scholarly journals In Vitro Inhibition of Influenza Virus Using CRISPR/Cas13a in Chicken Cells

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 40
Author(s):  
Arjun Challagulla ◽  
Karel A. Schat ◽  
Timothy J. Doran

Advances in the field of CRISPR/Cas systems are expanding our ability to modulate cellular genomes and transcriptomes precisely and efficiently. Here, we assessed the Cas13a-mediated targeted disruption of RNA in chicken fibroblast DF1 cells. First, we developed a Tol2 transposon vector carrying the Cas13a-msGFP-NLS (pT-Cas13a) transgene, followed by a stable insertion of the Cas13a transgene into the genome of DF1 cells to generate stable DF1-Cas13a cells. To assess the Cas13a-mediated functional knockdown, DF1-Cas13a cells were transfected with the combination of a plasmid encoding DsRed coding sequence (pDsRed) and DsRed-specific crRNA (crRNA-DsRed) or non-specific crRNA (crRNA-NS). Fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) and a microscopy analysis showed reduced levels of DsRed expression in cells transfected with crRNA-DsRed but not in crRNA-NS, confirming a sequence-specific Cas13a mediated mRNA knockdown. Next, we designed four crRNAs (crRNA-IAV) against the PB1, NP and M genes of influenza A virus (IAV) and cloned in tandem to express from a single vector. DF1-Cas13a cells were transfected with plasmids encoding the crRNA-IAV or crRNA-NS, followed by infection with WSN or PR8 IAV. DF1 cells transfected with crRNA-IAV showed reduced levels of viral titers compared to cells transfected with crRNA-NS. These results demonstrate the potential of Cas13a as an antiviral strategy against highly pathogenic strains of IAV in chickens.

2014 ◽  
Vol 95 (5) ◽  
pp. 1033-1042 ◽  
Author(s):  
Blanca García-Barreno ◽  
Teresa Delgado ◽  
Sonia Benito ◽  
Inmaculada Casas ◽  
Francisco Pozo ◽  
...  

Murine hybridomas producing neutralizing mAbs specific to the pandemic influenza virus A/California/07/2009 haemagglutinin (HA) were isolated. These antibodies recognized at least two different but overlapping new epitopes that were conserved in the HA of most Spanish pandemic isolates. However, one of these isolates (A/Extremadura/RR6530/2010) lacked reactivity with the mAbs and carried two unique mutations in the HA head (S88Y and K136N) that were required simultaneously to eliminate reactivity with the murine antibodies. This unusual requirement directly illustrates the phenomenon of enhanced antigenic change proposed previously for the accumulation of simultaneous amino acid substitutions at antigenic sites of the influenza A virus HA during virus evolution (Shih et al., Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 104 , 6283–6288, 2007). The changes found in the A/Extremadura/RR6530/2010 HA were not found in escape mutants selected in vitro with one of the mAbs, which contained instead nearby single amino acid changes in the HA head. Thus, either single or double point mutations may similarly alter epitopes of the new antigenic site identified in this work in the 2009 H1N1 pandemic virus HA. Moreover, this site is relevant for the human antibody response, as shown by competition of mAbs and human post-infection sera for virus binding. The results are discussed in the context of the HA antigenic structure and challenges posed for identification of sequence changes with possible antigenic impact during virus surveillance.


mBio ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Huihui Kong ◽  
David F. Burke ◽  
Tiago Jose da Silva Lopes ◽  
Kosuke Takada ◽  
Masaki Imai ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Since the emergence of highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses of the H5 subtype, the major viral antigen, hemagglutinin (HA), has undergone constant evolution, resulting in numerous genetic and antigenic (sub)clades. To explore the consequences of amino acid changes at sites that may affect the antigenicity of H5 viruses, we simultaneously mutated 17 amino acid positions of an H5 HA by using a synthetic gene library that, theoretically, encodes all combinations of the 20 amino acids at the 17 positions. All 251 mutant viruses sequenced possessed ≥13 amino acid substitutions in HA, demonstrating that the targeted sites can accommodate a substantial number of mutations. Selection with ferret sera raised against H5 viruses of different clades resulted in the isolation of 39 genotypes. Further analysis of seven variants demonstrated that they were antigenically different from the parental virus and replicated efficiently in mammalian cells. Our data demonstrate the substantial plasticity of the influenza virus H5 HA protein, which may lead to novel antigenic variants. IMPORTANCE The HA protein of influenza A viruses is the major viral antigen. In this study, we simultaneously introduced mutations at 17 amino acid positions of an H5 HA expected to affect antigenicity. Viruses with ≥13 amino acid changes in HA were viable, and some had altered antigenic properties. H5 HA can therefore accommodate many mutations in regions that affect antigenicity. The substantial plasticity of H5 HA may facilitate the emergence of novel antigenic variants.


Author(s):  
Keiichi Taniguchi ◽  
Yoshinori Ando ◽  
Masanori Kobayashi ◽  
Shinsuke Toba ◽  
Haruaki Nobori ◽  
...  

Human infections with the H5 highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) sporadically threatens public health. The susceptibility of HPAIVs to baloxavir acid (BXA), which is a new class of inhibitor for the influenza virus cap-dependent endonuclease, has been confirmed in vitro, but has not yet been characterized fully. Here, the efficacy of BXA against HPAIVs, including recent H5N8 variants in vitro was assessed. The antiviral efficacy of baloxavir marboxil (BXM) in H5N1 virus-infected mice was also investigated. BXA exhibited similar in vitro activities against H5N1, H5N6, and H5N8 variants tested to those of seasonal and other zoonotic strains. BXM monotherapy in mice infected with the H5N1 HPAIV clinical isolate; A/Hong Kong/483/1997 (H5N1) strain, also caused a significant reduction in viral titers in the lungs, brains, and kidneys, followed by prevention of acute lung inflammation and improvement of mortality compared with oseltamivir phosphate (OSP). Furthermore, combination treatments with BXM and OSP, using a 48-hour delayed treatment model showed a more potent effect on viral replication in organs, accompanied by improved survival compared to BXM or OSP monotherapy. From each test, no resistant virus (e.g., I38T in the PA) emerged in any BXM-treated mouse. These results therefore support the conclusion that BXM has potent antiviral efficacy against H5 HPAIV infections.


2010 ◽  
Vol 2010 ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura V. Ashton ◽  
Robert L. Callan ◽  
Sangeeta Rao ◽  
Gabriele A. Landolt

Infection of dogs with canine influenza virus (CIV) is considered widespread throughout the United States following the first isolation of CIV in 2004. While vaccination against influenza A infection is a common and important practice for disease control, antiviral therapy can serve as a valuable adjunct in controlling the impact of the disease. In this study, we examined the antiviral activity of nitazoxanide (NTZ) and tizoxanide (TIZ) against three CIV isolatesin vitro. NTZ and TIZ inhibited virus replication of all CIVs with 50% and 90% inhibitory concentrations ranging from 0.17 to 0.21 μMand from 0.60 to 0.76 μM, respectively. These results suggest that NTZ and TIZ are effective against CIV and may be useful for treatment of canine influenza in dogs but further investigation of thein vivoefficacy against CIV as well as the drug's potential for toxicity in dogs is needed.


Viruses ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 203
Author(s):  
Hien Thi Tuong ◽  
Ngoc Minh Nguyen ◽  
Haan Woo Sung ◽  
Hyun Park ◽  
Seon-Ju Yeo

In July 2018, a novel avian influenza virus (A/Mandarin duck/South Korea/KNU18-12/2018(H11N9)) was isolated from Mandarin ducks in South Korea. Phylogenetic and molecular analyses were conducted to characterize the genetic origins of the H11N9 strain. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that eight gene segments of strain H11N9 belonged to the Eurasian lineages. Analysis of nucleotide sequence similarity of both the hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) genes revealed the highest homology with A/duck/Kagoshima/KU57/2014 (H11N9), showing 97.70% and 98.00% nucleotide identities, respectively. Additionally, internal genes showed homology higher than 98% compared to those of other isolates derived from duck and wild birds. Both the polymerase acidic (PA) and polymerase basic 1 (PB1) genes were close to the H5N3 strain isolated in China; whereas, other internal genes were closely related to that of avian influenza virus in Japan. A single basic amino acid at the HA cleavage site (PAIASR↓GLF), the lack of a five-amino acid deletion (residue 69–73) in the stalk region of the NA gene, and E627 in the polymerase basic 2 (PB2) gene indicated that the A/Mandarin duck/South Korea/KNU18-12/2018(H11N9) isolate was a typical low-pathogenicity avian influenza. In vitro viral replication of H11N9 showed a lower titer than H1N1 and higher than H9N2. In mice, H11N9 showed lower adaptation than H1N1. The novel A/Mandarin duck/South Korea/KNU18-12/2018(H11N9) isolate may have resulted from an unknown reassortment through the import of multiple wild birds in Japan and Korea in approximately 2016–2017, evolving to produce a different H11N9 compared to the previous H11N9 in Korea (2016). Further reassortment events of this virus occurred in PB1 and PA in China-derived strains. These results indicate that Japanese- and Chinese-derived avian influenza contributes to the genetic diversity of A/Mandarin duck/South Korea/KNU18-12/2018(H11N9) in Korea.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dalya Al-Saad ◽  
Misal Giuseppe Memeo ◽  
Paolo Quadrelli

Influenza virus flu A H1N1 still remains a target for its inhibition with small molecules. Fleeting nitrosocarbonyl intermediates are at work in a short-cut synthesis of carbocyclic nucleoside analogues. The strategy of the synthetic approaches is presented along with thein vitroantiviral tests. The nucleoside derivatives were tested for their inhibitory activity against a variety of viruses. Promising antiviral activities were found for specific compounds in the case of flu A H1N1.


2008 ◽  
Vol 82 (14) ◽  
pp. 6902-6910 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank T. Vreede ◽  
Hugh Gifford ◽  
George G. Brownlee

ABSTRACT The mechanisms regulating the synthesis of mRNA, cRNA, and viral genomic RNA (vRNA) by the influenza A virus RNA-dependent RNA polymerase are not fully understood. Previous studies in our laboratory have shown that virion-derived viral ribonucleoprotein complexes synthesize both mRNA and cRNA in vitro and early in the infection cycle in vivo. Our continued studies showed that de novo synthesis of cRNA in vitro is more sensitive to the concentrations of ATP, CTP, and GTP than capped-primer-dependent synthesis of mRNA. Using rescued recombinant influenza A/WSN/33 viruses, we now demonstrate that the 3′-terminal sequence of the vRNA promoter dictates the requirement for a high nucleoside triphosphate (NTP) concentration during de novo-initiated replication to cRNA, whereas this is not the case for the extension of capped primers during transcription to mRNA. In contrast to some other viral polymerases, for which only the initiating NTP is required at high concentrations, influenza virus polymerase requires high concentrations of the first three NTPs. In addition, we show that base pair mutations in the vRNA promoter can lead to nontemplated dead-end mutations during replication to cRNA in vivo. Based on our observations, we propose a new model for the de novo initiation of influenza virus replication.


2020 ◽  
Vol 64 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Simone E. Adams ◽  
Vladimir Y. Lugovtsev ◽  
Anastasia Kan ◽  
Nicolai V. Bovin ◽  
Raymond P. Donnelly ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Each year, 5% to 20% of the population of the United States becomes infected with influenza A virus. Combination therapy with two or more antiviral agents has been considered a potential treatment option for influenza virus infection. However, the clinical results derived from combination treatment with two or more antiviral drugs have been variable. We examined the effectiveness of cotreatment with two distinct classes of anti-influenza drugs, i.e., neuraminidase (NA) inhibitor, laninamivir, and interferon lambda 1 (IFN-λ1), against the emergence of drug-resistant virus variants in vitro. We serially passaged pandemic A/California/04/09 [A(H1N1)pdm09] influenza virus in a human lung epithelial cell line (Calu-3) in the presence or absence of increasing concentrations of laninamivir or laninamivir plus IFN-λ1. Surprisingly, laninamivir used in combination with IFN-λ1 promoted the emergence of the E119G NA mutation five passages earlier than laninamivir alone (passage 2 versus passage 7, respectively). Acquisition of this mutation resulted in significantly reduced sensitivity to the NA inhibitors laninamivir (∼284-fold) and zanamivir (∼1,024-fold) and decreased NA enzyme catalytic activity (∼5-fold) compared to the parental virus. Moreover, the E119G NA mutation emerged together with concomitant hemagglutinin (HA) mutations (T197A and D222G), which were selected more rapidly by combination treatment with laninamivir plus IFN-λ1 (passages 2 and 3, respectively) than by laninamivir alone (passage 10). Our results show that treatment with laninamivir alone or in combination with IFN-λ1 can lead to the emergence of drug-resistant influenza virus variants. The addition of IFN-λ1 in combination with laninamivir may promote acquisition of drug resistance more rapidly than treatment with laninamivir alone.


1998 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 647-653 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weixing Li ◽  
Paul A. Escarpe ◽  
Eugene J. Eisenberg ◽  
Kenneth C. Cundy ◽  
Clive Sweet ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT GS 4071 is a potent carbocyclic transition-state analog inhibitor of influenza virus neuraminidase with activity against both influenza A and B viruses in vitro. GS 4116, the guanidino analog of GS 4071, is a 10-fold more potent inhibitor of influenza virus replication in tissue culture than GS 4071. In this study we determined the oral bioavailabilities of GS 4071, GS 4116, and their respective ethyl ester prodrugs in rats. Both parent compounds and the prodrug of the guanidino analog exhibited poor oral bioavailability (2 to 4%) and low peak concentrations in plasma (C maxs; C max<0.06 μg/ml). In contrast, GS 4104, the ethyl ester prodrug of GS 4071, exhibited good oral bioavailability (35%) as GS 4071 and high C maxs of GS 4071 (Cmax = 0.47 μg/ml) which are 150 times the concentration necessary to inhibit influenza virus neuraminidase activity by 90%. The bioavailability of GS 4104 as GS 4071 was also determined in mice (30%), ferrets (11%), and dogs (73%). The plasma of all four species exhibited high, sustained concentrations of GS 4071 such that at 12 h postdosing the concentrations of GS 4071 in plasma exceeded those necessary to inhibit influenza virus neuraminidase activity by 90%. These results demonstrate that GS 4104 is an orally bioavailable prodrug of GS 4071 in animals and that it has the potential to be an oral agent for the prevention and treatment of influenza A and B virus infections in humans.


2018 ◽  
Vol 115 (45) ◽  
pp. 11613-11618 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel H. Goldhill ◽  
Aartjan J. W. te Velthuis ◽  
Robert A. Fletcher ◽  
Pinky Langat ◽  
Maria Zambon ◽  
...  

Favipiravir is a broad-spectrum antiviral that has shown promise in treatment of influenza virus infections. While emergence of resistance has been observed for many antiinfluenza drugs, to date, clinical trials and laboratory studies of favipiravir have not yielded resistant viruses. Here we show evolution of resistance to favipiravir in the pandemic H1N1 influenza A virus in a laboratory setting. We found that two mutations were required for robust resistance to favipiravir. We demonstrate that a K229R mutation in motif F of the PB1 subunit of the influenza virus RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP) confers resistance to favipiravir in vitro and in cell culture. This mutation has a cost to viral fitness, but fitness can be restored by a P653L mutation in the PA subunit of the polymerase. K229R also conferred favipiravir resistance to RNA polymerases of other influenza A virus strains, and its location within a highly conserved structural feature of the RdRP suggests that other RNA viruses might also acquire resistance through mutations in motif F. The mutations identified here could be used to screen influenza virus-infected patients treated with favipiravir for the emergence of resistance.


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