Transcriptional Profiling of the Immune Response to Marburg Virus Infection.

UNLABELLED: Marburg virus is a genetically simple RNA virus that causes a severe hemorrhagic fever in humans and nonhuman primates. The mechanism of pathogenesis of the infection is not well understood, but it is well accepted that pathogenesis is appreciably driven by a hyperactive immune response. To better understand the overall response to Marburg virus challenge, we undertook a transcriptomic analysis of immune cells circulating in the blood following aerosol exposure of rhesus macaques to a lethal dose of Marburg virus. Using two-color microarrays, we analyzed the transcriptomes of peripheral blood mononuclear cells that were collected throughout the course of infection from 1 to 9 days postexposure, representing the full course of the infection. The response followed a 3-stage induction (early infection, 1 to 3 days postexposure; midinfection, 5 days postexposure; late infection, 7 to 9 days postexposure) that was led by a robust innate immune response. The host response to aerosolized Marburg virus was evident at 1 day postexposure. Analysis of cytokine transcripts that were overexpressed during infection indicated that previously unanalyzed cytokines are likely induced in response to exposure to Marburg virus and further suggested that the early immune response is skewed toward a Th2 response that would hamper the development of an effective antiviral immune response early in disease. Late infection events included the upregulation of coagulation-associated factors. These findings demonstrate very early host responses to Marburg virus infection and provide a rich data set for identification of factors expressed throughout the course of infection that can be investigated as markers of infection and targets for therapy. IMPORTANCE: Marburg virus causes a severe infection that is associated with high mortality and hemorrhage. The disease is associated with an immune response that contributes to the lethality of the disease. In this study, we investigated how the immune cells circulating in the blood of infected primates respond following exposure to Marburg virus. Our results show that there are three discernible stages of response to infection that correlate with presymptomatic, early, and late symptomatic stages of infection, a response format similar to that seen following challenge with other hemorrhagic fever viruses. In contrast to the ability of the virus to block innate immune signaling in vitro, the earliest and most sustained response is an interferon-like response. Our analysis also identifies a number of cytokines that are transcriptionally upregulated during late stages of infection and suggest that there is a Th2-skewed response to infection. When correlated with companion data describing the animal model from which our samples were collected, our results suggest that the innate immune response may contribute to overall pathogenesis.

Temporal Characterization of Marburg Virus Angola Infection following Aerosol Challenge in Rhesus Macaques.

UNLABELLED: Marburg virus (MARV) infection is a lethal hemorrhagic fever for which no licensed vaccines or therapeutics are available. Development of appropriate medical countermeasures requires a thorough understanding of the interaction between the host and the pathogen and the resulting disease course. In this study, 15 rhesus macaques were sequentially sacrificed following aerosol exposure to the MARV variant Angola, with longitudinal changes in physiology, immunology, and histopathology used to assess disease progression. Immunohistochemical evidence of infection and resulting histopathological changes were identified as early as day 3 postexposure (p.e.). The appearance of fever in infected animals coincided with the detection of serum viremia and plasma viral genomes on day 4 p.e. High (>10(7) PFU/ml) viral loads were detected in all major organs (lung, liver, spleen, kidney, brain, etc.) beginning day 6 p.e. Clinical pathology findings included coagulopathy, leukocytosis, and profound liver destruction as indicated by elevated liver transaminases, azotemia, and hypoalbuminemia. Altered cytokine expression in response to infection included early increases in Th2 cytokines such as interleukin 10 (IL-10) and IL-5 and late-stage increases in Th1 cytokines such as IL-2, IL-15, and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF). This study provides a longitudinal examination of clinical disease of aerosol MARV Angola infection in the rhesus macaque model. IMPORTANCE: In this study, we carefully analyzed the timeline of Marburg virus infection in nonhuman primates in order to provide a well-characterized model of disease progression following aerosol exposure.

The master regulator of the cellular stress response (HSF1) is critical for orthopoxvirus infection.

The genus Orthopoxviridae contains a diverse group of human pathogens including monkeypox, smallpox and vaccinia. These viruses are presumed to be less dependent on host functions than other DNA viruses because they have large genomes and replicate in the cytoplasm, but a detailed understanding of the host factors required by orthopoxviruses is lacking. To address this topic, we performed an unbiased, genome-wide pooled RNAi screen targeting over 17,000 human genes to identify the host factors that support orthopoxvirus infection. We used secondary and tertiary assays to validate our screen results. One of the strongest hits was heat shock factor 1 (HSF1), the ancient master regulator of the cytoprotective heat-shock response. In investigating the behavior of HSF1 during vaccinia infection, we found that HSF1 was phosphorylated, translocated to the nucleus, and increased transcription of HSF1 target genes. Activation of HSF1 was supportive for virus replication, as RNAi knockdown and HSF1 small molecule inhibition prevented orthopoxvirus infection. Consistent with its role as a transcriptional activator, inhibition of several HSF1 targets also blocked vaccinia virus replication. These data show that orthopoxviruses co-opt host transcriptional responses for their own benefit, thereby effectively extending their functional genome to include genes residing within the host DNA. The dependence on HSF1 and its chaperone network offers multiple opportunities for antiviral drug development.

Lassa and Marburg viruses elicit distinct host transcriptional responses early after infection.

BACKGROUND: Lassa virus and Marburg virus are two causative agents of viral hemorrhagic fever. Their diagnosis is difficult because patients infected with either pathogen present similar nonspecific symptoms early after infection. Current diagnostic tests are based on detecting viral proteins or nucleic acids in the blood, but these cannot be found during the early stages of disease, before the virus starts replicating in the blood. Using the transcriptional response of the host during infection can lead to earlier diagnoses compared to those of traditional methods. RESULTS: In this study, we use RNA sequencing to obtain a high-resolution view of the in vivo transcriptional dynamics of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) throughout both types of infection. We report a subset of host mRNAs, including heat-shock proteins like HSPA1B, immunoglobulins like IGJ, and cell adhesion molecules like SIGLEC1, whose differences in expression are strong enough to distinguish Lassa infection from Marburg infection in non-human primates. We have validated these infection-specific expression differences by using microarrays on a larger set of samples, and by quantifying the expression of individual genes using RT-PCR. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that host transcriptional signatures are correlated with specific viral infections, and that they can be used to identify highly pathogenic viruses during the early stages of disease, before standard detection methods become effective.

Interferon-ß therapy prolongs survival in rhesus macaque models of Ebola and Marburg hemorrhagic fever.

There is a clear need for novel, effective therapeutic approaches to hemorrhagic fever due to filoviruses. Ebola virus hemorrhagic fever is associated with robust interferon (IFN)-α production, with plasma concentrations of IFN-α that greatly (60- to 100-fold) exceed those seen in other viral infections, but little IFN-ß production. While all of the type I IFNs signal through the same receptor complex, both quantitative and qualitative differences in biological activity are observed after stimulation of the receptor complex with different type I IFNs. Taken together, this suggested potential for IFN-ß therapy in filovirus infection. Here we show that early postexposure treatment with IFN-ß significantly increased survival time of rhesus macaques infected with a lethal dose of Ebola virus, although it failed to alter mortality. Early treatment with IFN-ß also significantly increased survival time after Marburg virus infection. IFN-ß may have promise as an adjunctive postexposure therapy in filovirus infection.

Therapeutics of Ebola hemorrhagic fever: whole-genome transcriptional analysis of successful disease mitigation.

The mechanisms of Ebola (EBOV) pathogenesis are only partially understood, but the dysregulation of normal host immune responses (including destruction of lymphocytes, increases in circulating cytokine levels, and development of coagulation abnormalities) is thought to play a major role. Accumulating evidence suggests that much of the observed pathology is not the direct result of virus-induced structural damage but rather is due to the release of soluble immune mediators from EBOV-infected cells. It is therefore essential to understand how the candidate therapeutic may be interrupting the disease process and/or targeting the infectious agent. To identify genetic signatures that are correlates of protection, we used a DNA microarray-based approach to compare the host genome-wide responses of EBOV-infected nonhuman primates (NHPs) responding to candidate therapeutics. We observed that, although the overall circulating immune response was similar in the presence and absence of coagulation inhibitors, surviving NHPs clustered together. Noticeable differences in coagulation-associated genes appeared to correlate with survival, which revealed a subset of distinctly differentially expressed genes, including chemokine ligand 8 (CCL8/MCP-2), that may provide possible targets for early-stage diagnostics or future therapeutics. These analyses will assist us in understanding the pathogenic mechanisms of EBOV infection and in identifying improved therapeutic strategies.

Transcriptional correlates of disease outcome in anticoagulant-treated non-human primates infected with ebolavirus.

Ebola virus (EBOV) infection in humans and non-human primates (NHPs) is highly lethal, and there is limited understanding of the mechanisms associated with pathogenesis and survival. Here, we describe a transcriptomic analysis of NHPs that survived lethal EBOV infection, compared to NHPs that did not survive. It has been previously demonstrated that anticoagulant therapeutics increase the survival rate in EBOV-infected NHPs, and that the characteristic transcriptional profile of immune response changes in anticoagulant-treated NHPs. In order to identify transcriptional signatures that correlate with survival following EBOV infection, we compared the mRNA expression profile in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from EBOV-infected NHPs that received anticoagulant treatment, to those that did not receive treatment. We identified a small set of 20 genes that are highly confident predictors and can accurately distinguish between surviving and non-surviving animals. In addition, we identified a larger predictive signature of 238 genes that correlated with disease outcome and treatment; this latter signature was associated with a variety of host responses, such as the inflammatory response, T cell death, and inhibition of viral replication. Notably, among survival-associated genes were subsets of genes that are transcriptionally regulated by (1) CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein alpha, (2) tumor protein 53, and (3) megakaryoblastic leukemia 1 and myocardin-like protein 2. These pathways merit further investigation as potential transcriptional signatures of host immune response to EBOV infection.

Transcriptional profiling of the circulating immune response to lassa virus in an aerosol model of exposure.

Lassa virus (LASV) is a significant human pathogen that is endemic to several countries in West Africa. Infection with LASV leads to the development of hemorrhagic fever in a significant number of cases, and it is estimated that thousands die each year from the disease. Little is known about the complex immune mechanisms governing the response to LASV or the genetic determinants of susceptibility and resistance to infection. In the study presented here, we have used a whole-genome, microarray-based approach to determine the temporal host response in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of non-human primates (NHP) following aerosol exposure to LASV. Sequential sampling over the entire disease course showed that there are strong transcriptional changes of the immune response to LASV exposure, including the early induction of interferon-responsive genes and Toll-like receptor signaling pathways. However, this increase in early innate responses was coupled with a lack of pro-inflammatory cytokine response in LASV exposed NHPs. There was a distinct lack of cytokines such as IL1ß and IL23α, while immunosuppressive cytokines such as IL27 and IL6 were upregulated. Comparison of IRF/STAT1-stimulated gene expression with the viral load in LASV exposed NHPs suggests that mRNA expression significantly precedes viremia, and thus might be used for early diagnostics of the disease. Our results provide a transcriptomic survey of the circulating immune response to hemorrhagic LASV exposure and provide a foundation for biomarker identification to allow clinical diagnosis of LASV infection through analysis of the host response.

Vaccinia virus infection & temporal analysis of virus gene expression: Part 2.

The family Poxviridae consists of large double-stranded DNA containing viruses that replicate exclusively in the cytoplasm of infected cells. Members of the orthopox genus include variola, the causative agent of human small pox, monkeypox, and vaccinia (VAC), the prototypic member of the virus family. Within the relatively large (approximately 200 kb) vaccinia genome, three classes of genes are encoded: early, intermediate, and late. While all three classes are transcribed by virally-encoded RNA polymerases, each class serves a different function in the life cycle of the virus. Poxviruses utilize multiple strategies for modulation of the host cellular environment during infection. In order to understand regulation of both host and virus gene expression, we have utilized genome-wide approaches to analyze transcript abundance from both virus and host cells. Here, we demonstrate time course infections of HeLa cells with Vaccinia virus and sampling RNA at several time points post-infection. Both host and viral total RNA is isolated and amplified for hybridization to microarrays for analysis of gene expression.

Vaccinia virus infection & temporal analysis of virus gene expression: part 1.

The family Poxviridae consists of large double-stranded DNA containing viruses that replicate exclusively in the cytoplasm of infected cells. Members of the orthopox genus include variola, the causative agent of human small pox, monkeypox, and vaccinia (VAC), the prototypic member of the virus family. Within the relatively large (approximately 200 kb) vaccinia genome, three classes of genes are encoded: early, intermediate, and late. While all three classes are transcribed by virally-encoded RNA polymerases, each class serves a different function in the life cycle of the virus. Poxviruses utilize multiple strategies for modulation of the host cellular environment during infection. In order to understand regulation of both host and virus gene expression, we have utilized genome-wide approaches to analyze transcript abundance from both virus and host cells. Here, we demonstrate time course infections of HeLa cells with Vaccinia virus and sampling RNA at several time points post-infection. Both host and viral total RNA is isolated and amplified for hybridization to microarrays for analysis of gene expression.

Vaccinia virus infection & temporal analysis of virus gene expression: Part 3.

The family Poxviridae consists of large double-stranded DNA containing viruses that replicate exclusively in the cytoplasm of infected cells. Members of the orthopox genus include variola, the causative agent of human small pox, monkeypox, and vaccinia (VAC), the prototypic member of the virus family. Within the relatively large (approximately 200 kb) vaccinia genome, three classes of genes are encoded: early, intermediate, and late. While all three classes are transcribed by virally-encoded RNA polymerases, each class serves a different function in the life cycle of the virus. Poxviruses utilize multiple strategies for modulation of the host cellular environment during infection. In order to understand regulation of both host and virus gene expression, we have utilized genome-wide approaches to analyze transcript abundance from both virus and host cells. Here, we demonstrate time course infections of HeLa cells with Vaccinia virus and sampling RNA at several time points post-infection. Both host and viral total RNA is isolated and amplified for hybridization to microarrays for analysis of gene expression.

Viable human cytomegalovirus recombinant virus with an internal deletion of the IE2 86 gene affects late stages of viral replication.

Using bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) technology, we have constructed and characterized a human cytomegalovirus recombinant virus with a mutation in the exon specific for the major immediate-early region 2 (IE2) gene product. The resulting IE2 86-kDa protein (IE2 86) has an internal deletion of amino acids 136 to 290 and is fused at the carboxy terminus to enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP). The deletion also removes the promoter and initiator methionine for the p40 form of IE2 and initiator methionine for the p60 form of the protein, and therefore, these late gene products are not produced. The mutant virus IE2 86 Delta SX-EGFP is viable but exhibits altered growth characteristics in tissue culture compared with a full-length wild-type (wt) IE2 86-EGFP virus or a revertant virus. When cells are infected with the mutant virus at a low multiplicity of infection (MOI), there is a marked delay in the production of infectious virus. This is associated with slower cell-to-cell spread of the virus. By immunofluorescence and Western blot analyses, we show that the early steps in the replication of the mutant virus are comparable to those for the wt. Although there is significantly less IE2 protein in the cells infected with the mutant, there is only a modest lag in the initial accumulation of IE1 72 and viral early proteins, and viral DNA replication proceeds normally. The mutation also has only a small effect on the synthesis of the viral major capsid protein. The most notable molecular defect in the mutant virus infection is that the steady-state levels of the pp65 (UL83) and pp28 (UL99) matrix proteins are greatly reduced. In the case of UL83, but not UL99, there is also a corresponding decrease in the amount of mRNA present in cells infected with the mutant virus.

Infection of cells with human cytomegalovirus during S phase results in a blockade to immediate-early gene expression that can be overcome by inhibition of the proteasome.

Cells infected with human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) after commencing DNA replication do not initiate viral immediate-early (IE) gene expression and divide before arresting. To determine the nature of this blockade, we examined cells that were infected 24 h after release from G(0) using immunofluorescence, laser scanning cytometry, and fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) analysis. Approximately 40 to 50% of the cells had 2N DNA content, became IE(+) in the first 12 h, and arrested. Most but not all of the cells with >2N DNA content did not express IE antigens until after mitosis. To define the small population of IE(+) cells that gradually accumulated within the S and G(2)/M compartments, cells were pulsed with bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) just prior to S-phase infection and analyzed at 12 h postinfection for IE gene expression, BrdU positivity, and cell cycle position. Most of the BrdU(+) cells were IE(-) and had progressed into G(2)/M or back to G(1). The majority of the IE(+) cells in S and G(2)/M were BrdU(-). Only a few cells were IE(+) BrdU(+), and they resided in G(2)/M. Multipoint BrdU pulse-labeling revealed that, compared to cells actively synthesizing DNA at the beginning of the infection, a greater percentage of the cells that initiated DNA replication 4 h later could express IE antigens and proceed into S. Synchronization of the cells with aphidicolin also indicated that the blockade to the activation of IE gene expression was established in cells soon after initiation of DNA replication. It appears that a short-lived protein in S-phase cells may be required for IE gene expression, as it is partially restored by treatment with the proteasome inhibitor MG132.

Cyclin-dependent kinase activity is required at early times for accurate processing and accumulation of the human cytomegalovirus UL122-123 and UL37 immediate-early transcripts and at later times for virus production.

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection leads to dysregulation of multiple cell cycle-regulatory proteins. In this study, we examined the effects of inhibition of cyclin-dependent kinase (cdk) activity on viral replication. With the drug Roscovitine, a specific inhibitor of cyclin-dependent kinases 1, 2, 5, 7, and 9, we have shown that during the first 6 h of infection, cyclin-dependent kinase-dependent events occurred that included the regulated processing and accumulation of the immediate-early (IE) UL122-123 transcripts and UL36-37 transcripts. Altered processing of UL122-123 led to a loss of IE1-72 and an increase in IE2-86. The ratio of spliced to unspliced UL37 transcripts also changed. These effects did not require de novo protein synthesis or degradation of proteins by the proteasome. Addition of Roscovitine at the beginning of the infection was also associated with inhibition of expression of selected viral early gene products, viral DNA replication, and late viral gene expression. When Roscovitine was added after the first 6 h of infection, the effects on IE gene expression were no longer observed and viral replication proceeded through the late phase, but viral titers were reduced. The reduction in viral titer was observed even when Roscovitine was first added at 48 h postinfection, indicating that cyclin-dependent kinase activity is required at both IE and late times. Flavopiridol, another specific inhibitor of cyclin-dependent kinases, had similar effects on IE and early gene expression. These results underscore the importance of accurate RNA processing and reiterate the significant role of cell cycle-regulatory factors in HCMV infection.