scholarly journals Measles Virus Ribonucleoprotein Complexes Rapidly Spread across Well-Differentiated Primary Human Airway Epithelial Cells along F-Actin Rings

mBio ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Brajesh K. Singh ◽  
Christian K. Pfaller ◽  
Roberto Cattaneo ◽  
Patrick L. Sinn

ABSTRACT Measles virus (MeV) is a highly contagious human pathogen that continues to be a worldwide health burden. One of the challenges for the study of MeV spread is the identification of model systems that accurately reflect how MeV behaves in humans. For our studies, we use unpassaged, well-differentiated primary cultures of airway epithelial cells from human donor lungs to examine MeV infection and spread. Here, we show that the main components of the MeV ribonucleoprotein complex (RNP), the nucleocapsid and phosphoprotein, colocalize with the apical and circumapical F-actin networks. To better understand how MeV infections spread across the airway epithelium, we generated a recombinant virus incorporating chimeric fluorescent proteins in its RNP complex. By live cell imaging, we observed rapid movement of RNPs along the circumapical F-actin rings of newly infected cells. This strikingly rapid mechanism of horizontal trafficking across epithelia is consistent with the opening of pores between columnar cells by the viral membrane fusion apparatus. Our work provides mechanistic insights into how MeV rapidly spreads through airway epithelial cells, contributing to its extremely contagious nature. IMPORTANCE The ability of viral particles to directly spread cell to cell within the airways without particle release is considered to be highly advantageous to many respiratory viruses. Our previous studies in well-differentiated, primary human airway epithelial cells suggest that measles virus (MeV) spreads cell to cell by eliciting the formation of intercellular membrane pores. Based on a newly generated ribonucleoprotein complex (RNP) “tracker” virus, we document by live-cell microscopy that MeV RNPs move along F-actin rings before entering a new cell. Thus, rather than diffusing through the cytoplasm of a newly infected columnar cell, RNPs take advantage of the cytoskeletal infrastructure to rapidly spread laterally across the human airway epithelium. This results in rapid horizontal spread through the epithelium that does not require particle release.

2016 ◽  
Vol 90 (15) ◽  
pp. 6808-6817 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brajesh K. Singh ◽  
Ni Li ◽  
Anna C. Mark ◽  
Mathieu Mateo ◽  
Roberto Cattaneo ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTMeasles is a highly contagious, acute viral illness. Immune cells within the airways are likely first targets of infection, and these cells traffic measles virus (MeV) to lymph nodes for amplification and subsequent systemic dissemination. Infected immune cells are thought to return MeV to the airways; however, the mechanisms responsible for virus transfer to pulmonary epithelial cells are poorly understood. To investigate this process, we collected blood from human donors and generated primary myeloid cells, specifically, monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) and dendritic cells (DCs). MDMs and DCs were infected with MeV and then applied to primary cultures of well-differentiated airway epithelial cells from human donors (HAE). Consistent with previous results obtained with free virus, infected MDMs or DCs were incapable of transferring MeV to HAE when applied to the apical surface. Likewise, infected MDMs or DCs applied to the basolateral surface of HAE grown on small-pore (0.4-μm) support membranes did not transfer virus. In contrast, infected MDMs and DCs applied to the basolateral surface of HAE grown on large-pore (3.0-μm) membranes successfully transferred MeV. Confocal microscopy demonstrated that MDMs and DCs are capable of penetrating large-pore membranes but not small-pore membranes. Further, by using a nectin-4 blocking antibody or recombinant MeV unable to enter cells through nectin-4, we demonstrated formally that transfer from immune cells to HAE occurs in a nectin-4-dependent manner. Thus, both infected MDMs and DCs rely on cell-to-cell contacts and nectin-4 to efficiently deliver MeV to the basolateral surface of HAE.IMPORTANCEMeasles virus spreads rapidly and efficiently in human airway epithelial cells. This rapid spread is based on cell-to-cell contact rather than on particle release and reentry. Here we posit that MeV transfer from infected immune cells to epithelial cells also occurs by cell-to-cell contact rather than through cell-free particles. In addition, we sought to determine which immune cells transfer MeV infectivity to the human airway epithelium. Our studies are based on two types of human primary cells: (i) myeloid cells generated from donated blood and (ii) well-differentiated airway epithelial cells derived from donor lungs. We show that different types of myeloid cells, i.e., monocyte-derived macrophages and dendritic cells, transfer infection to airway epithelial cells. Furthermore, cell-to-cell contact is an important component of successful MeV transfer. Our studies elucidate a mechanism by which the most contagious human respiratory virus is delivered to the airway epithelium.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadzeya Marozkina ◽  
Laura Smith ◽  
Yi Zhao ◽  
Joe Zein ◽  
James F. Chmiel ◽  
...  

AbstractEndothelial hemoglobin (Hb)α regulates endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) biochemistry. We hypothesized that Hb could also be expressed and biochemically active in the ciliated human airway epithelium. Primary human airway epithelial cells, cultured at air–liquid interface (ALI), were obtained by clinical airway brushings or from explanted lungs. Human airway Hb mRNA data were from publically available databases; or from RT-PCR. Hb proteins were identified by immunoprecipitation, immunoblot, immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence and liquid chromatography- mass spectrometry. Viral vectors were used to alter Hbβ expression. Heme and nitrogen oxides were measured colorimetrically. Hb mRNA was expressed in human ciliated epithelial cells. Heme proteins (Hbα, β, and δ) were detected in ALI cultures by several methods. Higher levels of airway epithelial Hbβ gene expression were associated with lower FEV1 in asthma. Both Hbβ knockdown and overexpression affected cell morphology. Hbβ and eNOS were apically colocalized. Binding heme with CO decreased extracellular accumulation of nitrogen oxides. Human airway epithelial cells express Hb. Higher levels of Hbβ gene expression were associated with airflow obstruction. Hbβ and eNOS were colocalized in ciliated cells, and heme affected oxidation of the NOS product. Epithelial Hb expression may be relevant to human airways diseases.


Genes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 351 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brajesh K. Singh ◽  
Ashley L. Cooney ◽  
Sateesh Krishnamurthy ◽  
Patrick L. Sinn

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are a class of naturally occurring secreted cellular bodies that are involved in long distance cell-to-cell communication. Proteins, lipids, mRNA, and miRNA can be packaged into these vesicles and released from the cell. This information is then delivered to target cells. Since EVs are naturally adapted molecular messengers, they have emerged as an innovative, inexpensive, and robust method to deliver therapeutic cargo in vitro and in vivo. Well-differentiated primary cultures of human airway epithelial cells (HAE) are refractory to standard transfection techniques. Indeed, common strategies used to overexpress or knockdown gene expression in immortalized cell lines simply have no detectable effect in HAE. Here we use EVs to efficiently deliver siRNA or protein to HAE. Furthermore, EVs can deliver CFTR protein to cystic fibrosis donor cells and functionally correct the Cl− channel defect in vitro. EV-mediated delivery of siRNA or proteins to HAE provides a powerful genetic tool in a model system that closely recapitulates the in vivo airways.


2010 ◽  
Vol 78 (12) ◽  
pp. 5314-5323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiuping Liu ◽  
Lee M. Wetzler ◽  
Laura Oliveira Nascimento ◽  
Paola Massari

ABSTRACT The human airway epithelium is constantly exposed to microbial products from colonizing organisms. Regulation of Toll-like receptor (TLR) expression and specific interactions with bacterial ligands is thought to mitigate exacerbation of inflammatory processes induced by the commensal flora in these cells. The genus Neisseria comprises pathogenic and commensal organisms that colonize the human nasopharynx. Neisseria lactamica is not associated with disease, but N. meningitidis occasionally invades the host, causing meningococcal disease and septicemia. Upon colonization of the airway epithelium, specific host cell receptors interact with numerous Neisseria components, including the PorB porin, at the immediate bacterial-host cell interface. This major outer membrane protein is expressed by all Neisseria strains, regardless of pathogenicity, but its amino acid sequence varies among strains, particularly in the surface-exposed regions. The interaction of Neisseria PorB with TLR2 is essential for driving TLR2/TLR1-dependent cellular responses and is thought to occur via the porin's surface-exposed loop regions. Our studies show that N. lactamica PorB is a TLR2 ligand but its binding specificity for TLR2 is different from that of meningococcal PorB. Furthermore, N. lactamica PorB is a poor inducer of proinflammatory mediators and of TLR2 expression in human airway epithelial cells. These effects are reproduced by whole N. lactamica organisms. Since the responsiveness of human airway epithelial cells to colonizing bacteria is in part regulated via TLR2 expression and signaling, commensal organisms such as N. lactamica would benefit from expressing a product that induces low TLR2-dependent local inflammation, likely delaying or avoiding clearance by the host.


2020 ◽  
Vol 319 (1) ◽  
pp. L126-L136
Author(s):  
Alekh Paranjapye ◽  
Michael J. Mutolo ◽  
Jey Sabith Ebron ◽  
Shih-Hsing Leir ◽  
Ann Harris

The differentiated functions of the human airway epithelium are coordinated by a complex network of transcription factors. These include the pioneer factors Forkhead box A1 and A2 (FOXA1 and FOXA2), which are well studied in several tissues, but their role in airway epithelial cells is poorly characterized. Here, we define the cistrome of FOXA1 and FOXA2 in primary human bronchial epithelial (HBE) cells by chromatin immunoprecipitation with deep-sequencing (ChIP-seq). Next, siRNA-mediated depletion of each factor is used to investigate their transcriptome by RNA-seq. We found that, as predicted from their DNA-binding motifs, genome-wide occupancy of the two factors showed substantial overlap; however, their global impact on gene expression differed. FOXA1 is an abundant transcript in HBE cells, while FOXA2 is expressed at low levels, and both these factors likely exhibit autoregulation and cross-regulation. FOXA1 regulated loci are involved in cell adhesion and the maintenance of epithelial cell identity, particularly through repression of genes associated with epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT). FOXA1 also directly targets other transcription factors with a known role in the airway epithelium such as SAM-pointed domain-containing Ets-like factor (SPDEF). The intersection of the cistrome and transcriptome for FOXA1 revealed enrichment of genes involved in epithelial development and tissue morphogenesis. Moreover, depletion of FOXA1 was shown to reduce the transepithelial resistance of HBE cells, confirming the role of this factor in maintaining epithelial barrier integrity.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moira L. Aitken ◽  
Ranjani Somayaji ◽  
Thomas R. Hinds ◽  
Maricela Pier ◽  
Karla Droguett ◽  
...  

The role of inflammation in airway epithelial cells and its regulation are important in several respiratory diseases. When disease is present, the barrier between the pulmonary circulation and the airway epithelium is damaged, allowing serum proteins to enter the airways. We identified that human glycated albumin (GA) is a molecule in human serum that triggers an inflammatory response in human airway epithelial cultures. We observed that single-donor human serum induced IL-8 secretion from primary human airway epithelial cells and from a cystic fibrosis airway cell line (CF1-16) in a dose-dependent manner. IL-8 secretion from airway epithelial cells was time dependent and rapidly increased in the first 4 h of incubation. Stimulation with GA promoted epithelial cells to secrete IL-8, and this increase was blocked by the anti-GA antibody. The IL-8 secretion induced by serum GA was 10–50-fold more potent than TNFα or LPS stimulation. GA also has a functional effect on airway epithelial cells in vitro, increasing ciliary beat frequency. Our results demonstrate that the serum molecule GA is pro-inflammatory and triggers host defense responses including increases in IL-8 secretion and ciliary beat frequency in the human airway epithelium. Although the binding site of GA has not yet been described, it is possible that GA could bind to the receptor for advanced glycated end products (RAGE), known to be expressed in the airway epithelium; however, further experiments are needed to identify the mechanism involved. We highlight a possible role for GA in airway inflammation.


2015 ◽  
Vol 89 (14) ◽  
pp. 7089-7096 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brajesh K. Singh ◽  
Andrew L. Hornick ◽  
Sateesh Krishnamurthy ◽  
Anna C. Locke ◽  
Crystal A. Mendoza ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTThe discovery that measles virus (MV) uses the adherens junction protein nectin-4 as its epithelial receptor provides a new vantage point from which to characterize its rapid spread in the airway epithelium. We show here that in well-differentiated primary cultures of airway epithelial cells from human donors (HAE), MV infectious centers form rapidly and become larger than those of other respiratory pathogens: human respiratory syncytial virus, parainfluenza virus 5, and Sendai virus. While visible syncytia do not form after MV infection of HAE, the cytoplasm of an infected cell suddenly flows into an adjacent cell, as visualized through wild-type MV-expressed cytoplasmic green fluorescent protein (GFP). High-resolution video microscopy documents that GFP flows through openings that form on the lateral surfaces between columnar epithelial cells. To assess the relevance of the protein afadin, which connects nectin-4 to the actin cytoskeleton, we knocked down its mRNA. This resulted in more-limited infectious-center formation. We also generated a nectin-4 mutant without the afadin-binding site in its cytoplasmic tail. This mutant was less effective than wild-type human nectin-4 at promoting MV infection in primary cultures of porcine airway epithelia. Thus, in airway epithelial cells, MV spread requires the nectin-4/afadin complex and is based on cytoplasm transfer between columnar cells. Since the viral membrane fusion apparatus may open the passages that allow cytoplasm transfer, we refer to them as intercellular membrane pores. Virus-induced intercellular pores may contribute to extremely efficient measles contagion by promoting the rapid spread of the virus through the upper respiratory epithelium.IMPORTANCEMeasles virus (MV), while targeted for eradication, still causes about 120,000 deaths per year worldwide. The recent reemergence of measles in insufficiently vaccinated populations in Europe and North America reminds us that measles is extremely contagious, but the processes favoring its spread in the respiratory epithelium remain poorly defined. Here we characterize wild-type MV spread in well-differentiated primary cultures of human airway epithelial cells. We observed that viral infection promotes the flow of cytoplasmic contents from infected to proximal uninfected columnar epithelial cells. Cytoplasm flows through openings that form on the lateral surfaces. Infectious-center growth is facilitated by afadin, a protein connecting the adherens junction and the actin cytoskeleton. The viral fusion apparatus may open intercellular pores, and the cytoskeleton may stabilize them. Rapid homogenization of cytoplasmic contents in epithelial infectious centers may favor rapid spread and contribute to the extremely contagious nature of measles.


1989 ◽  
Vol 257 (2) ◽  
pp. L125-L129 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. M. Liedtke

The demonstration of abnormal beta-adrenergic and cAMP-modulated apical Cl- channels in cystic fibrosis (CF) airway epithelial cells suggests that other transporters, which are required for Cl- secretion, may also be abnormally regulated. A basolateral cotransporter was investigated by determining the initial rate of 36Cl efflux from cells isolated from CF nasal polyps or trachea and non-CF trachea. Cells were preequilibrated with radioactive tracer at 25 degrees C, and tracer transport was initiated by 10-fold dilution of an aliquot of cells in radioisotope-free medium. The initial rate of Cl transport was calculated from the linear portion of the efflux curves. In CF and non-CF cells, base-line Cl- transport was not blocked by furosemide but was stimulated twofold by l-epinephrine in Ca2+-deficient and Ca2+-replete transport medium. In both types of cells, furosemide blocked 70 and 77%, respectively, of the stimulated Cl- transport. Prazosin, an alpha 1-adrenergic antagonist, blocked the effects of l-epinephrine and methoxamine, an alpha 1-adrenergic agonist, stimulated prazosin- and furosemide-sensitive Cl transport. Ionomycin mimicked the effects of l-epinephrine. l-Isoproterenol, a beta-adrenergic agonist, did not affect Cl transport. The results of this study indicate an alpha 1-adrenergic stimulation of furosemide-sensitive Cl transport in human airway epithelium that functions normally in CF airway epithelial cells. The transport mechanism is probably a Na-Cl or Na-K-2Cl cotransport located in the basolateral membrane and requires elevated intracellular Ca2+ for activation.


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