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Mouse respiratory epithelial cells support efficient replication of human rhinovirus
Tobias J Tuthill1, Nikolaos G Papadopoulos2, Patrick Jourdan3
1Division of Microbiology, School of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK.
The Journal of General Virology
|September 19, 2003
Summary
Developing small animal models for human rhinovirus (HRV) infections is crucial for new therapies. This study shows specific HRV strains can infect mouse cells, paving the way for better respiratory disease models.
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Respiratory Medicine
- Immunology
Background:
- Human rhinoviruses (HRVs) cause common upper respiratory tract infections.
- HRV infections can worsen asthma and other chronic lower respiratory diseases.
- Small animal models are needed for HRV therapy development, but existing models are limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the permissiveness of mouse respiratory epithelial cells to HRV infection.
- To develop improved mouse models for studying HRV-induced respiratory diseases.
- To explore strategies for enabling HRV replication in mouse models.
Main Methods:
- Infection of mouse respiratory epithelial (LA-4) and fibroblast (L) cell lines with HRV1B.
- Transfection of HRV16 RNA into LA-4 cells.
- Generation of a chimeric ICAM-1 molecule for expression in LA-4 cells.
- Assessing HRV replication and viral RNA production in modified cells.
Main Results:
- HRV1B replicated efficiently in mouse LA-4 cells.
- HRV16, a major group virus, did not infect LA-4 cells due to receptor incompatibility.
- Transfected HRV16 RNA replicated, and modified LA-4 cells expressing chimeric ICAM-1 became susceptible to HRV16 entry and replication.
Conclusions:
- Mouse respiratory epithelial cells can support HRV replication, particularly minor group strains.
- Engineering mouse cells with human ICAM-1 enables infection by major group HRVs.
- These findings support the development of robust mouse models for both major and minor group HRV respiratory infections.