1
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Okajima M, Takenaka-Uema A, Fujii Y, Izumi F, Kojima I, Ozawa M, Naitou K, Suda Y, Nishiyama S, Murakami S, Horimoto T, Ito N, Shirafuji H, Yanase T, Masatani T. Differential role of NSs genes in the neurovirulence of two genogroups of Akabane virus causing postnatal encephalomyelitis. Arch Virol 2023; 169:7. [PMID: 38082138 DOI: 10.1007/s00705-023-05929-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2023] [Accepted: 10/14/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023]
Abstract
Akabane virus (AKAV) is a member of the genus Orthobunyavirus, family Peribunyaviridae. In addition to AKAV strains that cause fetal Akabane disease, which is characterized by abortion in ruminants, some AKAV strains cause postnatal infection characterized by nonsuppurative encephalomyelitis in ruminants. Here, we focused on the NSs protein, a virulence factor for most viruses belonging to the genus Orthobunyavirus, and we hypothesized that this protein would act as a neurovirulence factor in AKAV strains causing postnatal encephalomyelitis. We generated AKAV strains that were unable to produce the NSs protein, derived from two different genogroups, genogroups I and II, and then examined the role of their NSs proteins by inoculating mice intracerebrally with these modified viruses. Our results revealed that the neurovirulence of genogroup II strains is dependent on the NSs protein, whereas that of genogroup I strains is independent of this protein. Notably, infection of primary cultured bovine cells with these viruses suggested that the NSs proteins of both genogroups suppress innate immune-related gene expression with equal efficiency. These results indicate differences in the determinants of virulence of orthobunyaviruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Misuzu Okajima
- Joint Graduate School of Veterinary Sciences, Gifu University, Gifu, Japan
| | - Akiko Takenaka-Uema
- Laboratory of Veterinary Microbiology, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yuji Fujii
- Joint Graduate School of Veterinary Sciences, Gifu University, Gifu, Japan
| | - Fumiki Izumi
- Joint Graduate School of Veterinary Sciences, Gifu University, Gifu, Japan
| | - Isshu Kojima
- Joint Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Kagoshima University, Kagoshima, Japan
| | - Makoto Ozawa
- Joint Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Kagoshima University, Kagoshima, Japan
- Laboratory of Animal Hygiene, Joint Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kagoshima University, Kagoshima, Japan
- Transboundary Animal Diseases Research Center, Joint Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kagoshima University, Kagoshima, Japan
| | - Kiyotada Naitou
- Department of Basic Veterinary Science, Joint Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kagoshima University, Kagoshima, Japan
| | - Yuto Suda
- Kagoshima Research Station, National Institute of Animal Health, NARO, Kagoshima, Japan
| | - Shoko Nishiyama
- Laboratory of Zoonotic Diseases, Faculty of Applied Biological Sciences, Gifu University, Gifu, Japan
| | - Shin Murakami
- Laboratory of Veterinary Microbiology, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Taisuke Horimoto
- Laboratory of Veterinary Microbiology, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Naoto Ito
- Joint Graduate School of Veterinary Sciences, Gifu University, Gifu, Japan
- Laboratory of Zoonotic Diseases, Faculty of Applied Biological Sciences, Gifu University, Gifu, Japan
- Center for One Medicine Innovative Translational Research (COMIT), Gifu University, Gifu, Japan
| | - Hiroaki Shirafuji
- Kagoshima Research Station, National Institute of Animal Health, NARO, Kagoshima, Japan
| | - Tohru Yanase
- Kagoshima Research Station, National Institute of Animal Health, NARO, Kagoshima, Japan
| | - Tatsunori Masatani
- Joint Graduate School of Veterinary Sciences, Gifu University, Gifu, Japan.
- Laboratory of Zoonotic Diseases, Faculty of Applied Biological Sciences, Gifu University, Gifu, Japan.
- Center for One Medicine Innovative Translational Research (COMIT), Gifu University, Gifu, Japan.
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Golender N, Varsano JS, Nissimyan T, Tiomkin E. Identification of Novel Reassortant Shuni Virus Strain in Clinical Cases of Israeli Ruminants, 2020–2021. Trop Med Infect Dis 2022; 7:tropicalmed7100297. [PMID: 36288038 PMCID: PMC9606876 DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed7100297] [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: 08/30/2022] [Revised: 09/27/2022] [Accepted: 10/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The Shuni virus (SHUV) causes an endemic viral infection in Israel and South Africa. It belongs to the Simbu serogroup within the order Bunyavirales, family Peribunyaviridae, genus Orthobunyavirus. Recently, it has been identified in aborted cases of domestic ruminants, young cattle and horses manifesting neural signs and acute death, symptomatic cows, and in carcasses of wild animals. Moreover, SHUV was isolated and identified in humans. In this study, we describe clinical cases of SHUV infection in Israeli domestic ruminants in 2020–2021, which represented clinical manifestations of simbuviral infection including abortions, a neural lethal case in a fattening calf, and an acute symptomatic case in a beef cow. In all cases, SHUV was confirmed by complete or partial viral genome sequencing. There is a significant difference of M and L segments of the novel strains compared with those of all known SHUV strains, while the S segments have more than 99% nucleotide (nt) identity with Israeli and African “Israeli-like” strains previously circulated in 2014–2019. This indicates a reassortment origin of the strain. At the same time, M and S segment nt sequences showed about 98–99% nt identity with some South African strains collected in 2016–2018. Nevertheless, the viral origin and the geographical place of the reassortment stayed unknown.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalia Golender
- Department of Virology, Kimron Veterinary Institute, Bet Dagan 5025000, Israel
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +972-3968-1668; Fax: +972-3968-1788
| | | | | | - Eitan Tiomkin
- Hachaklait Veterinary Services, Caesarea 3088900, Israel
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3
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Ren N, Wang F, Zhao L, Wang S, Zhang G, Li J, Zhang B, Wang J, Bergeron E, Yuan Z, Xia H. Efficient rescue of a newly classified Ebinur lake orthobunyavirus with GFP reporter and its application in rapid antiviral screening. Antiviral Res 2022; 207:105421. [PMID: 36150523 DOI: 10.1016/j.antiviral.2022.105421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2022] [Revised: 08/29/2022] [Accepted: 09/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Orthobunyaviruses have been reported to cause severe diseases in humans or animals, posing a potential threat to human health and socio-economy. Ebinur lake virus (EBIV) is a newly classified orthobunyavirus, which can induce the histopathogenic change and even the high mortality of infected BALB/c mice. Therefore, it is needed to further study the viral replication and pathogenesis, and develop the therapies to cope with its potential infection to human or animals. Here, through the reverse genetics system, the recombinant EBIV of wild type (rEBIV/WT) and NP-conjugated-eGFP (rEBIV/eGFP/S) were rescued for the application of the high-content screening (HCS) of antiviral drug. The eGFP fluorescence signal of the rEBIV/eGFP/S was stable in the process of successive passage in BHK-21 cells (over 10 passages) and this recombinant virus could replicate in various cell lines. Compared to the wild type EBIV, the rEBIV/eGFP/S caused the smaller plaques (diameter around 1 mm on 3 dpi) and lower peak titers (105 PFU/mL), suggesting attenuation due to the eGFP insertion. Through the high-content screening (HCS) system, two antiviral compounds, ribavirin and favipiravir, which previously reported to have effect to some bunyavirus were tested firstly. Ribavirin showed an inhibitory effect on the rEBIV/eGFP/S (EC50 = 14.38 μM) as our expect, while favipiravir with no inhibitory effect even using high doses. Furthermore, Tyrphostin A9 (EC50 = 0.72 μM for rEBIV/eGFP/S, EC50 = 0.05 μM for EBIV-WT) and UNC0638 (EC50 = 1.26 μM for rEBIV/eGFP/S, EC50 = 1.10 μM for rEBIV/eGFP/S) were identified with strong antiviral effect against EBIV in vitro from 150 antiviral compounds. In addition, the time-of-addition assay indicated that Tyrphostin A9 worked in the stage of viral post-infection, and the UNC0638 in all pre-, co-, and post-infection stages. This robust reverse genetics system will facilitate the investigation into the studying of viral replication and assembly mechanisms, and the development of drug and vaccine for EBIV in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nanjie Ren
- Key Laboratory of Special Pathogens and Biosafety, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Fei Wang
- Key Laboratory of Special Pathogens and Biosafety, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Lu Zhao
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Zhejiang, China
| | - Shunlong Wang
- Key Laboratory of Special Pathogens and Biosafety, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Guilin Zhang
- Xinjiang Heribase Biotechnology CO., LTD., Urumqi, China
| | - Jiaqi Li
- Key Laboratory of Special Pathogens and Biosafety, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Bo Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Special Pathogens and Biosafety, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jinglin Wang
- Yunnan Tropical and Subtropical Animal Viral Disease Laboratory, Yunnan Animal Science and Veterinary Institute, Kunming, Yunnan, China
| | - Eric Bergeron
- Viral Special Pathogens Branch, Division of High-Consequence Pathogens and Pathology, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, United States
| | - Zhiming Yuan
- Key Laboratory of Special Pathogens and Biosafety, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
| | - Han Xia
- Key Laboratory of Special Pathogens and Biosafety, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
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Ren F, Shen S, Wang Q, Wei G, Huang C, Wang H, Ning YJ, Zhang DY, Deng F. Recent Advances in Bunyavirus Reverse Genetics Research: Systems Development, Applications, and Future Perspectives. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:771934. [PMID: 34950119 PMCID: PMC8689132 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.771934] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2021] [Accepted: 11/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Bunyaviruses are members of the Bunyavirales order, which is the largest group of RNA viruses, comprising 12 families, including a large group of emerging and re-emerging viruses. These viruses can infect a wide variety of species worldwide, such as arthropods, protozoans, plants, animals, and humans, and pose substantial threats to the public. In view of the fact that a better understanding of the life cycle of a highly pathogenic virus is often a precondition for developing vaccines and antivirals, it is urgent to develop powerful tools to unravel the molecular basis of the pathogenesis. However, biosafety level −3 or even −4 containment laboratory is considered as a necessary condition for working with a number of bunyaviruses, which has hampered various studies. Reverse genetics systems, including minigenome (MG), infectious virus-like particle (iVLP), and infectious full-length clone (IFLC) systems, are capable of recapitulating some or all steps of the viral replication cycle; among these, the MG and iVLP systems have been very convenient and effective tools, allowing researchers to manipulate the genome segments of pathogenic viruses at lower biocontainment to investigate the viral genome transcription, replication, virus entry, and budding. The IFLC system is generally developed based on the MG or iVLP systems, which have facilitated the generation of recombinant infectious viruses. The MG, iVLP, and IFLC systems have been successfully developed for some important bunyaviruses and have been widely employed as powerful tools to investigate the viral replication cycle, virus–host interactions, virus pathogenesis, and virus evolutionary process. The majority of bunyaviruses is generally enveloped negative-strand RNA viruses with two to six genome segments, of which the viruses with bipartite and tripartite genome segments have mostly been characterized. This review aimed to summarize current knowledge on reverse genetic studies of representative bunyaviruses causing severe diseases in humans and animals, which will contribute to the better understanding of the bunyavirus replication cycle and provide some hints for developing designed antivirals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fuli Ren
- Research Center for Translational Medicine, Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital, Wuhan, China.,State Key Laboratory of Virology, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China.,National Virus Resource Center, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Shu Shen
- State Key Laboratory of Virology, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China.,National Virus Resource Center, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Qiongya Wang
- Research Center for Translational Medicine, Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital, Wuhan, China
| | - Gang Wei
- Research Center for Translational Medicine, Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital, Wuhan, China
| | - Chaolin Huang
- Research Center for Translational Medicine, Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital, Wuhan, China
| | - Hualin Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Virology, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China.,National Virus Resource Center, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Yun-Jia Ning
- State Key Laboratory of Virology, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China.,National Virus Resource Center, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Ding-Yu Zhang
- Research Center for Translational Medicine, Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital, Wuhan, China
| | - Fei Deng
- State Key Laboratory of Virology, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China.,National Virus Resource Center, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
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Li Z, Zhao C. Plant negative-stranded RNA virus biology and host interactions revitalized by reverse genetics. Curr Opin Virol 2021; 48:1-9. [PMID: 33774424 DOI: 10.1016/j.coviro.2021.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2021] [Revised: 03/04/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Our understanding of the biology and pathogenesis of plant negative-stranded RNA viruses (NSVs) has lagged behind those made with positive-stranded RNA and DNA virus counterparts. This tardiness is mainly due to the lack of reverse genetics tools for NSV genome engineering for many years. The eventual establishment and application of recombinant systems with diverse plant NSVs has provided renewed momentum for investigations of these important viral pathogens. In this review, we summarize the recent advances in plant NSV reverse genetics systems, highlighting the general principles and the uniqueness of each system and emphasizing important considerations for strategy designing. We also provide a brief overview of the insights about NSV morphogenesis, movement, and virus-host interactions gained from reverse genetics-enabled studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenghe Li
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China; Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Crop Pathogens and Insect Pests, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China; Key Laboratory of Biology of Crop Pathogens and Insects of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China.
| | - Chenglu Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
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6
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Zhang X, Sun K, Liang Y, Wang S, Wu K, Li Z. Development of Rice Stripe Tenuivirus Minireplicon Reverse Genetics Systems Suitable for Analyses of Viral Replication and Intercellular Movement. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:655256. [PMID: 33833749 PMCID: PMC8021733 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.655256] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2021] [Accepted: 02/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Rice stripe virus (RSV), a tenuivirus with four negative-sense/ambisense genome segments, is one of the most devastating viral pathogens affecting rice production in many Asian countries. Despite extensive research, our understanding of RSV infection cycles and pathogenesis has been severely impaired by the lack of reverse genetics tools. In this study, we have engineered RSV minireplicon (MR)/minigenome cassettes with reporter genes substituted for the viral open reading frames in the negative-sense RNA1 or the ambisense RNA2-4 segments. After delivery to Nicotiana benthamiana leaves via agroinfiltration, MR reporter gene expression was detected only when the codon-optimized large viral RNA polymerase protein (L) was coexpressed with the nucleocapsid (N) protein. MR activity was also critically dependent on the coexpressed viral suppressors of RNA silencing, but ectopic expression of the RSV-encoded NS3 silencing suppressor drastically decreased reporter gene expression. We also developed intercellular movement-competent MR systems with the movement protein expressed either in cis from an RNA4-based MR or in trans from a binary plasmid. Finally, we generated multicomponent replicon systems by expressing the N and L proteins directly from complementary-sense RNA1 and RNA3 derivatives, which enhanced reporter gene expression, permitted autonomous replication and intercellular movement, and reduced the number of plasmids required for delivery. In summary, this work enables reverse genetics analyses of RSV replication, transcription, and cell-to-cell movement and provides a platform for engineering more complex recombinant systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyan Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Kai Sun
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Yan Liang
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Shuo Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Kaili Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Zhenghe Li
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.,Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Crop Pathogens and Insect, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.,Key Laboratory of Biology of Crop Pathogens and Insects of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
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7
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Bermúdez-Méndez E, Katrukha EA, Spruit CM, Kortekaas J, Wichgers Schreur PJ. Visualizing the ribonucleoprotein content of single bunyavirus virions reveals more efficient genome packaging in the arthropod host. Commun Biol 2021; 4:345. [PMID: 33753850 PMCID: PMC7985392 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-021-01821-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2020] [Accepted: 02/09/2021] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Bunyaviruses have a genome that is divided over multiple segments. Genome segmentation complicates the generation of progeny virus, since each newly formed virus particle should preferably contain a full set of genome segments in order to disseminate efficiently within and between hosts. Here, we combine immunofluorescence and fluorescence in situ hybridization techniques to simultaneously visualize bunyavirus progeny virions and their genomic content at single-molecule resolution in the context of singly infected cells. Using Rift Valley fever virus and Schmallenberg virus as prototype tri-segmented bunyaviruses, we show that bunyavirus genome packaging is influenced by the intracellular viral genome content of individual cells, which results in greatly variable packaging efficiencies within a cell population. We further show that bunyavirus genome packaging is more efficient in insect cells compared to mammalian cells and provide new insights on the possibility that incomplete particles may contribute to bunyavirus spread as well.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erick Bermúdez-Méndez
- Department of Virology, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, Lelystad, The Netherlands
- Laboratory of Virology, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Eugene A Katrukha
- Cell Biology, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Cindy M Spruit
- Department of Virology, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, Lelystad, The Netherlands
- Department of Chemical Biology & Drug Discovery, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Jeroen Kortekaas
- Department of Virology, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, Lelystad, The Netherlands
- Laboratory of Virology, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands
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Oymans J, van Keulen L, Vermeulen GM, Wichgers Schreur PJ, Kortekaas J. Shuni Virus Replicates at the Maternal-Fetal Interface of the Ovine and Human Placenta. Pathogens 2020; 10:pathogens10010017. [PMID: 33383649 PMCID: PMC7823754 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens10010017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2020] [Revised: 12/18/2020] [Accepted: 12/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Shuni virus (SHUV) is a neglected teratogenic and neurotropic orthobunyavirus that was discovered in the 1960s in Nigeria and was subsequently detected in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Israel. The virus was isolated from field-collected biting midges and mosquitoes and shown to disseminate efficiently in laboratory-reared biting midges, suggesting that members of the families Culicidae and Ceratopogonidae may function as vectors. SHUV infections have been associated with severe neurological disease in horses, a variety of wildlife species, and domesticated ruminants. SHUV infection of ruminants is additionally associated with abortion, stillbirth, and congenital malformations. The detection of antibodies in human sera also suggests that the virus may have zoonotic potential. To understand how SHUV crosses the ruminant placenta, we here infected pregnant ewes and subsequently performed detailed clinical- and histopathological examination of placental tissue. We found that SHUV targets both maternal epithelial cells and fetal trophoblasts, that together form the maternal-fetal interface of the ovine placenta. Experiments with human placental explants, furthermore, revealed replication of SHUV in syncytiotrophoblasts, which are generally highly resistant to virus infections. Our findings provide novel insights into vertical transmission of SHUV in sheep and call for research on the potential risk of SHUV infection during human pregnancies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judith Oymans
- Department of Virology, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, Houtribweg 39, 8221 RA Lelystad, The Netherlands; (J.O.); (L.v.K.); (P.J.W.S.)
- Laboratory of Virology, Wageningen University & Research, P.O. Box 16, 6700 AA Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Lucien van Keulen
- Department of Virology, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, Houtribweg 39, 8221 RA Lelystad, The Netherlands; (J.O.); (L.v.K.); (P.J.W.S.)
| | - Guus M. Vermeulen
- Department of Gynaecology, Isala Hospital, 8025 AB Zwolle, The Netherlands;
| | - Paul J. Wichgers Schreur
- Department of Virology, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, Houtribweg 39, 8221 RA Lelystad, The Netherlands; (J.O.); (L.v.K.); (P.J.W.S.)
| | - Jeroen Kortekaas
- Department of Virology, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, Houtribweg 39, 8221 RA Lelystad, The Netherlands; (J.O.); (L.v.K.); (P.J.W.S.)
- Laboratory of Virology, Wageningen University & Research, P.O. Box 16, 6700 AA Wageningen, The Netherlands
- Correspondence:
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