Study on real time response of live cells to lentivirus infection monitored by Raman spectroscopy

The purpose of the present study is to investigate real time responses of live cells to　virus invasion. We employ recombinant lentivirus (rLV) and HEK293 cell for a model virus and a model cell, respectively. The rLV is not able to propagate in the cell but integrates its gene, green fluorescence protein (GFP) in the present case, into the genome of the host cell. Molecular compositional changes in the cells have been monitored during the viral invasion activity using Raman spectroscopy and principal components analysis (PCA). The cell with virus infection showed molecular changes which mostly attributed to protein at only 2 h post infection. It suggests that the molecular changes represent a very early cellular reaction against the viral invasion, because the changes have taken place too early to activate the reactions induced by the virus. We have successfully detected the molecular changes of the live cells also when they met the second viral infection. The results strongly suggest that the cell has a mechanism to detect the viral invasion into its body and initiates a quick reaction against the invasion.