Browsing by Subject "Host Specificity"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4

Open Access
Cell type- and species-specific host responses to Toxoplasma gondii and its near relatives.
(International journal for parasitology, 2020-05-11) Wong, Zhee S; Borrelli, Sarah L Sokol; Coyne, Carolyn C; Boyle, Jon P
Toxoplasma gondii is remarkably unique in its ability to successfully infect vertebrate hosts from multiple phyla and can successfully infect most cells within these organisms. The infection outcome in each of these species is determined by the complex interaction between parasite and host genotype. As techniques to quantify global changes in cell function become more readily available and precise, new data are coming to light about how (i) different host cell types respond to parasitic infection and (ii) different parasite species impact the host. Here we focus on recent studies comparing the response to intracellular parasitism by different cell types and insights into understanding host-parasite interactions from comparative studies on T. gondii and its close extant relatives.
Open Access
Host range, transmissibility and antigenicity of a pangolin coronavirus.
(Nature microbiology, 2023-10) Hou, Yixuan J; Chiba, Shiho; Leist, Sarah R; Meganck, Rita M; Martinez, David R; Schäfer, Alexandra; Catanzaro, Nicholas J; Sontake, Vishwaraj; West, Ande; Edwards, Catlin E; Yount, Boyd; Lee, Rhianna E; Gallant, Samuel C; Zost, Seth J; Powers, John; Adams, Lily; Kong, Edgar F; Mattocks, Melissa; Tata, Aleksandra; Randell, Scott H; Tata, Purushothama R; Halfmann, Peter; Crowe, James E; Kawaoka, Yoshihiro; Baric, Ralph S
The pathogenic and cross-species transmission potential of SARS-CoV-2-related coronaviruses (CoVs) remain poorly characterized. Here we recovered a wild-type pangolin (Pg) CoV GD strain including derivatives encoding reporter genes using reverse genetics. In primary human cells, PgCoV replicated efficiently but with reduced fitness and showed less efficient transmission via airborne route compared with SARS-CoV-2 in hamsters. PgCoV was potently inhibited by US Food and Drug Administration approved drugs, and neutralized by COVID-19 patient sera and SARS-CoV-2 therapeutic antibodies in vitro. A pan-Sarbecovirus antibody and SARS-CoV-2 S2P recombinant protein vaccine protected BALB/c mice from PgCoV infection. In K18-hACE2 mice, PgCoV infection caused severe clinical disease, but mice were protected by a SARS-CoV-2 human antibody. Efficient PgCoV replication in primary human cells and hACE2 mice, coupled with a capacity for airborne spread, highlights an emergence potential. However, low competitive fitness, pre-immune humans and the benefit of COVID-19 countermeasures should impede its ability to spread globally in human populations.
Open Access
Primate malarias as a model for cross-species parasite transmission.
(eLife, 2022-01) Voinson, Marina; Nunn, Charles L; Goldberg, Amy
Parasites regularly switch into new host species, representing a disease burden and conservation risk to the hosts. The distribution of these parasites also gives insight into characteristics of ecological networks and genetic mechanisms of host-parasite interactions. Some parasites are shared across many species, whereas others tend to be restricted to hosts from a single species. Understanding the mechanisms producing this distribution of host specificity can enable more effective interventions and potentially identify genetic targets for vaccines or therapies. As ecological connections between human and local animal populations increase, the risk to human and wildlife health from novel parasites also increases. Which of these parasites will fizzle out and which have the potential to become widespread in humans? We consider the case of primate malarias, caused by Plasmodium parasites, to investigate the interacting ecological and evolutionary mechanisms that put human and nonhuman primates at risk for infection. Plasmodium host switching from nonhuman primates to humans led to ancient introductions of the most common malaria-causing agents in humans today, and new parasite switching is a growing threat, especially in Asia and South America. Based on a wild host-Plasmodium occurrence database, we highlight geographic areas of concern and potential areas to target further sampling. We also discuss methodological developments that will facilitate clinical and field-based interventions to improve human and wildlife health based on this eco-evolutionary perspective.
Open Access
Species-specific host factors rather than virus-intrinsic virulence determine primate lentiviral pathogenicity.
(Nature communications, 2018-04) Joas, Simone; Parrish, Erica H; Gnanadurai, Clement W; Lump, Edina; Stürzel, Christina M; Parrish, Nicholas F; Learn, Gerald H; Sauermann, Ulrike; Neumann, Berit; Rensing, Kerstin Mätz; Fuchs, Dietmar; Billingsley, James M; Bosinger, Steven E; Silvestri, Guido; Apetrei, Cristian; Huot, Nicolas; Garcia-Tellez, Thalia; Müller-Trutwin, Michaela; Hotter, Dominik; Sauter, Daniel; Stahl-Hennig, Christiane; Hahn, Beatrice H; Kirchhoff, Frank
HIV-1 causes chronic inflammation and AIDS in humans, whereas related simian immunodeficiency viruses (SIVs) replicate efficiently in their natural hosts without causing disease. It is currently unknown to what extent virus-specific properties are responsible for these different clinical outcomes. Here, we incorporate two putative HIV-1 virulence determinants, i.e., a Vpu protein that antagonizes tetherin and blocks NF-κB activation and a Nef protein that fails to suppress T cell activation via downmodulation of CD3, into a non-pathogenic SIVagm strain and test their impact on viral replication and pathogenicity in African green monkeys. Despite sustained high-level viremia over more than 4 years, moderately increased immune activation and transcriptional signatures of inflammation, the HIV-1-like SIVagm does not cause immunodeficiency or any other disease. These data indicate that species-specific host factors rather than intrinsic viral virulence factors determine the pathogenicity of primate lentiviruses.