Christian Jassoy

Vaccinia virus serpin B13R (SPI-2) inhibits interleukin-1beta-converting enzyme and protects virus-infected cells from TNF- and Fas-mediated apoptosis, but does not prevent IL-1beta-induced fever.

The vaccinia virus (VV) strain Western Reserve B13R gene encodes a 38.5 kDa intracellular polypeptide that is non-essential for virus replication in vitro and does not affect virus virulence in a murine intranasal model. The protein has 92% amino acid identity with the cowpox virus cytokine response modifier A (crmA) protein which inhibits the interleukin (IL)-1beta converting enzyme (ICE). Here, we show that extracts from THP-1 cells infected with VV strains expressing B13R prevent the cleavage of in vitro transcribed and translated pro-IL-1beta into mature IL-1beta. Similarly, THP-1 cells infected with VVs expressing B13R process pro-IL-1beta into mature IL-1beta inefficiently in situ. Despite its inhibition of ICE, B13R does not prevent fever in infected mice, a systemic effect mediated by IL-1beta. Instead, fever is controlled by the VV IL-1beta receptor, encoded by gene B15R, and deletion of both the B13R and B15R genes did not increase the febrile response compared to deletion of B15R alone. The B13R protein does, however, block apoptosis mediated by anti-Fas antibodies or by tumour necrosis factor (TNF) and cycloheximide. Using DNA fragmentation, chromium release and microscopic analyses it was shown that cells infected with wild-type VV strain WR, or a revertant virus in which the B13R gene had been re-inserted into the B13R deletion mutant, are more resistant than uninfected cells or deletion mutant-infected cells to apoptosis mediated by anti-Fas and TNF.

Measles virus-induced immunosuppression in cotton rats is associated with cell cycle retardation in uninfected lymphocytes

Measles virus (MV)-induced immune suppression during acute measles often leads to secondary viral, bacterial and parasitic infections which severely complicate the course of disease. Previously, we have shown that cotton rats are a good animal model to study MV-induced immune suppression, where proliferation inhibition after ex vivo stimulation of cotton rat spleen cells is induced by the viral glycoproteins (fusion and haemagglutinin proteins). We have now tested a variety of putative mechanisms of MV-induced immune suppression in this animal model. Proliferation inhibition is not due to fusion mediated by the MV glycoproteins and subsequent lysis of cells. Other putative mechanisms like classical anergy (unresponsiveness towards IL-2) or apoptosis do not seem to play a role in MV-induced immune suppression. In contrast, it was shown that spleen cells from infected animals preferentially accumulate in the G0/G1 phase and progress more slowly through the cell cycle after mitogen stimulation in comparison to cells from non-infected animals. These data indicate a retardation of the cell cycle which is correlated with proliferation inhibition and might have severe consequences in mounting an effective immune response.

Dopamine activates HIV in chronically infected T lymphoblasts.

Summary. HIV infection is associated with a marked vulnerability of the dopaminergic system. We found recently that dopaminergic substances increase brain pathology in the simian model of HIV infection. In the current study we used the chronically HIV-infected T-lymphoblasts ACH-2 to elucidate the effects of dopamine (DA) on HIV infection. Cells were exposed to various concentrations of DA for 24 hours. Flow cytometry measurements demonstrated that DA induced a concentration-dependent HIV activation. To study the mechanism of action of DA, cells were treated besides DA with glutathione, one of the main components of cellular defense mechanisms against oxidative stress as well as its indirect precursor N-acetylcysteine. Treatment with these antioxidants attenuated DA-induced-HIV activation indicating that changes in cellular redox states might have been the causative factor for the observed effect.Our data suggest that HIV activation is tightly linked to intracellular oxidant/antioxidant levels and that excessive DA exposure may modulate cellular vulnerability to HIV.

NFAT transcription factors control HIV-1 expression through a binding site downstream of TAR region.

NFAT factors control HIV-1 transcription. We show here that, in addition to binding to two NF-kappaB/NFAT sites within the U3 HIV LTR, NFATc1 and NFATc2 bind to an NFAT site within the LTRs U5 region. Mutations in this site which abolish NFAT binding reduce the ability of NFATs to transactivate LTR-mediated transcription. Mutations in all three NFAT sites strongly interfered with LTR induction, but affected moderately the stimulatory effect of Tat.

Destruction of primary CD4(+) T cells by cell-cell interaction in human immunodeficiency virus type 1 infection in vitro.

Infection of CD4(+) T lymphocytes with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in vitro is accompanied by extensive cytopathicity. The mechanism of cell death is unclear, but may be related to expression of the viral envelope glycoprotein. Here, it is demonstrated that T cell destruction in primary T cells occurs upon contact of infected with uninfected lymphocytes. Cell death was due to the interaction of the envelope glycoprotein with CD4 and subsequent fusion of the cells. Agents that interfered with cell-to-cell fusion such as a monoclonal antibody to CD4 and the peptide T20 prevented T cell death and depletion. In contrast, single-cell lysis due to expression and intracellular processing of the envelope glycoprotein was insignificant. These results suggest that cell-to-cell fusion and concomitant rapid cell death promote the depletion of T cells in HIV-infected individuals.

Inhibition of cytotoxicity and cytokine release of CD8+ HIV-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes by pentoxifylline.

HIV-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) are an important component of the host immune response against HIV infection, and these cells release a variety of cytokines when they meet their target antigen. Since the phosphodiesterase inhibitor pentoxifylline is being used as a therapeutic agent in clinical trials of HIV infection due to its inhibitory effect on virus replication in vitro, we examined the effect of pentoxifylline on cytotoxicity and cytokine secretion by HIV-specific CD8+ CTLs. Pentoxifylline inhibited cytotoxicity of CTLs and suppressed interferon-gamma, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor release by these cells at the transcription level. Suppression of cytokine release resulted in reduced capacity of the CTLs to induce HLA class I and ICAM-1 expression and to stimulate HIV-1 replication. These results suggest that inhibition of HIV-specific CD8+ CTLs by pentoxifylline may be therapeutically relevant. Moreover, this study extends previous observations by demonstrating that, in addition to its ability to suppress cytokine production by macrophages and CD4+ T helper cells, pentoxifylline may inhibit cytotoxicity and cytokine secretion by antigen-specific CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes.

Analysis of the proliferative responses to peptides in individuals with vigorous Gag protein-specific proliferation.

Proliferative responses to recombinant HIV proteins in infected individuals may represent a correlate of protection from disease progression. In this study, the proliferative responses to HIV p24, p55 and gp120 were evaluated in infected subjects. Whereas, vigorous proliferative responses directed at the Gag proteins were detected in several individuals, Env-specific proliferation was observed in only one subject. Epitope mapping using overlapping peptides demonstrated proliferative responses of PBMC to Gag peptides. Responses were broadly directed at multiple peptides in some subjects. Although several of the peptides that induced proliferative responses also contain CTL epitopes potentially relevant in the particular individuals, many additional Gag T cell epitopes were present in each subject. This finding may be relevant for the design and testing of HIV candidate vaccines.