capacity all can affect CWD transmission in deer. Wildlife deer game hunting is economically important to the semi-arid South Texas region and is affected by climate change. In this paper, we model and investigate the effect of climate change on the spread of CWD using typical climate scenarios. We use a system of impulsive differential equations to depict the transmission of CWD between different age groups and gender of cervids. The carrying capacity and contact rates are assumed to depend on climate. Due to the polygamy of bucks, we use mating rates that depend on the number of bucks and does. We analyze the stability of the model and use simulations to study the effect of harvesting (culling) on eradicating the disease, given the climate of South Texas. We use typical climate change scenarios based on published data and our assumptions. For the climate indicator, we calculated and utilized the Standard Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI). We found that climate change might hinder the efforts to reduce and effectively manage CWD as it becomes endemic to South Texas. The model shows the extinction of the deer population from this region is a likely outcome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Md Rafiul Islam
- Department of Mathematics, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
| | - Ummugul Bulut
- Department of Mathematical, Physical, and Engineering Sciences, Texas A&M University-San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States
| | | | | | - Tamer Oraby
- School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Edinburg, TX, United States
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Detection of Chronic Wasting Disease Prions in Fetal Tissues of Free-Ranging White-Tailed Deer. Viruses 2021; 13:v13122430. [PMID: 34960698 PMCID: PMC8705995 DOI: 10.3390/v13122430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2021] [Revised: 11/15/2021] [Accepted: 11/30/2021] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The transmission of chronic wasting disease (CWD) has largely been attributed to contact with infectious prions shed in excretions (saliva, urine, feces, blood) by direct animal-to-animal exposure or indirect contact with the environment. Less-well studied has been the role that mother-to-offspring transmission may play in the facile transmission of CWD, and whether mother-to-offspring transmission before birth may contribute to the extensive spread of CWD. We thereby focused on a population of free-ranging white-tailed deer from West Virginia, USA, in which CWD has been detected. Fetal tissues, ranging from 113 to 158 days of gestation, were harvested from the uteri of CWD+ dams in the asymptomatic phase of infection. Using serial protein misfolding amplification (sPMCA), we detected evidence of prion seeds in 7 of 14 fetuses (50%) from 7 of 9 pregnancies (78%), with the earliest detection at 113 gestational days. This is the first report of CWD detection in free ranging white-tailed deer fetal tissues. Further investigation within cervid populations across North America will help define the role and impact of mother-to-offspring vertical transmission of CWD.
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Tranulis MA, Gavier-Widén D, Våge J, Nöremark M, Korpenfelt SL, Hautaniemi M, Pirisinu L, Nonno R, Benestad SL. Chronic wasting disease in Europe: new strains on the horizon. Acta Vet Scand 2021; 63:48. [PMID: 34823556 PMCID: PMC8613970 DOI: 10.1186/s13028-021-00606-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2021] [Accepted: 09/30/2021] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are fatal neurodegenerative disorders with known natural occurrence in humans and a few other mammalian species. The diseases are experimentally transmissible, and the agent is derived from the host-encoded cellular prion protein (PrPC), which is misfolded into a pathogenic conformer, designated PrPSc (scrapie). Aggregates of PrPSc molecules, constitute proteinaceous infectious particles, known as prions. Classical scrapie in sheep and goats and chronic wasting disease (CWD) in cervids are known to be infectious under natural conditions. In CWD, infected animals can shed prions via bodily excretions, allowing direct host-to-host transmission or indirectly via prion-contaminated environments. The robustness of prions means that transmission via the latter route can be highly successful and has meant that limiting the spread of CWD has proven difficult. In 2016, CWD was diagnosed for the first time in Europe, in reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) and European moose (Alces alces). Both were diagnosed in Norway, and, subsequently, more cases were detected in a semi-isolated wild reindeer population in the Nordfjella area, in which the first case was identified. This population was culled, and all reindeer (approximately 2400) were tested for CWD; 18 positive animals, in addition to the first diagnosed case, were found. After two years and around 25,900 negative tests from reindeer (about 6500 from wild and 19,400 from semi-domesticated) in Norway, a new case was diagnosed in a wild reindeer buck on Hardangervidda, south of the Nordfjella area, in 2020. Further cases of CWD were also identified in moose, with a total of eight in Norway, four in Sweden, and two cases in Finland. The mean age of these cases is 14.7 years, and the pathological features are different from North American CWD and from the Norwegian reindeer cases, resembling atypical prion diseases such as Nor98/atypical scrapie and H- and L-forms of BSE. In this review, these moose cases are referred to as atypical CWD. In addition, two cases were diagnosed in red deer (Cervus elaphus) in Norway. The emergence of CWD in Europe is a threat to European cervid populations, and, potentially, a food-safety challenge, calling for a swift, evidence-based response. Here, we review data on surveillance, epidemiology, and disease characteristics, including prion strain features of the newly identified European CWD agents.
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Kincaid AE. The Role of the Nasal Cavity in the Pathogenesis of Prion Diseases. Viruses 2021; 13:v13112287. [PMID: 34835094 PMCID: PMC8621399 DOI: 10.3390/v13112287] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2021] [Revised: 11/09/2021] [Accepted: 11/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases, or transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), are a class of fatal neurodegenerative diseases caused by the entry and spread of infectious prion proteins (PrPSc) in the central nervous system (CNS). These diseases are endemic to certain mammalian animal species that use their sense of smell for a variety of purposes and therefore expose their nasal cavity (NC) to PrPSc in the environment. Prion diseases that affect humans are either inherited due to a mutation of the gene that encodes the prion protein, acquired by exposure to contaminated tissues or medical devices, or develop without a known cause (referred to as sporadic). The purpose of this review is to identify components of the NC that are involved in prion transport and to summarize the evidence that the NC serves as a route of entry (centripetal spread) and/or a source of shedding (centrifugal spread) of PrPSc, and thus plays a role in the pathogenesis of the TSEs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony E Kincaid
- Departments of Pharmacy Sciences and Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Creighton University, 2500 California Plaza, Omaha, NE 68178, USA
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Gallardo MJ, Delgado FO. Animal prion diseases: A review of intraspecies transmission. Open Vet J 2021; 11:707-723. [PMID: 35070868 PMCID: PMC8770171 DOI: 10.5455/ovj.2021.v11.i4.23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Accepted: 11/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Animal prion diseases are a group of neurodegenerative, transmissible, and fatal disorders that affect several animal species. The causative agent, prion, is a misfolded isoform of normal cellular prion protein, which is found in cells with higher concentration in the central nervous system. This review explored the sources of infection and different natural transmission routes of animal prion diseases in susceptible populations. Chronic wasting disease in cervids and scrapie in small ruminants are prion diseases capable of maintaining themselves in susceptible populations through horizontal and vertical transmission. The other prion animal diseases can only be transmitted through food contaminated with prions. Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) is the only animal prion disease considered zoonotic. However, due to its inability to transmit within a population, it could be controlled. The emergence of atypical cases of scrapie and BSE, even the recent report of prion disease in camels, demonstrates the importance of understanding the transmission routes of prion diseases to take measures to control them and to assess the risks to human and animal health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mauro Julián Gallardo
- Instituto de Patobiología Veterinaria, IPVet, UEDD INTA-CONICET, Hurlingham, Argentina
- Cátedra de Enfermedades Infecciosas, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Fernando Oscar Delgado
- Instituto de Patobiología Veterinaria, IPVet, UEDD INTA-CONICET, Hurlingham, Argentina
- Facultad de Cs. Agrarias y Veterinarias, Universidad del Salvador, Pilar, Argentina
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Post-Translational Protein Deimination Signatures in Plasma and Plasma EVs of Reindeer ( Rangifer tarandus). BIOLOGY 2021; 10:biology10030222. [PMID: 33805829 PMCID: PMC7998281 DOI: 10.3390/biology10030222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2021] [Revised: 03/05/2021] [Accepted: 03/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Simple Summary Reindeer are an important wild and domesticated species of the Arctic, Northern Europe, Siberia and North America. As reindeer have developed various strategies to adapt to extreme environments, this makes them an interesting species for studies into diversity of immune and metabolic functions in the animal kingdom. Importantly, while reindeer carry natural infections caused by viruses (including coronaviruses), bacteria and parasites, they can also act as carriers for transmitting such diseases to other animals and humans, so called zoonosis. Reindeer are also affected by chronic wasting disease, a neuronal disease caused by prions, similar to scrapie in sheep, mad cows disease in cattle and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans. The current study assessed a specific protein modification called deimination/citrullination, which can change how proteins function and allow them to take on different roles in health and disease processes. Profiling of deiminated proteins in reindeer showed that many important pathways for immune defenses, prion diseases and metabolism are enriched in deiminated proteins, both in plasma, as well as in plasma extracellular vesicles. This study provides a platform for the development of novel biomarkers to assess wild life health status and factors relating to zoonotic disease. Abstract The reindeer (caribou) Rangifer tarandus is a Cervidae in the order Artiodactyla. Reindeer are sedentary and migratory populations with circumpolar distribution in the Arctic, Northern Europe, Siberia and North America. Reindeer are an important wild and domesticated species, and have developed various adaptive strategies to extreme environments. Importantly, deer have also been identified to be putative zoonotic carriers, including for parasites, prions and coronavirus. Therefore, novel insights into immune-related markers are of considerable interest. Peptidylarginine deiminases (PADs) are a phylogenetically conserved enzyme family which causes post-translational protein deimination by converting arginine into citrulline in target proteins. This affects protein function in health and disease. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) participate in cellular communication, in physiological and pathological processes, via transfer of cargo material, and their release is partly regulated by PADs. This study assessed deiminated protein and EV profile signatures in plasma from sixteen healthy wild female reindeer, collected in Iceland during screening for parasites and chronic wasting disease. Reindeer plasma EV profiles showed a poly-dispersed distribution from 30 to 400 nm and were positive for phylogenetically conserved EV-specific markers. Deiminated proteins were isolated from whole plasma and plasma EVs, identified by proteomic analysis and protein interaction networks assessed by KEGG and GO analysis. This revealed a large number of deimination-enriched pathways for immunity and metabolism, with some differences between whole plasma and EVs. While shared KEGG pathways for whole plasma and plasma EVs included complement and coagulation pathways, KEGG pathways specific for EVs were for protein digestion and absorption, platelet activation, amoebiasis, the AGE–RAGE signaling pathway in diabetic complications, ECM receptor interaction, the relaxin signaling pathway and the estrogen signaling pathway. KEGG pathways specific for whole plasma were pertussis, ferroptosis, SLE, thyroid hormone synthesis, phagosome, Staphylococcus aureus infection, vitamin digestion and absorption, and prion disease. Further differences were also found between molecular function and biological processes GO pathways when comparing functional STRING networks for deiminated proteins in EVs, compared with deiminated proteins in whole plasma. This study highlights deiminated proteins and EVs as candidate biomarkers for reindeer health and may provide information on regulation of immune pathways in physiological and pathological processes, including neurodegenerative (prion) disease and zoonosis.
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Arifin MI, Hannaoui S, Chang SC, Thapa S, Schatzl HM, Gilch S. Cervid Prion Protein Polymorphisms: Role in Chronic Wasting Disease Pathogenesis. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22052271. [PMID: 33668798 PMCID: PMC7956812 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22052271] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2021] [Revised: 02/21/2021] [Accepted: 02/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion disease found in both free-ranging and farmed cervids. Susceptibility of these animals to CWD is governed by various exogenous and endogenous factors. Past studies have demonstrated that polymorphisms within the prion protein (PrP) sequence itself affect an animal's susceptibility to CWD. PrP polymorphisms can modulate CWD pathogenesis in two ways: the ability of the endogenous prion protein (PrPC) to convert into infectious prions (PrPSc) or it can give rise to novel prion strains. In vivo studies in susceptible cervids, complemented by studies in transgenic mice expressing the corresponding cervid PrP sequence, show that each polymorphism has distinct effects on both PrPC and PrPSc. It is not entirely clear how these polymorphisms are responsible for these effects, but in vitro studies suggest they play a role in modifying PrP epitopes crucial for PrPC to PrPSc conversion and determining PrPC stability. PrP polymorphisms are unique to one or two cervid species and most confer a certain degree of reduced susceptibility to CWD. However, to date, there are no reports of polymorphic cervid PrP alleles providing absolute resistance to CWD. Studies on polymorphisms have focused on those found in CWD-endemic areas, with the hope that understanding the role of an animal's genetics in CWD can help to predict, contain, or prevent transmission of CWD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Immaculata Arifin
- Department of Comparative Biology & Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada; (M.I.A.); (S.H.); (S.C.C.); (S.T.); (H.M.S.)
- Calgary Prion Research Unit, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Samia Hannaoui
- Department of Comparative Biology & Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada; (M.I.A.); (S.H.); (S.C.C.); (S.T.); (H.M.S.)
- Calgary Prion Research Unit, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Sheng Chun Chang
- Department of Comparative Biology & Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada; (M.I.A.); (S.H.); (S.C.C.); (S.T.); (H.M.S.)
- Calgary Prion Research Unit, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Simrika Thapa
- Department of Comparative Biology & Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada; (M.I.A.); (S.H.); (S.C.C.); (S.T.); (H.M.S.)
- Calgary Prion Research Unit, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Hermann M. Schatzl
- Department of Comparative Biology & Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada; (M.I.A.); (S.H.); (S.C.C.); (S.T.); (H.M.S.)
- Calgary Prion Research Unit, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Sabine Gilch
- Department of Comparative Biology & Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada; (M.I.A.); (S.H.); (S.C.C.); (S.T.); (H.M.S.)
- Calgary Prion Research Unit, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
- Correspondence:
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Mammadova N, West Greenlee MH, Moore SJ, Hwang S, Lehmkuhl AD, Nicholson EM, Greenlee JJ. Evaluation of Antemortem Diagnostic Techniques in Goats Naturally Infected With Scrapie. Front Vet Sci 2020; 7:517862. [PMID: 33240943 PMCID: PMC7677257 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2020.517862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2019] [Accepted: 10/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Scrapie is a naturally occurring transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) that affects sheep and goats. Sheep and goats can be infected with scrapie as lambs or kids via contact with the placenta or placental fluids, or from ingestion of prions shed in the environment and/or bodily fluids (e.g., saliva, urine, and feces). Like other TSEs, scrapie is generally not diagnosed before extensive and irreversible brain damage has occurred. Therefore, a reliable method to screen animals may facilitate diagnosis. Additionally, while natural scrapie in sheep has been widely described, naturally acquired goat scrapie is less well-characterized. The purpose of this study was to better understand natural goat scrapie in regard to disease phenotype (i.e., incubation period, clinical signs, neuroanatomical deposition patterns of PrPSc, and molecular profile as detected by Western blot) and to evaluate the efficacy of antemortem tests to detect scrapie-positive animals in a herd of goats. Briefly, 28 scrapie-exposed goats were removed from a farm depopulated due to previous diagnoses of scrapie on the premises and observed daily for 30 months. Over the course of the observation period, antemortem biopsies of recto-anal mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (RAMALT) were taken and tested using immunohistochemistry and real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC), and retinal thickness was measured in vivo using optical coherence tomography (OCT). Following the observation period, immunohistochemistry and Western blot were performed to assess neuroanatomical deposition patterns of PrPSc and molecular profile. Our results demonstrate that antemortem rectal biopsy was 77% effective in identifying goats naturally infected with scrapie and that a positive antemortem rectal biopsy was associated with the presence of clinical signs of neurologic disease and a positive dam status. We report that changes in retinal thickness are not detectable over the course of the observation period in goats naturally infected with scrapie. Finally, our results indicate that the accumulation of PrPSc in central nervous system (CNS) and non-CNS tissues is consistent with previous reports of scrapie in sheep and goats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Najiba Mammadova
- Virus and Prion Research Unit, National Animal Disease Center, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Ames, IA, United States
| | - M Heather West Greenlee
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine, Ames, IA, United States
| | - S Jo Moore
- Virus and Prion Research Unit, National Animal Disease Center, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Ames, IA, United States
| | - Soyoun Hwang
- Virus and Prion Research Unit, National Animal Disease Center, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Ames, IA, United States
| | - Aaron D Lehmkuhl
- National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) Diagnostic Bacteriology and Pathology Laboratory, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Ames, IA, United States
| | - Eric M Nicholson
- Virus and Prion Research Unit, National Animal Disease Center, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Ames, IA, United States
| | - Justin J Greenlee
- Virus and Prion Research Unit, National Animal Disease Center, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Ames, IA, United States
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Shabat Y, Lichtenstein Y, Ilan Y. Short-Term Cohousing of Sick with Healthy or Treated Mice Alleviates the Inflammatory Response and Liver Damage. Inflammation 2020; 44:518-525. [PMID: 32978699 DOI: 10.1007/s10753-020-01348-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2020] [Revised: 08/19/2020] [Accepted: 09/22/2020] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Cohousing of sick with healthy or treated animals is based on the concept of sharing an intestinal ecosystem and coprophagy, the consumption of feces, which includes sharing of the microbiome and of active drug metabolites secreted in the feces or urine. To develop a model for short-term cohousing, enabling the study of the effect of sharing an ecosystem on inflammatory states. To determine the impact of cohousing of sick and healthy mice on the immune-mediated disorders, mice injected with concanavalin A (ConA) were cohoused with healthy or sick mice or with steroid-treated or untreated mice. To determine the effect of cohousing on acetaminophen (APAP)-induced liver damage, APAP-injected mice were cohoused with N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC)-treated or untreated mice. In the ConA-induced immune-mediated hepatitis model, cohousing of sick with healthy mice was associated with the alleviation of liver damage in sick animals. Similarly, a significant decrease in serum ALT was noted in ConA-injected mice kept in the same cage as ConA-injected mice treated with steroids. A trend for reduction in liver enzymes in APAP-injected mice was observed upon cohousing with NAC-treated animals. Cohousing of sick mice with healthy or treated mice ameliorated the immune-mediated inflammatory state induced by ConA and APAP. These models for liver damage can serve as biological systems for determining the effects of alterations in the ecosystem on the immune system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yehudit Shabat
- Gastroenterology and Liver Units, Department of Medicine, Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical Center, Ein-Kerem, POB 1200, IL91120, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Yoav Lichtenstein
- Gastroenterology and Liver Units, Department of Medicine, Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical Center, Ein-Kerem, POB 1200, IL91120, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Yaron Ilan
- Gastroenterology and Liver Units, Department of Medicine, Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical Center, Ein-Kerem, POB 1200, IL91120, Jerusalem, Israel.
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Arifin MI, Staskevicius A, Shim SY, Huang YH, Fenton H, McLoughlin PD, Mitchell G, Cullingham CI, Gilch S. Large-scale prion protein genotyping in Canadian caribou populations and potential impact on chronic wasting disease susceptibility. Mol Ecol 2020; 29:3830-3840. [PMID: 32810895 PMCID: PMC7590118 DOI: 10.1111/mec.15602] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2020] [Revised: 07/30/2020] [Accepted: 08/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Polymorphisms within the prion protein gene (Prnp) are an intrinsic factor that can modulate chronic wasting disease (CWD) pathogenesis in cervids. Although wild European reindeer (Rangifer tarandus tarandus) were infected with CWD, as yet there have been no reports of the disease in North American caribou (R. tarandus spp.). Previous Prnp genotyping studies on approximately 200 caribou revealed single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at codons 2 (V/M), 129 (G/S), 138 (S/N), 146 (N/n) and 169 (V/M). The impact of these polymorphisms on CWD transmission is mostly unknown, except for codon 138. Reindeer carrying at least one allele encoding for asparagine (138NN or 138SN) are less susceptible to clinical CWD upon infection by natural routes, with the majority of prions limited to extraneural tissues. We sequenced the Prnp coding region of two caribou subspecies (n = 986) from British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Yukon, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories, to identify SNPs and their frequencies. Genotype frequencies at codon 138 differed significantly between barren-ground (R. t. groenlandicus) and woodland (R. t. caribou) caribou when we excluded the Chinchaga herd (p < .05). We also found new variants at codons 153 (Y/F) and 242 (P/L). Our findings show that the 138N allele is rare among caribou in areas with higher risk of contact with CWD-infected species. As both subspecies are classified as Threatened and play significant roles in North American Indigenous culture, history, food security and the economy, determining frequencies of Prnp genotypes associated with susceptibility to CWD is important for future wildlife management measures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Immaculata Arifin
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Antanas Staskevicius
- National and OIE Reference Laboratory for Scrapie and CWD, Ottawa Laboratory Fallowfield, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Su Yeon Shim
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Yuan-Hung Huang
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Heather Fenton
- Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine, Basseterre, St. Kitts
| | | | - Gordon Mitchell
- National and OIE Reference Laboratory for Scrapie and CWD, Ottawa Laboratory Fallowfield, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | | | - Sabine Gilch
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
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Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is an emerging and fatal contagious prion disease that affects cervids, including mule deer, white-tailed deer, black-tailed deer, red deer reindeer, elk, and moose. CWD prions are widely distributed throughout the bodies of CWD-infected animals and are found in the nervous system, lymphoid tissues, muscle, blood, urine, feces, and antler velvet. The mechanism of CWD transmission in natural settings is unknown. Potential mechanisms of transmission include horizontal, maternal, or environmental routes. Due to the presence of prions in the blood of CWD-infected animals, the potential exists for invertebrates that feed on mammalian blood to contribute to the transmission of CWD. The geographic range of the Rocky Mountain Wood tick, Dermancentor andersoni, overlaps with CWD throughout the northwest United States and southwest Canada, raising the possibility that D. andersoni parasitization of cervids may be involved in CWD transmission. We investigated this possibility by examining the blood meal of D. andersoni that fed upon prion-infected hamsters for the presence of prion infectivity by animal bioassay. None of the hamsters inoculated with a D. andersoni blood meal that had been ingested from prion-infected hamsters developed clinical signs of prion disease or had evidence for a subclinical prion infection. Overall, the data do not demonstrate a role for D. andersoni in the transmission of prion disease.IMPORTANCE Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is an emerging prion disease that affects cervids, including mule deer, white-tailed deer, black-tailed deer, red deer reindeer, elk, and moose. The mechanism of CWD transmission in unknown. Due to the presence of prions in the blood of CWD-infected animals, it is possible for invertebrates that feed on cervid blood to contribute to the transmission of CWD. We examined the blood meal of D. andersoni, a tick with a similar geographic range as cervids, that fed upon prion-infected hamsters for the presence of prion infectivity by animal bioassay. None of the D. andersoni blood meals that had been ingested from prion-infected hamsters yielded evidence of prion infection. Overall, the data do not support a role of D. andersoni in the transmission of prion disease.
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Detection of Pathognomonic Biomarker PrP Sc and the Contribution of Cell Free-Amplification Techniques to the Diagnosis of Prion Diseases. Biomolecules 2020; 10:biom10030469. [PMID: 32204429 PMCID: PMC7175149 DOI: 10.3390/biom10030469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2020] [Revised: 03/16/2020] [Accepted: 03/17/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies or prion diseases are rapidly progressive neurodegenerative diseases, the clinical manifestation of which can resemble other promptly evolving neurological maladies. Therefore, the unequivocal ante-mortem diagnosis is highly challenging and was only possible by histopathological and immunohistochemical analysis of the brain at necropsy. Although surrogate biomarkers of neurological damage have become invaluable to complement clinical data and provide more accurate diagnostics at early stages, other neurodegenerative diseases show similar alterations hindering the differential diagnosis. To solve that, the detection of the pathognomonic biomarker of disease, PrPSc, the aberrantly folded isoform of the prion protein, could be used. However, the amounts in easily accessible tissues or body fluids at pre-clinical or early clinical stages are extremely low for the standard detection methods. The solution comes from the recent development of in vitro prion propagation techniques, such as Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification (PMCA) and Real Time-Quaking Induced Conversion (RT-QuIC), which have been already applied to detect minute amounts of PrPSc in different matrixes and make early diagnosis of prion diseases feasible in a near future. Herein, the most relevant tissues and body fluids in which PrPSc has been detected in animals and humans are being reviewed, especially those in which cell-free prion propagation systems have been used with diagnostic purposes.
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Tennant JM, Li M, Henderson DM, Tyer ML, Denkers ND, Haley NJ, Mathiason CK, Hoover EA. Shedding and stability of CWD prion seeding activity in cervid feces. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0227094. [PMID: 32126066 PMCID: PMC7053746 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0227094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2019] [Accepted: 12/12/2019] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
CWD is an emergent prion disease that now affects cervid species on three continents. CWD is efficiently spread in wild and captive populations, likely through both direct animal contact and environmental contamination. Here, by longitudinally assaying in feces of CWD-exposed white-tailed deer by RT-QuIC, we demonstrate fecal shedding of prion seeding activity months before onset of clinical symptoms and continuing throughout the disease course. We also examine the impact of simulated environmental conditions such as repeated freeze-thaw cycles and desiccation on fecal prion seeding activity. We found that while multiple (n = 7) freeze-thaw cycles substantially decreased fecal seeding activity, desiccation had little to no effect on seeding activity. Finally, we examined whether RT-QuIC testing of landscape fecal deposits could distinguish two premises with substantial known CWD prevalence from one in which no CWD-infected animals had been detected. In the above pilot study, this distinction was possible. We conclude that fecal shedding of CWD prions occurs over much of the disease course, that environmental factors influence prion seeding activity, and that it is feasible to detect fecal prion contamination using RT-QuIC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanne M. Tennant
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
| | - Manci Li
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
| | - Davin M. Henderson
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
| | - Margaret L. Tyer
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
| | - Nathaniel D. Denkers
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
| | - Nicholas J. Haley
- Midwestern University, College of Graduate Studies, Glendale, AZ, United States of America
| | - Candace K. Mathiason
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
| | - Edward A. Hoover
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Holec SA, Block AJ, Bartz JC. The role of prion strain diversity in the development of successful therapeutic treatments. PROGRESS IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE 2020; 175:77-119. [PMID: 32958242 PMCID: PMC8939712 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pmbts.2020.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Prions are a self-propagating misfolded conformation of a cellular protein. Prions are found in several eukaryotic organisms with mammalian prion diseases encompassing a wide range of disorders. The first recognized prion disease, the transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), affect several species including humans. Alzheimer's disease, synucleinopathies, and tauopathies share a similar mechanism of self-propagation of the prion form of the disease-specific protein reminiscent of the infection process of TSEs. Strain diversity in prion disease is characterized by differences in the phenotype of disease that is hypothesized to be encoded by strain-specific conformations of the prion form of the disease-specific protein. Prion therapeutics that target the prion form of the disease-specific protein can lead to the emergence of drug-resistant strains of prions, consistent with the hypothesis that prion strains exist as a dynamic mixture of a dominant strain in combination with minor substrains. To overcome this obstacle, therapies that reduce or eliminate the template of conversion are efficacious, may reverse neuropathology, and do not result in the emergence of drug resistance. Recent advancements in preclinical diagnosis of prion infection may allow for a combinational approach that treats the prion form and the precursor protein to effectively treat prion diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara A.M. Holec
- Institute for Applied Life Sciences and Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, United States,Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE, United States
| | - Alyssa J. Block
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE, United States
| | - Jason C. Bartz
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE, United States,Corresponding author:
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Trone‐Launer EK, Wang J, Lu G, Mateus‐Pinilla NE, Zick PR, Lamer JT, Shelton PA, Jacques CN. Differential gene expression in chronic wasting disease-positive white-tailed deer ( Odocoileus virginianus). Ecol Evol 2019; 9:12600-12612. [PMID: 31788200 PMCID: PMC6875659 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.5724] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2018] [Revised: 09/13/2019] [Accepted: 09/13/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) that affects cervid species throughout North America. We evaluated gene expression in white-tailed deer collected by Illinois Department of Natural Resource wildlife managers during annual population reduction (e.g., sharpshooting) and disease monitoring efforts throughout the CWD-endemic area of northcentral Illinois. We conducted comparative transcriptomic analysis of liver and retropharyngeal lymph node tissue samples between CWD-positive (n = 5) and CWD-not detected (n = 5) deer. A total of 74,479 transcripts were assembled, and 51,661 (69.36%) transcripts were found to have matched proteins in NCBI-NR and UniProt. Our analysis of functional categories showed 40,308 transcripts were assigned to at least one Gene Ontology term and 37,853 transcripts were involved in at least one pathway. We identified a total of 59 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in CWD-positive deer, of which 36 and 23 were associated with liver and retropharyngeal lymph node tissues, respectively. Functions of DEGs lend support to previous relationships between misfolded PrP and cellular membranes (e.g., STXBP5), and internal cellular components. We identified several genes that suggest a link between CWD and retroviruses and identified the gene ADIPOQ that acts as a tumor necrosis factor (TNF) antagonist. This gene may lead to reduced production of TNF and impact disease progression and clinical symptoms associated with CWD (i.e., wasting syndrome). Use of candidate genes identified in this study suggests the activation of endogenous processes in CWD-positive deer, which in turn may enable earlier detection of the disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma K. Trone‐Launer
- Department of Biological SciencesWestern Illinois UniversityMacombILUSA
- Present address:
Illinois Department of Natural ResourcesCoffeenILUSA
| | - Jun Wang
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fisheries Germplasm ResourcesMinistry of AgricultureShanghai Ocean UniversityShanghaiChina
| | - Guoqing Lu
- Department of Biology and School of Interdisciplinary InformaticsUniversity of Nebraska OmahaOmahaNEUSA
| | - Nohra E. Mateus‐Pinilla
- Illinois Natural History Survey—Prairie Research InstituteUniversity of Illinois Urbana‐ChampaignChampaignILUSA
| | - Paige R. Zick
- Department of Biological SciencesWestern Illinois UniversityMacombILUSA
| | - James T. Lamer
- Illinois River Biological StationIllinois Natural History SurveyHavanaILUSA
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McNulty E, Nalls AV, Mellentine S, Hughes E, Pulscher L, Hoover EA, Mathiason CK. Comparison of conventional, amplification and bio-assay detection methods for a chronic wasting disease inoculum pool. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0216621. [PMID: 31071138 PMCID: PMC6508678 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0216621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2019] [Accepted: 04/24/2019] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Longitudinal studies of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in the native host have provided considerable understanding of how this prion disease continues to efficiently spread among cervid species. These studies entail great cost in animal, time and financial support. A variety of methods have emerged including transgenic mouse bioassay, western blot, enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA), immunohistochemistry (IHC), serial protein misfolding cyclic amplification (sPMCA) and real time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC), that deepen our understanding of this and other protein misfolding disorders. To further characterize an inoculum source used for ongoing CWD studies and to determine how the readouts from each of these assays compare, we assayed a CWD-positive brain pool homogenate (CBP6) and a mouse dilutional bioassay of this homogenate using the above detection methods. We demonstrate that: (i) amplification assays enhanced detection of amyloid seeding activity in the CWD+ cervid brain pool to levels beyond mouse LD50, (ii) conventional detection methods (IHC and western blot) performed well in identifying the presence of PrPSc in terminal brain tissue yet lack sufficient detection sensitivity to identify all CWD-infected mice, and (iii) the incorporation of amplification assays enhanced detection of CWD-infected mice near the LD50. This cross-platform analysis provides a basis to calibrate the relative sensitivities of CWD detection assays.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin McNulty
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Amy V. Nalls
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Samuel Mellentine
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Erin Hughes
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Laura Pulscher
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Edward A. Hoover
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Candace K. Mathiason
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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25
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Wang Z, Manca M, Foutz A, Camacho MV, Raymond GJ, Race B, Orru CD, Yuan J, Shen P, Li B, Lang Y, Dang J, Adornato A, Williams K, Maurer NR, Gambetti P, Xu B, Surewicz W, Petersen RB, Dong X, Appleby BS, Caughey B, Cui L, Kong Q, Zou WQ. Early preclinical detection of prions in the skin of prion-infected animals. Nat Commun 2019; 10:247. [PMID: 30651538 PMCID: PMC6335425 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-08130-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2018] [Accepted: 12/07/2018] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
A definitive pre-mortem diagnosis of prion disease depends on brain biopsy for prion detection currently and no validated alternative preclinical diagnostic tests have been reported to date. To determine the feasibility of using skin for preclinical diagnosis, here we report ultrasensitive serial protein misfolding cyclic amplification (sPMCA) and real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC) assays of skin samples from hamsters and humanized transgenic mice (Tg40h) at different time points after intracerebral inoculation with 263K and sCJDMM1 prions, respectively. sPMCA detects skin PrPSc as early as 2 weeks post inoculation (wpi) in hamsters and 4 wpi in Tg40h mice; RT-QuIC assay reveals earliest skin prion-seeding activity at 3 wpi in hamsters and 20 wpi in Tg40h mice. Unlike 263K-inoculated animals, mock-inoculated animals show detectable skin/brain PrPSc only after long cohabitation periods with scrapie-infected animals. Our study provides the proof-of-concept evidence that skin prions could be a biomarker for preclinical diagnosis of prion disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zerui Wang
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
- Department of Neurology, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, Jilin Province, The People's Republic of China
| | - Matteo Manca
- Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Hamilton, 59840, MT, USA
| | - Aaron Foutz
- National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
| | - Manuel V Camacho
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
| | - Gregory J Raymond
- Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Hamilton, 59840, MT, USA
| | - Brent Race
- Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Hamilton, 59840, MT, USA
| | - Christina D Orru
- Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Hamilton, 59840, MT, USA
| | - Jue Yuan
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
| | - Pingping Shen
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
- Department of Neurology, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, Jilin Province, The People's Republic of China
| | - Baiya Li
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
- Department of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710061, Shanxi Province, The People's Republic of China
| | - Yue Lang
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
- Department of Neurology, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, Jilin Province, The People's Republic of China
| | - Johnny Dang
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
| | - Alise Adornato
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
| | - Katie Williams
- Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Hamilton, 59840, MT, USA
| | - Nicholas R Maurer
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
| | - Pierluigi Gambetti
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
| | - Bin Xu
- Department of Biochemistry, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, 24061, Virginia, USA
| | - Witold Surewicz
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
| | - Robert B Petersen
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
- Foundational Sciences, Central Michigan University College of Medicine, Mount Pleasant, 48859, MI, USA
| | - Xiaoping Dong
- State Key Laboratory for Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, National Institute for Viral Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, 102206, The People's Republic of China
| | - Brian S Appleby
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
- National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
- Department of Neurology, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA
| | - Byron Caughey
- Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Hamilton, 59840, MT, USA.
| | - Li Cui
- Department of Neurology, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, Jilin Province, The People's Republic of China.
| | - Qingzhong Kong
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA.
- National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA.
- Department of Neurology, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA.
- National Center for Regenerative Medicine, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA.
| | - Wen-Quan Zou
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA.
- Department of Neurology, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, Jilin Province, The People's Republic of China.
- National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA.
- State Key Laboratory for Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, National Institute for Viral Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, 102206, The People's Republic of China.
- Department of Neurology, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA.
- National Center for Regenerative Medicine, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, 44106, OH, USA.
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Abstract
Scrapie is a naturally occurring transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) or prion disease of sheep and goats. Scrapie is a protein misfolding disease where the normal prion protein (PrPC) misfolds into a pathogenic form (PrPSc) that is highly resistant to enzymatic breakdown within the cell and accumulates, eventually leading to neurodegeneration. The amino acid sequence of the prion protein and tissue distribution of PrPSc within affected hosts have a major role in determining susceptibility to and potential environmental contamination with the scrapie agent. Many countries have genotype-based eradication programs that emphasize using rams that express arginine at codon 171 in the prion protein, which is associated with resistance to the classical scrapie agent. In classical scrapie, accumulation of PrPSc within lymphoid and other tissues facilitates environmental contamination and spread of the disease within flocks. A major distinction can be made between classical scrapie strains that are readily spread within populations of susceptible sheep and goats and atypical (Nor-98) scrapie that has unique molecular and phenotype characteristics and is thought to occur spontaneously in older sheep or goats. This review provides an overview of classical and atypical scrapie with consideration of potential transmission of classical scrapie to other mammalian hosts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin J Greenlee
- 1 Virus and Prion Research Unit, National Animal Disease Center, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Ames, IA, USA
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27
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Kim C, Xiao X, Chen S, Haldiman T, Smirnovas V, Kofskey D, Warren M, Surewicz K, Maurer NR, Kong Q, Surewicz W, Safar JG. Artificial strain of human prions created in vitro. Nat Commun 2018; 9:2166. [PMID: 29867164 PMCID: PMC5986862 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-04584-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2018] [Accepted: 05/02/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The molecular mechanism that determines under physiological conditions transmissibility of the most common human prion disease, sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD) is unknown. We report the synthesis of new human prion from the recombinant human prion protein expressed in bacteria in reaction seeded with sCJD MM1 prions and cofactor, ganglioside GM1. These synthetic human prions were infectious to transgenic mice expressing non-glycosylated human prion protein, causing neurologic dysfunction after 459 and 224 days in the first and second passage, respectively. The neuropathology, replication potency, and biophysical profiling suggest that a novel, particularly neurotoxic human prion strain was created. Distinct biological and structural characteristics of our synthetic human prions suggest that subtle changes in the structural organization of critical domains, some linked to posttranslational modifications of the pathogenic prion protein (PrPSc), play a crucial role as a determinant of human prion infectivity, host range, and targetting of specific brain structures in mice models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chae Kim
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA
| | - Xiangzhu Xiao
- Departments of Physiology and Biophysics, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA
| | - Shugui Chen
- Departments of Physiology and Biophysics, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA
- GlaxoSmithKline, 709 Swedeland Rd., King of Prussia, PA19406, UK
| | - Tracy Haldiman
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA
| | - Vitautas Smirnovas
- Departments of Physiology and Biophysics, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA
- Department of Biothermodynamics and Drug Design, Institute of Biotechnology, Vilnius University, Graiciuno 8, Vilnius, 02241, Lithuania
| | - Diane Kofskey
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA
| | - Miriam Warren
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA
| | - Krystyna Surewicz
- Departments of Physiology and Biophysics, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA
| | - Nicholas R Maurer
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA
| | - Qingzhong Kong
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA
- Department of Neurology, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA
| | - Witold Surewicz
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA
- Departments of Physiology and Biophysics, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA
| | - Jiri G Safar
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA.
- Department of Neurology, Case Western Reserve University, 2085 Adelbert Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA.
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28
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Dehydration of Prions on Environmentally Relevant Surfaces Protects Them from Inactivation by Freezing and Thawing. J Virol 2018; 92:JVI.02191-17. [PMID: 29386284 DOI: 10.1128/jvi.02191-17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2017] [Accepted: 01/24/2018] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is an emerging prion disease in North America. Recent identification of CWD in wild cervids from Norway raises the concern of the spread of CWD in Europe. CWD infectivity can enter the environment through live animal excreta and carcasses where it can bind to soil. Well-characterized hamster prion strains and CWD field isolates in unadsorbed or soil-adsorbed forms that were either hydrated or dehydrated were subjected to repeated rounds of freezing and thawing. We found that 500 cycles of repeated freezing and thawing of hydrated samples significantly decreased the abundance of PrPSc and reduced protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) seeding activity that could be rescued by binding to soil. Importantly, dehydration prior to freezing and thawing treatment largely protected PrPSc from degradation, and the samples maintained PMCA seeding activity. We hypothesize that redistribution of water molecules during the freezing and thawing process alters the stability of PrPSc aggregates. Overall, these results have significant implications for the assessment of prion persistence in the environment.IMPORTANCE Prions excreted into the environment by infected animals, such as elk and deer infected with chronic wasting disease, persist for years and thus facilitate horizontal transmission of the disease. Understanding the fate of prions in the environment is essential to control prion disease transmission. The significance of our study is that it provides information on the possibility of prion degradation and inactivation under natural weathering processes. This information is significant for remediation of prion-contaminated environments and development of prion disease control strategies.
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29
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Maji C, Mukherjee D, Kesh D. Deterministic and stochastic analysis of an eco-epidemiological model. J Biol Phys 2018; 44:17-36. [PMID: 28988403 PMCID: PMC5834997 DOI: 10.1007/s10867-017-9472-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2016] [Accepted: 09/20/2017] [Indexed: 10/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a contagious prion disease among the deer family that has the potential to disrupt the ecosystems where deer occur in abundance. To understand the dynamics of this emerging infectious disease, we consider a simple eco-epidemic model where the host population is infected by CWD. Boundedness of the system is established. The structure of equilibria and their linearized stability are investigated. The persistence condition is discussed. By constructing a suitable Lyapunov function, we discuss the global stability of the endemic equilibrium. Local bifurcation (transcritical) around the boundary equilibria is developed. Sufficient conditions for the existence of Hopf-bifurcation are derived. Further, we have also introduced white type of noise into the system to investigate stochastic stability. This suggests that the deterministic model is robust with respect to stochastic perturbation. Some numerical simulations are performed to validate our results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chandan Maji
- Department of Mathematics, Vivekananda College, Thakurpukur, 269 D.H. Road, Kolkata, 700063 India
| | - Debasis Mukherjee
- Department of Mathematics, Vivekananda College, Thakurpukur, 269 D.H. Road, Kolkata, 700063 India
| | - Dipak Kesh
- Centre for Mathematical Biology and Ecology, Department of Mathematics, Jadavpur University, Kolkata, 700032 India
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30
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Pritzkow S, Morales R, Lyon A, Concha-Marambio L, Urayama A, Soto C. Efficient prion disease transmission through common environmental materials. J Biol Chem 2018; 293:3363-3373. [PMID: 29330304 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m117.810747] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2017] [Revised: 01/05/2018] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are a group of fatal neurodegenerative diseases associated with a protein-based infectious agent, termed prion. Compelling evidence suggests that natural transmission of prion diseases is mediated by environmental contamination with infectious prions. We hypothesized that several natural and man-made materials, commonly found in the environments of wild and captive animals, can bind prions and may act as vectors for disease transmission. To test our hypothesis, we exposed surfaces composed of various common environmental materials (i.e. wood, rocks, plastic, glass, cement, stainless steel, aluminum, and brass) to hamster-adapted 263K scrapie prions and studied their attachment and retention of infectivity in vitro and in vivo Our results indicated that these surfaces, with the sole exception of brass, efficiently bind, retain, and release prions. Prion replication was studied in vitro using the protein misfolding cyclic amplification technology, and infectivity of surface-bound prions was analyzed by intracerebrally challenging hamsters with contaminated implants. Our results revealed that virtually all prion-contaminated materials transmitted the disease at high rates. To investigate a more natural form of exposure to environmental contamination, we simply housed animals with large contaminated spheres made of the different materials under study. Strikingly, most of the hamsters developed classical clinical signs of prion disease and typical disease-associated brain changes. Our findings suggest that prion contamination of surfaces commonly present in the environment can be a source of disease transmission, thus expanding our understanding of the mechanisms for prion spreading in nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra Pritzkow
- From the Mitchell Center for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Brain Disorders, Department of Neurology, University of Texas Houston Medical School, Houston, Texas 77030 and
| | - Rodrigo Morales
- From the Mitchell Center for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Brain Disorders, Department of Neurology, University of Texas Houston Medical School, Houston, Texas 77030 and
| | - Adam Lyon
- From the Mitchell Center for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Brain Disorders, Department of Neurology, University of Texas Houston Medical School, Houston, Texas 77030 and
| | - Luis Concha-Marambio
- From the Mitchell Center for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Brain Disorders, Department of Neurology, University of Texas Houston Medical School, Houston, Texas 77030 and.,Universidad de los Andes, Facultad de Medicina, Avenida San Carlos de Apoquindo 2200, Las Condes, Santiago 2, Chile
| | - Akihiko Urayama
- From the Mitchell Center for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Brain Disorders, Department of Neurology, University of Texas Houston Medical School, Houston, Texas 77030 and
| | - Claudio Soto
- From the Mitchell Center for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Brain Disorders, Department of Neurology, University of Texas Houston Medical School, Houston, Texas 77030 and .,Universidad de los Andes, Facultad de Medicina, Avenida San Carlos de Apoquindo 2200, Las Condes, Santiago 2, Chile
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31
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Westermark GT, Fändrich M, Lundmark K, Westermark P. Noncerebral Amyloidoses: Aspects on Seeding, Cross-Seeding, and Transmission. Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med 2018; 8:a024323. [PMID: 28108533 PMCID: PMC5749146 DOI: 10.1101/cshperspect.a024323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
More than 30 proteins form amyloid in humans, most of them outside of the brain. Deposition of amyloid in extracerebral tissues is very common and seems inevitable for an aging person. Most deposits are localized, small, and probably without consequence, but in some instances, they are associated with diseases such as type 2 diabetes. Other extracerebral amyloidoses are systemic, with life-threatening effects on the heart, kidneys, and other organs. Here, we review how amyloid may spread through seeding and whether transmission of amyloid diseases may occur between humans. We also discuss whether cross-seeding is important in the development of amyloidosis, focusing specifically on the amyloid proteins AA, transthyretin, and islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP).
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Affiliation(s)
- Gunilla T Westermark
- Department of Medical Cell Biology, Uppsala University, SE-751 23 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Marcus Fändrich
- Institute of Protein Biochemistry, Ulm University, D-89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Katarzyna Lundmark
- Department of Clinical Pathology and Clinical Genetics, and Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Linköping University, SE-581 85 Linköping, Sweden
| | - Per Westermark
- Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology, Uppsala University, SE-751 85 Uppsala, Sweden
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33
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Mabbott NA. How do PrP Sc Prions Spread between Host Species, and within Hosts? Pathogens 2017; 6:pathogens6040060. [PMID: 29186791 PMCID: PMC5750584 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens6040060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2017] [Revised: 11/16/2017] [Accepted: 11/21/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are sub-acute neurodegenerative diseases that affect humans and some domestic and free-ranging animals. Infectious prion agents are considered to comprise solely of abnormally folded isoforms of the cellular prion protein known as PrPSc. Pathology during prion disease is restricted to the central nervous system where it causes extensive neurodegeneration and ultimately leads to the death of the host. The first half of this review provides a thorough account of our understanding of the various ways in which PrPSc prions may spread between individuals within a population, both horizontally and vertically. Many natural prion diseases are acquired peripherally, such as by oral exposure, lesions to skin or mucous membranes, and possibly also via the nasal cavity. Following peripheral exposure, some prions accumulate to high levels within the secondary lymphoid organs as they make their journey from the site of infection to the brain, a process termed neuroinvasion. The replication of PrPSc prions within secondary lymphoid organs is important for their efficient spread to the brain. The second half of this review describes the key tissues, cells and molecules which are involved in the propagation of PrPSc prions from peripheral sites of exposure (such as the lumen of the intestine) to the brain. This section also considers how additional factors such as inflammation and aging might influence prion disease susceptibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Neil A Mabbott
- The Roslin Institute & Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush, Midlothian EH25 9RG, UK
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34
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Mathiason CK. Scrapie, CWD, and Transmissible Mink Encephalopathy. PROGRESS IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE 2017; 150:267-292. [PMID: 28838664 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pmbts.2017.07.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/04/2022]
Abstract
Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), or prions, are neurodegenerative diseases that affect a variety of animal species, including humans. Cruetzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) in humans, sheep and goat scrapie, chronic wasting disease (CWD) of cervids, and transmissible mink encephalopathy (TME) of mink are classified as TSEs. According to the "protein-only" hypothesis (Prusiner, 1982),1 prions are devoid of nucleic acids and consist of assemblies of misfolded host-encoded normal protein, the prion protein (PrPC). Prion propagation is thought to occur by a templating mechanism during which PrPC is recruited, converted to a disease-associated isoform (PrPD), and assembled onto the growing amyloid fibril. This fibular assembly is infectious, with ability to initiate disease processes similar to other pathogenic agents. Evidence indicates that scrapie, CWD, and TME disease processes follow this rule.
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35
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Bistaffa E, Rossi M, De Luca CMG, Moda F. Biosafety of Prions. PROGRESS IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE 2017; 150:455-485. [PMID: 28838674 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pmbts.2017.06.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Prions are the infectious agents that cause devastating and untreatable disorders known as Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (TSEs). The pathologic events and the infectious nature of these transmissible agents are not completely understood yet. Due to the difficulties in inactivating prions, working with them requires specific recommendations and precautions. Moreover, with the advent of innovative technologies, such as the Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification (PMCA) and the Real Time Quaking-Induced Conversion (RT-QuIC), prions could be amplified in vitro and the infectious features of the amplified products need to be carefully assessed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edoardo Bistaffa
- IRCCS Foundation Carlo Besta Neurological Institute, Milan, Italy; Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Trieste, Italy
| | - Martina Rossi
- Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Trieste, Italy
| | - Chiara M G De Luca
- IRCCS Foundation Carlo Besta Neurological Institute, Milan, Italy; Università degli Studi di Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Fabio Moda
- IRCCS Foundation Carlo Besta Neurological Institute, Milan, Italy.
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36
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Plummer IH, Wright SD, Johnson CJ, Pedersen JA, Samuel MD. Temporal patterns of chronic wasting disease prion excretion in three cervid species. J Gen Virol 2017; 98:1932-1942. [PMID: 28708047 DOI: 10.1099/jgv.0.000845] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is the only naturally occurring transmissible spongiform encephalopathy affecting free-ranging wildlife populations. Transmission of CWD occurs by direct contact or through contaminated environments; however, little is known about the temporal patterns of CWD prion excretion and shedding in wild cervids. We tested the urine and faeces of three species of captive cervids (elk, mule and white-tailed deer) at 6, 12, 18 and 24 months after oral inoculation to evaluate the temporal, species- and genotype-specific factors affecting the excretion of CWD prions. Although none of the animals exhibited clinical signs of CWD during the study, we determined that all three cervid species were excreting CWD prions by 6 months post-inoculation. Faecal samples were consistently positive for CWD prions for all three cervid species (88 %), and were more likely to be positive than urine samples (28 %). Cervids with genotypes encoding for the prion protein (PRNP) that were considered to be more susceptible to CWD were more likely to excrete CWD prions (94 %) than cervids with genotypes considered to be less susceptible (64 %). All cervids with CWD prions in their urine also had positive faeces (n=5), but the converse was not true. Our study is the first to demonstrate CWD prion excretion in urine by asymptomatic elk and mule deer. Our results indicate that the excretion of CWD prions in faeces and, to a lesser extent, urine may provide an important avenue for depositing prions in the environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ian H Plummer
- Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin - Madison, 1630 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Scott D Wright
- US Geological Survey, National Wildlife Health Center, 6006 Schroeder Road, Madison, Wisconsin 53711, USA.,Present address: 4730 Toepfer Road, Middleton, Wisconsin 53562, USA
| | - Chad J Johnson
- Departments of Soil Science, Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Chemistry, University of Wisconsin - Madison, 1525 Observatory Drive, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, USA
| | - Joel A Pedersen
- Departments of Soil Science, Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Chemistry, University of Wisconsin - Madison, 1525 Observatory Drive, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, USA
| | - Michael D Samuel
- Retired, US Geological Survey, Wisconsin Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit, University of Wisconsin - Madison, 204 Russell Labs, 1630 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706, USA
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Henderson DM, Tennant JM, Haley NJ, Denkers ND, Mathiason CK, Hoover EA. Detection of chronic wasting disease prion seeding activity in deer and elk feces by real-time quaking-induced conversion. J Gen Virol 2017; 98:1953-1962. [PMID: 28703697 DOI: 10.1099/jgv.0.000844] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is an emergent prion disease affecting cervid species in North America, Canada, South Korea, and recently, Norway. Detection of CWD has been advanced by techniques that rely on amplification of low levels of prion amyloid to a detectable level. However, the increased sensitivity of amplification assays is often compromised by inhibitors and/or activators in complex biologic samples including body fluids, excreta, or the environment. Here, we adapt real-time quaking-induced conversion conditions to specifically detect CWD prions in fecal samples from both experimentally infected deer and naturally infected elk and estimate environmental contamination. The results have application to detection, surveillance and management of CWD, and potentially to other protein-misfolding diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davin M Henderson
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA
| | - Joanne M Tennant
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA
| | - Nicholas J Haley
- Department of Microbiology and Pathology, Midwestern State University, Glendale, AZ, USA
| | - Nathaniel D Denkers
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA
| | - Candace K Mathiason
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA
| | - Edward A Hoover
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA
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Infectious Prions in the Pregnancy Microenvironment of Chronic Wasting Disease-Infected Reeves' Muntjac Deer. J Virol 2017; 91:JVI.00501-17. [PMID: 28539446 DOI: 10.1128/jvi.00501-17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2017] [Accepted: 05/05/2017] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Ample evidence exists for the presence of infectious agents at the maternal-fetal interface, often with grave outcomes to the developing fetus (i.e., Zika virus, brucella, cytomegalovirus, and toxoplasma). While less studied, pregnancy-related transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) have been implicated in several species, including humans. Our previous work has shown that prions can be transferred from mother to offspring, resulting in the development of clinical TSE disease in offspring born to muntjac dams infected with chronic wasting disease (CWD) (1). We further demonstrated protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA)-competent prions within the female reproductive tract and in fetal tissues harvested from CWD experimentally and naturally exposed cervids (1, 2). To assess whether the PMCA-competent prions residing at the maternal-fetal interface were infectious and to determine if the real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC) methodology may enhance our ability to detect amyloid fibrils within the pregnancy microenvironment, we employed a mouse bioassay and RT-QuIC. In this study, we have demonstrated RT-QuIC seeding activity in uterus, placentome, ovary, and amniotic fluid but not in allantoic fluids harvested from CWD-infected Reeves' muntjac dams showing clinical signs of infection (clinically CWD-infected) and in some placentomes from pre-clinically CWD-infected dams. Prion infectivity was confirmed within the uterus, amniotic fluid, and the placentome, the semipermeable interface that sustains the developing fetus, of CWD-infected dams. This is the first report of prion infectivity within the cervid pregnancy microenvironment, revealing a source of fetal CWD exposure prior to the birthing process, maternal grooming, or encounters with contaminated environments.IMPORTANCE The facile dissemination of chronic wasting disease within captive and free-range cervid populations has led to questions regarding the transmission dynamics of this disease. Direct contact with infected animals and indirect contact with infectious prions in bodily fluids and contaminated environments are suspected to explain the majority of this transmission. A third mode of transmission, from mother to offspring, may be underappreciated. The presence of pregnancy-related prion infectivity within the uterus, amniotic fluid, and the placental structure reveals that the developing fetus is exposed to a source of prions long before exposure to the infectious agent during and after the birthing process or via contact with contaminated environments. These findings have impact on our current concept of CWD disease transmission.
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Prion Diagnosis: Application of Real-Time Quaking-Induced Conversion. BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2017; 2017:5413936. [PMID: 28596963 PMCID: PMC5449729 DOI: 10.1155/2017/5413936] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2017] [Revised: 04/14/2017] [Accepted: 04/24/2017] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Prions composed of pathogenic scrapie prion protein (PrPSc) are infectious pathogens that cause progressive neurological conditions known as prion diseases or transmissible spongiform encephalopathies. Although these diseases pose considerable risk to public health, procedures for early diagnosis have not been established. One of the most recent attempts at sensitive and specific detection of prions is the real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC) method, which measures the activity of PrPSc aggregates or amyloid formation triggered by PrPSc seeds in the presence of recombinant PrP. In this review, we summarize prions, prion diseases, and current approaches to diagnosis, including the principle, conditions for assay performance, and current diagnostic applications of RT-QuIC.
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Ellett LJ, Lawson VA. Preparation and Immunostaining of the Myenteric Plexus of Prion-Infected Mice. Methods Mol Biol 2017; 1658:285-292. [PMID: 28861796 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-7244-9_19] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Intracerebral inoculation of mice with the M1000 strain of mouse-adapted human prions results in the consistent accumulation of PrPSc in the ileum of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) of mice with clinical signs of prion disease. The accumulation of PrPSc in the ileum is accompanied by caspase activation and loss of immunoreactivity in subpopulations of neurons in the enteric nervous system. This suggests that like neurons in the central nervous system, cells in the enteric nervous system are also susceptible to prion-induced toxicity. In this chapter we describe the immunostaining of cells in myenteric plexus preparations of whole mounts prepared from the gastrointestinal tract of prion-infected mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura J Ellett
- Department of Pathology, The University of Melbourne, Medical Building, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia
| | - Victoria A Lawson
- Department of Pathology, The University of Melbourne, Medical Building, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia.
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Cheng YC, Hannaoui S, John TR, Dudas S, Czub S, Gilch S. Early and Non-Invasive Detection of Chronic Wasting Disease Prions in Elk Feces by Real-Time Quaking Induced Conversion. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0166187. [PMID: 27829062 PMCID: PMC5102397 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0166187] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2016] [Accepted: 10/24/2016] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a fatal prion disease of wild and captive cervids in North America. Prions are infectious agents composed of a misfolded version of a host-encoded protein, termed PrPSc. Infected cervids excrete and secrete prions, contributing to lateral transmission. Geographical distribution is expanding and case numbers in wild cervids are increasing. Recently, the first European cases of CWD have been reported in a wild reindeer and two moose from Norway. Therefore, methods to detect the infection early in the incubation time using easily available samples are desirable to facilitate effective disease management. We have adapted the real-time quaking induced conversion (RT-QuIC) assay, a sensitive in vitro prion amplification method, for pre-clinical detection of prion seeding activity in elk feces. Testing fecal samples from orally inoculated elk taken at various time points post infection revealed early shedding and detectable prion seeding activity throughout the disease course. Early shedding was also found in two elk encoding a PrP genotype associated with reduced susceptibility for CWD. In summary, we suggest that detection of CWD prions in feces by RT-QuIC may become a useful tool to support CWD surveillance in wild and captive cervids. The finding of early shedding independent of the elk’s prion protein genotype raises the question whether prolonged survival is beneficial, considering accumulation of environmental prions and its contribution to CWD transmission upon extended duration of shedding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yo Ching Cheng
- Dept. of Ecosystem and Public Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Samia Hannaoui
- Dept. of Ecosystem and Public Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Theodore R. John
- Dept. of Molecular Biology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, United States of America
| | - Sandor Dudas
- Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Lethbridge Laboratories, Lethbridge, Canada
| | - Stefanie Czub
- Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Lethbridge Laboratories, Lethbridge, Canada
| | - Sabine Gilch
- Dept. of Ecosystem and Public Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
- * E-mail:
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Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW This article presents an update on the clinical aspects of human prion disease, including the wide spectrum of their presentations. RECENT FINDINGS Prion diseases, a group of disorders caused by abnormally shaped proteins called prions, occur in sporadic (Jakob-Creutzfeldt disease), genetic (genetic Jakob-Creutzfeldt disease, Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker syndrome, and fatal familial insomnia), and acquired (kuru, variant Jakob-Creutzfeldt disease, and iatrogenic Jakob-Creutzfeldt disease) forms. This article presents updated information on the clinical features and diagnostic methods for human prion diseases. New antemortem potential diagnostic tests based on amplifying prions in order to detect them are showing very high specificity. Understanding of the diversity of possible presentations of human prion diseases continues to evolve, with some genetic forms progressing slowly over decades, beginning with dysautonomia and neuropathy and progressing to a frontal-executive dementia with pathology of combined prionopathy and tauopathy. Unfortunately, to date, all human prion disease clinical trials have failed to show survival benefit. A very rare polymorphism in the prion protein gene recently has been identified that appears to protect against prion disease; this finding, in addition to providing greater understanding of the prionlike mechanisms of neurodegenerative disorders, might lead to potential treatments. SUMMARY Sporadic Jakob-Creutzfeldt disease is the most common form of human prion disease. Genetic prion diseases, resulting from mutations in the prion-related protein gene (PRNP), are classified based on the mutation, clinical phenotype, and neuropathologic features and can be difficult to diagnose because of their varied presentations. Perhaps most relevant to this Continuum issue on neuroinfectious diseases, acquired prion diseases are caused by accidental transmission to humans, but fortunately, they are the least common form and are becoming rarer as awareness of transmission risk has led to implementation of measures to prevent such occurrences.
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Benestad SL, Mitchell G, Simmons M, Ytrehus B, Vikøren T. First case of chronic wasting disease in Europe in a Norwegian free-ranging reindeer. Vet Res 2016; 47:88. [PMID: 27641251 PMCID: PMC5024462 DOI: 10.1186/s13567-016-0375-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 211] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2016] [Accepted: 08/11/2016] [Indexed: 02/24/2024] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a fatal contagious prion disease in cervids that is enzootic in some areas in North America. The disease has been found in deer, elk and moose in the USA and Canada, and in South Korea following the importation of infected animals. Here we report the first case of CWD in Europe, in a Norwegian free-ranging reindeer in Southern Norway. The origin of the disease is unknown. Until now a low number of cervids, and among them a few reindeer, have been tested for CWD in Norway. Therefore the prevalence of CWD is unknown.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sylvie L Benestad
- Norwegian Veterinary Institute, P.O. Box 750 Sentrum, 0106, Oslo, Norway.
| | - Gordon Mitchell
- Canadian Food Inspection Agency, National and OIE Reference Laboratory for Scrapie and CWD, Ottawa Laboratory Fallowfield, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Marion Simmons
- Department of Pathology, Animal and Plant Health Agency, Woodham Lane, Addlestone, Surrey, KT15 3NB, UK
| | - Bjørnar Ytrehus
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), P.O. Box 5685 Sluppen, 7485, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Turid Vikøren
- Norwegian Veterinary Institute, P.O. Box 750 Sentrum, 0106, Oslo, Norway
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Specificity, Size, and Frequency of Spaces That Characterize the Mechanism of Bulk Transepithelial Transport of Prions in the Nasal Cavities of Hamsters and Mice. J Virol 2016; 90:8293-301. [PMID: 27384659 DOI: 10.1128/jvi.01103-16] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2016] [Accepted: 06/28/2016] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED Inhalation of infected brain homogenate results in transepithelial transport of prions across the nasal mucosa of hamsters, some of which occurs rapidly in relatively large amounts between cells (A. E. Kincaid, K. F. Hudson, M. W. Richey, and J. C. Bartz, J. Virol 86:12731-12740, 2012, doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/JVI.01930-12). Bulk transepithelial transport in the nasal cavity has not been studied to date. In the present study, we characterized the frequency, size, and specificity of the intercellular spaces that mediate the bulk transport of inhaled prions between cells of mice or hamsters following extranasal inoculation with mock-infected brain homogenate, different strains of prion-infected brain homogenate, or brain homogenate mixed with India ink. Infected or mock-infected inoculum was identified within lymphatic vessels of the lamina propria and in spaces of >5 μm between a small number of cells of the nasal mucosa in >90% of animals from 5 to 60 min after inhalation. The width of the spaces between cells, the amount of the inoculum within the lumen of lymphatic vessels, and the timing of the transport indicate that this type of transport was taking place through preexisting spaces in the nasal cavity that were orders of magnitude wider than what is normally reported for paracellular transport. The indiscriminate rapid bulk transport of brain homogenate in the nasal cavity results in immediate entry into nasal cavity lymphatics following inhalation. This novel mechanism may underlie the recent report of the early detection of prions in blood following inhalation and has implications for horizontal prion transmission. IMPORTANCE The results of these studies demonstrate that the nasal mucosa of mice and hamsters is not an absolute anatomical barrier to inhaled prion-infected or uninfected brain homogenate. Relatively large amounts of infected and uninfected brain homogenate rapidly cross the nasal mucosa and enter the lumen of lymphatic vessels following inhalation. These bulk transepithelial transport events were relatively rare but present in >90% of animals 5 to 60 min following inhalation. This novel mechanism of bulk transepithelial transport was seen in experimental and control hamsters and mice, indicating that it was not species specific or in response to prion exposure. The indiscriminate bulk intercellular transport of inhaled pathogens across the nasal mucosa followed by entry into the lymphatic system may be a mechanism that underlies the entry and spread of other toxins and pathogens in olfactory system-driven animals.
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Holcomb KM, Galloway NL, Mathiason CK, Antolin MF. Intra-host mathematical model of chronic wasting disease dynamics in deer (Odocoileus). Prion 2016; 10:377-390. [PMID: 27537196 PMCID: PMC5105936 DOI: 10.1080/19336896.2016.1189054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Bioassays of native cervid hosts have established the presence of infectious chronic wasting disease (CWD) prions in saliva, blood, urine, and feces of clinically diseased and pre-clinical infected deer. The intra-host trafficking of prions from the time of initial infection to shedding has been less well defined. We created a discrete-time compartmentalized model to simulate the misfolding catalysis, trafficking, and shedding of infectious prions throughout the organ systems of CWD-infected cervids. Using parameter values derived from experimental infections of North American deer (Odocoileus spp.), the exponential-based model predicts prion deposition over time with: 1) nervous tissues containing the highest deposition of prions at 20 months post-infection and 2) excreted fluids containing low levels of prions throughout infection with the highest numbers of prions predicted to be shed in saliva and feces (as high as 10 lethal doses (1.34 × 1029 prions) in 11–15 months). These findings are comparable to prion deposition described in literature as assayed by conventional and ultrasensitive amplification assays. The comparison of our model to published data suggests that highly sensitive assays (sPMCA, RT-QuIC, and bioassay) are appropriate for early prion detection in bodily fluids and secretions. The model provides a view of intra-host prion catalysis leading to pre-clinical shedding and provides a framework for continued development of antemortem diagnostic methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen M Holcomb
- a Department of Biology , Colorado State University , Fort Collins , CO , USA
| | - Nathan L Galloway
- a Department of Biology , Colorado State University , Fort Collins , CO , USA
| | - Candace K Mathiason
- b Department of Microbiology , Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University , Fort Collins , CO , USA
| | - Michael F Antolin
- a Department of Biology , Colorado State University , Fort Collins , CO , USA
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Donaldson DS, Mabbott NA. The influence of the commensal and pathogenic gut microbiota on prion disease pathogenesis. J Gen Virol 2016; 97:1725-1738. [PMID: 27193137 DOI: 10.1099/jgv.0.000507] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are a unique group of transmissible, chronic, neurodegenerative disorders. Following peripheral exposure (e.g. oral), prions often accumulate first within the secondary lymphoid tissues before they infect the central nervous system (CNS). Prion replication within secondary lymphoid tissues is crucial for the efficient spread of disease to the CNS. Once within the CNS, the responses of innate immune cells within it can have a significant influence on neurodegeneration and disease progression. Recently, there have been substantial advances in our understanding of how cross-talk between the host and the vast community of commensal microorganisms present at barrier surfaces such as the gut influences the development and regulation of the host's immune system. These effects are evident not only in the mucosal immune system in the gut, but also in the CNS. The actions of this microbial community (the microbiota) have many important beneficial effects on host health, from metabolism of nutrients and regulation of host development to protection from pathogen infection. However, the microbiota can also have detrimental effects in some circumstances. In this review we discuss the many and varied interactions between prions, the host and the gut microbiota. Particular emphasis is given to the ways by which changes to the composition of the commensal gut microbiota or congruent pathogen infection may influence prion disease pathogenesis and/or disease susceptibility. Understanding how these factors influence prion pathogenesis and disease susceptibility is important for assessing the risk to infection and the design of novel opportunities for therapeutic intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- David S Donaldson
- The Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Neil A Mabbott
- The Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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Moudjou M, Chapuis J, Mekrouti M, Reine F, Herzog L, Sibille P, Laude H, Vilette D, Andréoletti O, Rezaei H, Dron M, Béringue V. Glycoform-independent prion conversion by highly efficient, cell-based, protein misfolding cyclic amplification. Sci Rep 2016; 6:29116. [PMID: 27384922 PMCID: PMC4935985 DOI: 10.1038/srep29116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2016] [Accepted: 06/15/2016] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Prions are formed of misfolded assemblies (PrPSc) of the variably N-glycosylated cellular prion protein (PrPC). In infected species, prions replicate by seeding the conversion and polymerization of host PrPC. Distinct prion strains can be recognized, exhibiting defined PrPSc biochemical properties such as the glycotype and specific biological traits. While strain information is encoded within the conformation of PrPSc assemblies, the storage of the structural information and the molecular requirements for self-perpetuation remain uncertain. Here, we investigated the specific role of PrPC glycosylation status. First, we developed an efficient protein misfolding cyclic amplification method using cells expressing the PrPC species of interest as substrate. Applying the technique to PrPC glycosylation mutants expressing cells revealed that neither PrPC nor PrPSc glycoform stoichiometry was instrumental to PrPSc formation and strainness perpetuation. Our study supports the view that strain properties, including PrPSc glycotype are enciphered within PrPSc structural backbone, not in the attached glycans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammed Moudjou
- VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Jérôme Chapuis
- VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Mériem Mekrouti
- VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Fabienne Reine
- VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Laetitia Herzog
- VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Pierre Sibille
- VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Hubert Laude
- VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Didier Vilette
- VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France.,IHAP, INRA, Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, 31000, Toulouse, France
| | - Olivier Andréoletti
- IHAP, INRA, Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, 31000, Toulouse, France
| | - Human Rezaei
- VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Michel Dron
- VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Vincent Béringue
- VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
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48
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Denkers ND, Henderson DM, Mathiason CK, Hoover EA. Enhanced prion detection in biological samples by magnetic particle extraction and real-time quaking-induced conversion. J Gen Virol 2016; 97:2023-2029. [PMID: 27233771 DOI: 10.1099/jgv.0.000515] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Prions have been demonstrated in body fluids and excreta using bioassay, but at levels too low for detection by conventional direct-detection assays. More rapid and sensitive detection of prions in these clinically accessible specimens would be valuable for diagnosis and investigations of transmission, environmental impact, and interventions. In addition to very low concentrations of prions, in vitro amplification assays are challenged by the presence of inhibitors in these complex sources. Here, we leverage the prion attribute of avid metal binding with the versatile power of real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC) to enhance and simplify detection of chronic wasting-disease prions in biological samples. Iron oxide particle binding and magnetic extraction combined with RT-QuIC permitted rapid analysis of the low concentrations of prions in saliva, urine, faeces, and cerebrospinal fluid. These methods are pertinent to ante-mortem detection, monitoring, and surveillance, and could conceivably be applicable to other protein-misfolding disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathaniel D Denkers
- Prion Research Center, Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Davin M Henderson
- Prion Research Center, Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Candace K Mathiason
- Prion Research Center, Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Edward A Hoover
- Prion Research Center, Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
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49
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Wickner RB, Kelly AC. Prions are affected by evolution at two levels. Cell Mol Life Sci 2016; 73:1131-44. [PMID: 26713322 PMCID: PMC4762734 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-015-2109-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2015] [Revised: 11/30/2015] [Accepted: 12/01/2015] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Prions, infectious proteins, can transmit diseases or be the basis of heritable traits (or both), mostly based on amyloid forms of the prion protein. A single protein sequence can be the basis for many prion strains/variants, with different biological properties based on different amyloid conformations, each rather stably propagating. Prions are unique in that evolution and selection work at both the level of the chromosomal gene encoding the protein, and on the prion itself selecting prion variants. Here, we summarize what is known about the evolution of prion proteins, both the genes and the prions themselves. We contrast the one known functional prion, [Het-s] of Podospora anserina, with the known disease prions, the yeast prions [PSI+] and [URE3] and the transmissible spongiform encephalopathies of mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Reed B Wickner
- Laboratory of Biochemistry and Genetics, National Institute of Diabetes Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bldg. 8, Room 225, 8 Center Drive MSC 0830, Bethesda, MD, 20892-0830, USA.
| | - Amy C Kelly
- Laboratory of Biochemistry and Genetics, National Institute of Diabetes Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bldg. 8, Room 225, 8 Center Drive MSC 0830, Bethesda, MD, 20892-0830, USA.
- NCAUR, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1815 N. University St., Peoria, IL, 61604, USA.
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Al-Arydah M, Croteau MC, Oraby T, Smith RJ, Krewski D. Applications of mathematical modeling in managing the spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in wild deer under alternative harvesting scenarios. JOURNAL OF TOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH. PART A 2016; 79:690-699. [PMID: 27556563 DOI: 10.1080/15287394.2016.1174001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
The application of a recently developed mathematical model for predicting the spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in wild deer was assessed under different scenarios where harvesting is employed in disease management. A process-based mathematical model for CWD transmission in wild deer populations was recently developed and parameterized by Al-arydah et al. (2011) to provide a scientific basis for understanding the factors that affect spread of CWD and evaluate concomitant disease-control strategies. The impact of gender on CWD transmission was shown to have a significant influence on the spread of the disease in the wild. Our model demonstrates a range of harvesting rates in which CWD is controlled and deer populations survive. However, if harvesting rates are too low, the disease remains endemic for decades. Conversely, the Canadian deer population is eradicated if harvesting rates are excessive. Future investigation includes building the model to assess the spread of CWD under different disease-management scenarios.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Al-Arydah
- a Masdar Institute of Science and Technology , Abu Dhabi , UAE
| | - M C Croteau
- b McLaughlin Centre for Population Health Risk Assessment , University of Ottawa , Ottawa , Ontario , Canada
| | - T Oraby
- c School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences , University of Texas Rio Grande Valley , Edinburg , Texas , USA
| | - R J Smith
- d Department of Mathematics and Faculty of Medicine , University of Ottawa , Ottawa , Ontario , Canada
| | - D Krewski
- b McLaughlin Centre for Population Health Risk Assessment , University of Ottawa , Ottawa , Ontario , Canada
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