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Generation, Amplification, and Titration of Recombinant Respiratory Syncytial Viruses
Published on: April 4, 2019
The role of syncytia during viral infections
Benjamin Jessie1, Hana M Dobrovolny1
1Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, TX, United States.
Abstract:
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common, contagious infection of the lungs and the respiratory tract. RSV is characterized by syncytia, which are multinuclear cells created by cells that have fused together. We use a mathematical model to study how different assumptions about the viral production and lifespan of syncytia change the resulting infection time course. We find that the effect of syncytia on viral titer is only apparent when the basic reproduction number for infection via syncytia formation is similar to the reproduction number for cell free viral transmission. When syncytia fusion rate is high, we find the presence of syncytia can lead to slowly growing infections if viral production is suppressed in syncytia. Our model provides insight into how the presence of syncytia can affect the time course of a viral infection.
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