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Undernutrition can affect the invading microorganism

Donald B Louria1

  • 1Department of Preventive Medicine and Community Health, University of Medicine and Dentistry-New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ 07101-3000, USA. louriado@umdnj.edu

Clinical Infectious Diseases : an Official Publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America
|July 20, 2007
PubMed

Insights

Undernutrition weakens immune defenses, increasing infectious disease severity. Nutritional deficiencies in mice led to more virulent influenza viruses with genomic changes, raising concerns for human H5N1 infections.

Area of Science:

  • Virology
  • Immunology
  • Nutritional Science

Background:

  • Undernutrition compromises host immune responses, exacerbating infections.
  • Nutrient deficiencies, such as selenium or vitamin E, have been linked to increased disease severity in viral infections.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of undernutrition on viral genomic stability and virulence.
  • To explore the potential for undernutrition to drive viral evolution, increasing pandemic risk.

Main Methods:

  • Studies involving RNA viruses (e.g., coxsackievirus B, influenzavirus) in mouse models.
  • Analysis of genomic changes in influenza viruses (H3N2) under conditions of nutrient deficiency.

Main Results:

  • Selenium or vitamin E deficiency in mice increased disease severity and led to stable genomic alterations in viruses, enhancing virulence.
  • Changes were observed in the M1 matrix protein of H3N2 influenzavirus.

Conclusions:

  • Undernutrition may promote genomic changes in viruses like H5N1, potentially increasing virulence and human-to-human transmission.
  • Alleviating poverty and malnutrition is crucial; further research into undernutrition's effects on microbial invasion is warranted.

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