Re: Recent H5N1 avian Influenza A virus increases rapidly in virulence to mice after...
Thanks Aardvark!
Just one single passage, that's very concerning.
Here is the complete article...
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http://vir.sgmjournals.org/cgi/content/full/87/12/3655
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Short Communication
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
Recent H5N1 avian Influenza A virus increases rapidly in virulence to mice after a single passage in mice
</NOBR><NOBR>Masaji Mase</NOBR>, <NOBR>Nobuhiko Tanimura</NOBR>, <NOBR>Tadao Imada</NOBR>, <NOBR>Masatoshi Okamatsu</NOBR>, <NOBR>Kenji Tsukamoto</NOBR> and <NOBR>Shigeo Yamaguchi</NOBR>
[SIZE=-1]Department of Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Animal Health, 3-1-5 Kannondai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0856, Japan [/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]
Correspondence<SUP> </SUP>
Masaji Mase<SUP> </SUP>
masema@affrc.go.jp<SCRIPT type=text/javascript><!-- var u = "masema", d = "affrc.go.jp"; document.getElementById("em0").innerHTML = '<a href="mailto:' + u + '@' + d + '">' + u + '@' + d + '<\/a>'//--></SCRIPT> [/SIZE]
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To evaluate the potential pathogenicity to mammals of the recent<SUP> </SUP>H5N1 avian
Influenza A virus, viruses recovered from dead mice<SUP> </SUP>infected with A/chicken/Yamaguchi/7/2004 isolated in Japan were<SUP> </SUP>examined. All recovered viruses from the brains of dead mice<SUP> </SUP>infected with this strain (without any prior adaptation to mice)<SUP> </SUP>had substituted the amino acid at position 627 of the PB2 protein<SUP> </SUP>from glutamic acid to lysine. Their mouse lethality had increased<SUP> </SUP>by approximately 5[FONT=arial,helvetica]x[/FONT]10<SUP>4</SUP> times over that of the original virus.<SUP> </SUP>Histopathological analysis reinforced the finding that these<SUP> </SUP>variants caused more rapid and severe damage to mice than the<SUP> </SUP>original virus. This revealed that it might be useful to characterize<SUP> </SUP>the recovered virus to assess its potential pathogenicity to<SUP> </SUP>mammals.<SUP> </SUP>
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Beginning in 2003, the highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza<SUP> </SUP>virus has caused great economic losses in the poultry industry<SUP> </SUP>throughout east Asia, including Japan (Chen
et al., 2004

, 2005

;<SUP> </SUP>Li
et al., 2004

; Liu
et al., 2005

; Mase
et al., 2005b

). Incidents<SUP> </SUP>of the causative H5N1 virus being transmitted directly from<SUP> </SUP>birds to humans occurred in 1997 and 2003 in Hong Kong (Peiris<SUP> </SUP>
et al., 2004

; Subbarao
et al., 1998

; Yuen
et al., 1998

). From<SUP> </SUP>2004 to 2006, these viruses were transmitted to humans in Azerbaijan,<SUP> </SUP>Cambodia, China, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Thailand, Turkey and<SUP> </SUP>Vietnam, and this transmission resulted in over 100 deaths (WHO,<SUP> </SUP>2006

). Therefore, an epidemic of H5N1 avian influenza still<SUP> </SUP>poses a serious threat to public health.<SUP> </SUP>
Mice have been shown to be a good mammalian model for the human<SUP> </SUP>H1N1, H2N2 and H3N2 influenza viruses. Therefore, mice were<SUP> </SUP>used for the H5N1 influenza viruses as well, and it was revealed<SUP> </SUP>that recent isolates of the H5N1 influenza virus replicated<SUP> </SUP>well in mice without prior adaptation (Gao
et al., 1999

; Guan<SUP> </SUP>
et al., 2002

, 2004

; Lipatov
et al., 2003

; Lu
et al., 1999

; Nishimura<SUP> </SUP>
et al., 2000

; Shortridge
et al., 1998

).<SUP> </SUP>
In Japan, an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza<SUP> </SUP>in chickens was confirmed in 2004 for the first time (Mase
et<SUP> </SUP>al., 2005b

). The causative H5N1 viruses in Japan were genetically<SUP> </SUP>close to A/chicken/Shantou/4231/2003, termed genotype V, which<SUP> </SUP>belongs to a genotype different from that of the dominant epidemic<SUP> </SUP>viruses in South-East Asian countries, such as Indonesia, Thailand<SUP> </SUP>and Vietnam (i.e. genotype Z) (Li
et al., 2004

). This suggested<SUP> </SUP>that multiple H5N1 virus genotypes have been circulating and<SUP> </SUP>are associated with the occurrence of the serious outbreaks<SUP> </SUP>in poultry in Asian countries.<SUP> </SUP>
The H5N1 virus isolated in Japan during the 2003?2004<SUP> </SUP>outbreaks was able to replicate in mice without prior adaptation,<SUP> </SUP>but the the isolate was less virulent than the Hong Kong 1997<SUP> </SUP>H5N1 viruses isolated from humans (Gao
et al., 1999

; Mase
et<SUP> </SUP>al., 2005b

). However, it was previously revealed experimentally<SUP> </SUP>that highly pathogenic H5N1 variants could be selected rapidly<SUP> </SUP>in mice after a single passage (Lipatov
et al., 2003

). Here,<SUP> </SUP>we describe the biological and pathological characterization<SUP> </SUP>of recovered viruses with rapidly increasing virulence to mice<SUP> </SUP>by only one amino acid substitution in the complete genome after<SUP> </SUP>a single passage in mice.<SUP> </SUP>
The Japanese H5N1 virus A/chicken/Yamaguchi/7/2004 (Ck/Yama/7/04),<SUP> </SUP>isolated from chickens (Mase
et al., 2005b

), was used in this<SUP> </SUP>study. To prepare the original virus stock for this study, virus<SUP> </SUP>was propagated once in the allantoic cavity of embryonated eggs<SUP> </SUP>at 37 ?C for 1?2 days and then stored at ?80<SUP> </SUP>?C until use. All experiments using the live H5N1 virus<SUP> </SUP>were performed in biosafety level 3 facilities under the recommended<SUP> </SUP>procedures.<SUP> </SUP>
First, we examined the pathogenicity to mice of the original<SUP> </SUP>Ck/Yama/7/04 strain. Six-week-old female BALB/c mice (
n=18;<SUP> </SUP>SLC Japan) were used in all experiments. The mice were anaesthetized<SUP> </SUP>by pentobarbital injection and 50 ?l infectious virus<SUP> </SUP>[10<SUP>6</SUP> 50 % egg infectious dose (EID<SUB>50</SUB>)] diluted in PBS was inoculated<SUP> </SUP>intranasally (i.n.). The mice were checked daily for clinical<SUP> </SUP>signs and mortality for 14 days post-infection (p.i.).<SUP> </SUP>Reisolation of the virus from the brain, lung, liver, spleen<SUP> </SUP>and kidney of the dead mice was conducted immediately after<SUP> </SUP>the animals' deaths, as described previously (Mase
et al., 2005a

).<SUP> </SUP>
Fourteen mice in total died during the observation period, and<SUP> </SUP>the virus was reisolated from the brains of all dead mice. The<SUP> </SUP>mean time to death of the mice infected with the original Ck/Yama/7/04<SUP> </SUP>strain was 8.3 days. To examine the extent of mutations,<SUP> </SUP>we determined the nucleotide sequences of isolates from the<SUP> </SUP>mouse brains. First, partial nucleotide sequences of the PB2<SUP> </SUP>gene, which was related to the virulence to mice of the Hong<SUP> </SUP>Kong H5N1/97 viruses, of all isolates from the mouse brains<SUP> </SUP>were determined. Reverse transcription, PCR amplification and<SUP> </SUP>sequencing were performed as described previously (Mase
et al.,<SUP> </SUP>2005b

).<SUP> </SUP>
All viruses recovered from the brains of dead mice inoculated<SUP> </SUP>with the Ck/Yama/7/04 strain had an amino acid substitution<SUP> </SUP>from glutamic acid (Glu) to lysine (Lys) at position 627 of<SUP> </SUP>the PB2 protein, as shown by partial nucleotide sequencing of<SUP> </SUP>the PB2 gene. Next, the complete nucleotide sequences of all<SUP> </SUP>segments of five chosen isolates (termed mouse brain variants;<SUP> </SUP>MBVs) recovered from five respective mice were determined as<SUP> </SUP>described previously (Mase
et al., 2005a

). Interestingly, as<SUP> </SUP>for the results of the complete nucleotide sequencing of all<SUP> </SUP>segments of the five chosen recovered isolates, four viruses<SUP> </SUP>have only one amino acid substitution at position 627 of the<SUP> </SUP>PB2 protein from Glu to Lys. From these viruses, one isolate<SUP> </SUP>was selected and designated mouse brain variant A (MBV-A). The<SUP> </SUP>remaining isolate has an additional amino acid substitution,<SUP> </SUP>methionine (Met) to isoleucine (Ile), at position 531 of the<SUP> </SUP>haemagglutinin (HA), and was designated MBV-B. In the following<SUP> </SUP>tests, the MBV-A and -B strains were used as mouse variants<SUP> </SUP>derived from the original Ck/Yama/7/04 strain.<SUP> </SUP>
Next, the pathogenicity to mice of the original virus and MBVs<SUP> </SUP>were compared. Six-week-old female BALB/c mice (SLC Japan) were<SUP> </SUP>used. Fifty per cent mouse infectious dose (MID<SUB>50</SUB>) and 50 %<SUP> </SUP>mouse lethal dose (MLD<SUB>50</SUB>) titres were determined by inoculating<SUP> </SUP>groups of eight mice i.n. with serial 10-fold dilutions of virus<SUP> </SUP>according to the method described by Lu
et al. (1999)

. Three<SUP> </SUP>days later, four mice from each group were euthanized and the<SUP> </SUP>lungs were collected and homogenized. The homogenates were frozen<SUP> </SUP>at ?80 ?C and later thawed for ease of handling. Solid<SUP> </SUP>debris was pelleted by centrifugation and the supernatants were<SUP> </SUP>titrated for virus infectivity in eggs. The four remaining mice<SUP> </SUP>in each group were checked daily for disease signs and death<SUP> </SUP>for 14 days p.i. The MID<SUB>50</SUB> and MLD<SUB>50</SUB> titres were calculated<SUP> </SUP>by the method of Reed & Muench (1938)

.<SUP> </SUP>
The scores of MID<SUB>50</SUB> and MLD<SUB>50</SUB> of the two MBVs were 5 EID<SUB>50</SUB> and<SUP> </SUP>8.9 EID<SUB>50</SUB>, respectively. However, the scores of MID<SUB>50</SUB> and MLD<SUB>50</SUB><SUP> </SUP>of the original Ck/Yama/7/04 strain were 5[FONT=arial,helvetica]x[/FONT]10<SUP>3</SUP> EID<SUB>50</SUB> and 5[FONT=arial,helvetica]x[/FONT]10<SUP>5</SUP><SUP> </SUP>EID<SUB>50</SUB>, respectively. Comparing these scores, the MLD<SUB>50</SUB> of two<SUP> </SUP>MBVs were increased by 5[FONT=arial,helvetica]x[/FONT]10<SUP>4</SUP> times over that of the original<SUP> </SUP>Ck/Yama/7/04 strain.<SUP> </SUP>
Next, a histopathological examination of the mice infected with<SUP> </SUP>the original and MBV-A viruses was performed. Six-week-old female<SUP> </SUP>BALB/c mice (
n=18 for each of the original and MBV-A viruses)<SUP> </SUP>were inoculated i.n. with 50 ?l virus (10<SUP>6</SUP> EID<SUB>50</SUB>).<SUP> </SUP>A total of three sacrificed or dead mice were examined on day<SUP> </SUP>3 and another three on day 6 p.i. The major organs were removed<SUP> </SUP>and fixed in 10 % neutral phosphate-buffered formalin, then<SUP> </SUP>processed routinely and stained with haematoxylin and eosin<SUP> </SUP>(HE) for histopathological examination. A section mounted on<SUP> </SUP>silane-coated slide glass was heated by microwave as described<SUP> </SUP>previously (Tanimura
et al., 2004

) and goat anti-influenza A<SUP> </SUP>virus polyclonal antibody (Chemicon) was applied. The primary<SUP> </SUP>antibody was allowed to incubate for 30 min at room temperature<SUP> </SUP>and then detected by the application of horseradish peroxidase<SUP> </SUP>anti-goat Ig conjugate (Histofine Simple Stain; Nichirei Inc.).<SUP> </SUP>Diaminobenzidine (Nichirei Inc.) served as the substrate chromogen<SUP> </SUP>and haematoxylin was used as a counterstain. For the negative<SUP> </SUP>control, the primary antibody was applied to tissues of a normal<SUP> </SUP>mouse. In addition, the primary antibody was substituted with<SUP> </SUP>normal goat serum (DakoCytomation). There was no non-specific<SUP> </SUP>staining in these negative controls, except for the mast cells<SUP> </SUP>in the connective tissue, which showed endogenous peroxidase<SUP> </SUP>activity in their cytoplasmic granules. The viral titres of<SUP> </SUP>the brain, lung, liver, spleen and kidney of these mice were<SUP> </SUP>determined as described previously (Mase
et al., 2005b

).<SUP> </SUP>
The results of the histopathological and immunohistochemical<SUP> </SUP>analyses are summarized in Table 1

. In the respiratory<SUP> </SUP>organs, such as the lungs and nasal turbinates, severe damage<SUP> </SUP>and viral antigens were detected earlier in the MBV-A-infected<SUP> </SUP>mice than in those infected with the original strain (Table 1b

;<SUP> </SUP>Fig. 1a?d

). Viral antigen-positive alveolar cells<SUP> </SUP>appeared to be alveolar macrophages or type II alveolar epithelial<SUP> </SUP>cells. In the central nervous system (CNS), whereas viral antigens<SUP> </SUP>were detected in the MBV-A-infected mice at day 3 p.i., they<SUP> </SUP>were not detected in the original Ck/Yama/7/04-infected mice<SUP> </SUP>until day 6 p.i. (Table 1b

; Fig. 1e

). Lesions and<SUP> </SUP>viral antigens were only observed in the olfactory bulbs of<SUP> </SUP>the MBV-A strain-infected mice (Fig. 1f

).<SUP> </SUP>
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</NOBR> </TD><TD vAlign=top align=left>Table 1. Histopathological changes of and distribution of viral antigen-positive cells in sacrificed or dead mice at days 3 and 6 post-infection
(a) Lesions: ?, no significant lesion; ?, minimum; +, mild; ++, intermediate; +++, severe. (b) No. viral antigen-positive cells: ?, negative; ?, minimum; +, small; ++, intermediate; +++, large.
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</NOBR> </TD><TD vAlign=top align=left>Fig. 1. Histological and immunohistochemical analyses of lung (a?d), thoracic spinal cord (e) and olfactory bulb (f) obtained from mice. (a) Lung; original Ck/Yama/7/04 strain-infected mouse at day 6 p.i. Mild bronchointerstitial pneumonia is present. HE stain. (b) Lung; original Ck/Yama/7/04 strain-infected mouse at day 6 p.i. A small amount of viral antigen is present in the epithelium of the bronchiolus and alveolar cells. Immunoperoxidase labelling, haematoxylin counterstain. (c) Lung; MBV-A strain-infected mouse at day 6 p.i. Severe necrotizing bronchiolitis and diffuse alveolar damage can be seen. HE stain. (d) Lung; MBV-A strain-infected mouse at day 6 p.i. Abundant viral antigen is present in the epithelium of the bronchiolus and alveolar cells. Immunoperoxidase labelling, haematoxylin counterstain. (e) Thoracic spinal cord; original Ck/Yama/7/04 strain-infected mouse at day 6 p.i. Viral antigen is present in the neurons, glial cells and central canal ependymal cells. Immunoperoxidase labelling, haematoxylin counterstain. (f) Olfactory bulb; MBV-A strain-infected mouse at day 3 p.i. Viral antigen is present in the neurons. Immunoperoxidase labelling, haematoxylin counterstain. Magnification, [FONT=arial,helvetica]x[/FONT]20 (a?d); [FONT=arial,helvetica]x[/FONT]10 (e); [FONT=arial,helvetica]x[/FONT]40 (f).
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Viruses were recovered from all organs collected from the MBV-A<SUP> </SUP>strain-infected mice at day 3, whereas viruses were recovered<SUP> </SUP>only from the lung and spleen collected from the original virus-infected<SUP> </SUP>mice (Table 2

). The virus titres of the variant virus-infected<SUP> </SUP>mice were higher than those of the original virus-infected mice.<SUP> </SUP>At day 6 p.i., viruses were recovered from all examined organs<SUP> </SUP>except the kidneys collected from MBV-A strain-infected mice.<SUP> </SUP>
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</NOBR> </TD><TD vAlign=top align=left>Table 2. Growth of original Ck/Yama/7/04 and MBV-A strains in mice
Virus titres in the organs shown were determined. Mean?[SIZE=-2]SD[/SIZE] is shown for the number of virus-positive mice that died or were sacrificed.
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The outbreaks beginning in 2003 of the highly pathogenic H5N1<SUP> </SUP>avian influenza virus in many Asian countries, including Japan,<SUP> </SUP>have posed a very serious threat to public health. Ever since<SUP> </SUP>H5N1 viruses killed humans in 1997 for the first time in Hong<SUP> </SUP>Kong, this virus has often been transmitted from poultry to<SUP> </SUP>humans and has recently caused human deaths again in several<SUP> </SUP>countries (WHO, 2006

). The molecular basis of the lethal virulence<SUP> </SUP>of the recent epidemic H5N1 viruses to humans in these countries<SUP> </SUP>is not understood completely, but in the case of Hong Kong H5N1<SUP> </SUP>in 1997, the molecular basis of the high virulence was studied<SUP> </SUP>in the mouse model (Hatta
et al., 2001

). By using reverse genetics,<SUP> </SUP>a Lys at residue 627 in the PB2 protein and polybasic cleavage<SUP> </SUP>site in HA were found to be crucial for the highly virulent<SUP> </SUP>and systematic replication of the A/Hong Kong/483/97 (H5N1)<SUP> </SUP>virus in mice. In particular, the presence of Lys leads to more<SUP> </SUP>aggressive virus replication, overwhelming the host's defence<SUP> </SUP>mechanisms and resulting in high mortality rates in mice (Gabriel<SUP> </SUP>
et al., 2005

; Massin
et al., 2001

; Naffakh
et al., 2000

; Shinya<SUP> </SUP>
et al., 2004

; Subbarao
et al., 1993

). Interestingly, the Dutch<SUP> </SUP>H7N7 virus isolated in 2003 from humans had Lys at position<SUP> </SUP>627 of the PB2 protein, whereas H7N7 in 2003 isolated from chickens<SUP> </SUP>maintained Glu at this position (Fouchier
et al., 2004

). The<SUP> </SUP>PB2s of most human H1N1, H2N2 and H3N2 influenza viruses examined<SUP> </SUP>thus far possess Lys at position 627, whereas those of their<SUP> </SUP>progenitor avian viruses examined thus far all contain Glu at<SUP> </SUP>this position (Wright & Webster, 2001

). Taken together,<SUP> </SUP>it was suggested that the substitution of Glu to Lys at this<SUP> </SUP>position arises easily in transmission from birds to mammals.<SUP> </SUP>
Here, we demonstrated experimentally that the Japanese H5N1<SUP> </SUP>viruses isolated in 2004 substituted their amino acid at position<SUP> </SUP>627 of the PB2 protein from Glu to Lys after a single passage<SUP> </SUP>in mice, with increasing virulence. A variant virus containing<SUP> </SUP>Lys at position 627 replicated more rapidly than the original<SUP> </SUP>virus containing Glu at this position. This substitution may<SUP> </SUP>be a first step for adaptation to mammals, as human H1N1, H2N2<SUP> </SUP>and H3N2 influenza viruses have Lys at position 627 of the PB2<SUP> </SUP>protein (Wright & Webster, 2001

). Comparing the MID<SUB>50</SUB> and<SUP> </SUP>MLD<SUB>50</SUB> of both the MBV-A and MBV-B viruses, the amino acid substitution<SUP> </SUP>at position 531 of the HA seemed not to be critical for high<SUP> </SUP>virulence. By pathological analysis of the MBV-A-infected mice,<SUP> </SUP>severe pneumonia was observed in the earlier phase (3 days<SUP> </SUP>p.i.) and encephalomyelitis was also observed at the later phase<SUP> </SUP>(6 days p.i.). Viruses were recovered from the internal<SUP> </SUP>organs of the MBV-A-infected mice, but the virus titres of the<SUP> </SUP>tissues at 6 days p.i. were lower than those at 3 days<SUP> </SUP>p.i., except in the brain. Moreover, histopathological analysis<SUP> </SUP>suggested that the viruses isolated from the kidney might be<SUP> </SUP>derived from adipose tissues around this organ. However, the<SUP> </SUP>appearance of mild lesions and the detection of viral antigens<SUP> </SUP>in the olfactory bulb in MBV-A-infected mice suggested rapid<SUP> </SUP>replication and spreading in this tissue. The routes of invasion<SUP> </SUP>of the HK483 strain into the CNS were suggested previously to<SUP> </SUP>be through afferent fibres of the olfactory, vagal, trigeminal<SUP> </SUP>and sympathetic nerves following replication in the respiratory<SUP> </SUP>mucosa (Park
et al., 2002

). The invasion of the MBV-A strain<SUP> </SUP>into the CNS in mice seemed to be facilitated strongly by these<SUP> </SUP>three routes compared with the original strain.<SUP> </SUP>
Although the Japanese H5N1 viruses were different in H5N1 genotype<SUP> </SUP>(genotype V) from the South-East Asian isolates of H5N1, including<SUP> </SUP>those from Thailand and Vietnam (genotype Z), the PB2 protein<SUP> </SUP>of Japanese H5N1 (Ck/Yama/7/04) was very similar (about 99.5<SUP> </SUP>%) to that of Thailand H5N1 (A/goose/Thailand/79/2004) at the<SUP> </SUP>amino acid level. In fact, many recent H5N1 isolates (genotype<SUP> </SUP>Z) from mammals have this substitution at position 627 of the<SUP> </SUP>PB2 protein (Govorkova
et al., 2005

; Keawcharoen
et al., 2004

;<SUP> </SUP>Puthavathana
et al., 2005

). Urgent measures to deal with a possible<SUP> </SUP>pandemic, such as the development and application of effective<SUP> </SUP>vaccines and the stockpiling of anti-influenza drugs, are needed.<SUP> </SUP>
<SUP></SUP>
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We would like to thank Mr M. Kobayashi and Ms M. Shimada for<SUP> </SUP>preparing the histopathology sections. This work was supported<SUP> </SUP>by a Grant-in-Aid from the Zoonoses Control Project of the Ministry<SUP> </SUP>of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Japan.<SUP> </SUP>
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REFERENCES
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<NOBR>[Abstract/Free Full Text]</NOBR><!-- /HIGHWIRE -->
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[CrossRef][Medline]<!-- /HIGHWIRE --> [SIZE=-1]Received 20 January 2006; accepted 29 July 2006.[/SIZE]