Biomedical subjects
L J Markoff
Publications and source records attributed to L J Markoff.
Correlation between detection of plasminogen cross-reactive antibodies and hemorrhage in dengue virus infection.
Although dengue fever (DF) is usually self-limited, some patients experience severe and prolonged illness characterized by capillary leakage, which may progress to hypovolemic shock (dengue hemorrhagic fever/dengue shock syndrome; DHF/DSS) with hemorrhage of unknown etiology. Development of antibodies potentially cross-reactive to plasminogen has been reported in a high percentage of Thai patients with DF and DHF/DSS. Correlation between detection of plasminogen cross-reactive antibodies and hemorrhage was evaluated in 88 Tahitian children with dengue virus type 3 infection who presented with (n = 59) or without (n = 29) hemorrhage. Plasminogen cross-reactive antibodies were found in acute and convalescent sera of 33 and 11 children, respectively (56% vs. 31%, P < .05), and closely paralleled antibodies to the cross-reactive site in dengue virus E protein. Antibodies were more frequent in children with secondary than primary infections (60% vs. 32%, P < .05). Plasminogen cross-reactive antibodies did not correlate with occurrence of DHF/DSS or thrombocytopenia. These results are consistent with the possibility that plasminogen cross-reactive antibodies play a role in the etiology of hemorrhage in dengue virus infection.
Development of cross-reactive antibodies to plasminogen during the immune response to dengue virus infection.
The four serotypes of dengue virus (a mosquito-borne flavivirus) cause an acute febrile illness (dengue fever) or a more prolonged illness with plasma leakage resulting in hypovolemia (dengue hemorrhagic fever). Hemorrhage may accompany either. Epidemiologic data suggest a role for dengue antibodies in pathogenesis. Computer analysis revealed a 20-residue region of similarity in amino acid sequence between the dengue type 4 envelope glycoprotein (E) and a family of clotting factors, including plasminogen, the prime mediator of fibrinolysis. By use of synthetic peptides in ELISA, E antibodies that potentially bind plasminogen were detected in 75% of 40 Thai patients acutely infected with dengue virus type 1, 2, 3, or 4. Plasminogen cross-reactivity of dengue antibodies was shown to be specific for the related sites in E and plasminogen. The dengue E sequence with similarity to plasminogen is largely conserved within the currently known flavivirus E sequences. However, 15 Thai patients hospitalized for illness caused by Japanese encephalitis virus (a flavivirus not associated with hemorrhage) did not develop plasminogen-cross-reactive antibodies, and this finding correlated with failure of Japanese encephalitis virus antibodies to bind to the plasminogen-cross-reactive site in E.
Influenza virus hemagglutinin containing an altered hydrophobic carboxy terminus accumulates intracellularly.
The influenza virus hemagglutinin (HA) glycoprotein synthesized from cloned DNA in a simian virus 40 vector is expressed on the surface of infected primate cells. Previously, it has been demonstrated that mutant HAs lacking the hydrophobic carboxy terminus fail to anchor on the cell surface and therefore are secreted extracellularly. During analysis of additional HA deletion mutants derived from an HA-simian virus 40 recombinant, we found a mutant with an altered hydrophobic carboxy terminus that exhibited another phenotype. This deletion mutant, dl-12, produced HA that was neither secreted nor expressed on the infected cell surface. The mutant HA was similar to the wild-type HA in apparent molecular weight and extent of glycosylation as assayed by endoglycosidase H sensitivity. The mutant HA localized near the perinuclear region of infected cells as indicated by an indirect immunofluorescence assay. Sequence analysis showed that a 5-base-pair deletion had occurred before the region encoding the hydrophobic carboxy terminus. Nevertheless, the physicochemical properties of the wild-type HA carboxy terminus were maintained in that the truncated HA carboxy terminus consisted of predominantly hydrophobic amino acids followed by several charged amino acids residues. This similarity in the carboxy terminus between the wild-type and mutant HAs may be responsible for the functional similarities observed. In spite of these similarities, the mutant HA failed to mature at the surface. These results suggest that the maturation of the mutant HA is blocked during a late stage in the transit to the cell surface.
Amino acid sequence changes in antigenic variants of type A influenza virus N2 neuraminidase.
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Cell surface expression of the influenza virus hemagglutinin requires the hydrophobic carboxy-terminal sequences.
We investigated the requirements of the carboxyterminal sequence for surface expression of the influenza viral hemagglutinin (HA). Deletions in the cloned hemagglutinin gene were introduced at locations upstream from and spanning into the region that codes for the hydrophobic carboxyl terminus. Primate cells infected with recombinants of the deleted HA gene and an SV40 vector were negative for surface immunofluorescence and failed to adsorb erythrocytes. Polypeptide analysis showed that the mutant hemagglutinins lacking the normal hydrophobic carboxy-terminal sequences were secreted into the medium. These data provide evidence that these sequences of the influenza hemagglutinin are responsible for accumulation at the cell surface. During infection with each deletion mutant, a truncated HA polypeptide was found intracellularly. Both intracellular and extracellular HAs were glycosylated, since a third species representing the unglycosylated mutant hemagglutinin was detected in the presence of tunicamycin. Interestingly, the secreted and intracellular mutant HA polypeptides differ from the surface HA in their sensitivity to endoglycosidase H, indicating that an alteration of glycosylation has occurred.
Production and level of genetic stability of an influenza A virus temperature-sensitive mutant containing two genes with ts mutations.
Temperature-sensitive (ts) reassortant vaccine strains derived from the A/Udorn/72 ts-1A2 donor virus were not sufficiently stable genetically in humans. We therefore sought to produce a new, more stable donor virus. We had previously identified a stable ts virus with a ts P3 gene and in the current study identified another relatively stable single-lesion ts virus with a ts mutation in the NP gene. A new ts reassortant virus was constructed by mating these two single mutants and by isolating three reassortant progeny, clones 20, 53, and 55, that contained both a ts P3 and a ts NP gene. These reassortant progeny possessed a 37 to 38 degrees C shutoff temperature and were as restricted in their replication in hamster lungs as the A/Udorn/72 ts-1A2 virus. All isolates from the lungs and nasal turbinates of hamsters were temperature sensitive. An in vitro stress test was used to determine whether the new ts P3 ts NP reassortant virus would undergo loss of its ts phenotype after replication at semipermissive temperature. Clone 20 and 55 reassortants underwent progressive loss of their ts phenotype in vitro, although at a rate slightly less than that of the A/Udorn/72 ts-1A2 virus. The level of genetic stability after replication in vivo was assessed in cyclophosphamide-treated hamsters in which virus replication continued for up to 15 days. Again, both the A/Udorn/72 ts-1A2 and the new ts P3 ts NP reassortant clone 55 manifested a progressive loss of temperature sensitivity after 7 days of replication. Clone 55 virus lost temperature sensitivity significantly less rapidly than the A/Udorn/72 ts-1A2 virus. These results indicated that, although the new ts P3 ts NP reassortant virus was more stable than the A/Udorn/72 ts-1A2 virus, it nevertheless underwent progressive loss of temperature sensitivity after replication in vitro and in vivo. Therefore, it does not appear to be a satisfactory donor virus. This experience plus that gained earlier with other ts mutants of influenza A virus suggest that influenza A virus mutants that rely solely upon their ts phenotype for attenuation are unlikely to exhibit the phenotypic stability required of a vaccine virus. Other genetic techniques are needed to produce more stable influenza A virus strains.
Genetic approaches to attenuation of influenza A viruses for man.
The explosion of new information concerning the influenza A viral genome provides a basis for deliberate manipulation of its genes with the intent of introducing specific mutations that render influenza virus attenuated and useful for prevention of disease. Currently there is considerable effort to develop a defined set of mutant genes that confer a specific and desired level of attenuation upon any viral recombinant into which they are transferred. In this manner new antigenic variants of influenza A virus may be satisfactorily attenuated after transfer of the mutant genes. The mutant genes must be readily identifiable by simple in-vitro techniques, thus enabling the genetic basis of attenuation to be monitored directly during all phases of vaccine development, manufacture and utilization in man. We describe our experience with two sets of ts mutant genes which affect viral RNA transcription or synthesis and which effect a reproducible level of attenuation in wild-type influenza A virus.
Cloning DNA sequences from influenza viral RNA segments.
DNA sequences corresponding to gene segments that code for the nonstructural protein, the matrix protein, and the hemagglutinin of influenza A virus [strain A/Udorn/72 (H3N2)] were cloned in Escherichia coli pBR 322. Initially, positive and negative cDNA strands were prepared separately by reverse transcription. The positive strands of cDNA were transcribed from genomic RNA segments by using a specific dodecamer DNA sequence as a primer; the negative strands of cDNA were transcribed from cytoplasmic viral mRNA segments by using an oligo(dT) primer. DNA duplexes corresponding in size to the virus RNA segments were then purified, inserted into the plasmid DNA, and used for transformation of E. coli. The influenza virus-specific DNA sequences isolated from recombinant plasmid molecules were characterized by mapping restriction enzyme cleavage sites. In addition, the orientation of cloned DNA was determined with reference to the 3' terminus of viral RNA.
Genetic variation of influenza A viruses as studied by recombinant DNA techniques.
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Probable association of plaque size with neuraminidase subtype among H3N2 influenza A viruses. Brief report.
The present study demonstrates that the plaque size of certain influenza A H3N2 virus recombinants is dependent on their containing a specific neuraminidase glycoprotein, but is independent of the genes coding for the HA, P3, and NP proteins.
Live Victoria/75-ts-1[E] influenza A virus vaccines in adult volunteers: role of hemagglutinin immunity in protection against illness and infection caused by influenza A virus.
To explore the relationship between neuraminidase immunity and the degree of attenuatíon of live influenza A virus vaccines, a comparative evaluation of three Victoria/75-ts-1[E] (Vic/75-ts-1[E]) recombinant viruses in serum hemagglutination-inhibiting-negative (titer, </=1:8) adult volunteers was performed. These three ts-1[E] viruses had a similar restriction of replication at 38 degrees C in vitro, and each possessed the two attenuating genes of the ts-1[E] donor strain (13). However, Vic/75-ts-1[E] recombinants 81 and 113 possessed both Vic/75 hemagglutinin (H3(75)) and Vic/75 neuraminidase (N2(75)), whereas Vic/75-ts-1[E] recombinant 67 had Vic/75 hemagglutinin but the N2(65) neuraminidase. Vic/75-ts-1[E] recombinant 67 was significantly more attenuated than Vic/75-ts-1[E] recombinants 81 and 113 in that fewer local and systemic signs and symptoms of illness were observed in those volunteers who received clone 67. These findings were consistent with our previous observations which suggested that the following two factors contribute to the attenuation of ts-1[E] vaccine strains in adults: (i) the attenuating effect of the two ts-1[E] genes and (ii) the neuraminidase immunity of the host. Vic/75-ts-1[E] recombinant clone 67 vaccinees developed an immunological response to the H3(75) hemagglutinin in the absence of a response to the N2(75) neuraminidase. To assess the role that anti-hemagglutinin immunity induced by an attenuated live virus vaccine plays in resistance to influenza A virus, vaccinees who received recombinant 67 were challenged with Vic/75 wild-type virus, and their responses were compared with those of Vic/75-ts-1[E] vaccinees who received recombinant 81 or 113. Each of the three groups of ts-1[E] vaccinees was significantly protected against illness induced by wild-type virus infection, although resistance was not complete. However, the clone 67 vaccinees were protected less against infection. The infection-permissive resistance induced by clone 67 resembled that previously described for inactivated neuraminidase-specific vaccines. These results suggested that a ts-1[E] recombinant that possessed the hemagglutinin of a new pandemic variant, the neuraminidase of the preceding subtype, and the two ts-1[E] ts genes would be satisfactorily attenuated for children and adults with neuraminidase immunity and could induce resistance to illness caused by the new pandemic wild-type influenza A virus.
Relationship of genotype of recombinants of influenza A/Hong Kong/68-ts-1[E]virus used as live virus vaccines to virulence in humans.
Influenza A/Hong Kong/68-ts-1[E] virus is a temperature-sensitive mutant developed for use as a live virus vaccine (B. R. Murphy, E. G. Chalhub, S. R. Nusinoff, J. Kasel, and R. M. Chanock, J. Infect. Dis. 128:479--487, 1973). This virus and temperature-sensitive recombinants derived by mating it with A/Udorn/72, A/Georgia/74, or A/Victoria/75 wild-type virus have been administered to volunteers in clinical trials on the assumption that the ts-1[E] temperature-sensitive genetic lesions on a polymerase gene (P3) and on the nucleoprotein gene (NP) would determine a satisfactory and reproducible level of attentuation regardless of the genetic constitution of ts-1[E] recombinants at other loci (B. R. Murphy, D. D. Richman, S. B. Spring, and R. M. Chanock, Postgrad. Med. 52:381--388, 1976). In this paper, the parental origin of genes in the ts-1[E] recombinants was determined by using the technique of polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of virion ribonucleic acid segments in the presence of a denaturing agent (urea). When tested in individuals who lacked immunity to hemagglutinin antigen, attenuation of the ts-1[E] recombinants appeared to correlate with inheritance of the ts-1[E] temperature-sensitive genes at the P3 and NP loci and with the level of preinfection neuraminidase immunity. There was no evidence that other genes from the ts-1[E] donor virus played a role in attenuation.
Temperature-sensitive mutants of influenza A virus: evaluation of A/Victoria/3/75-ts-1[E] recombinant viruses in volunteers.
The Hong Kong/68-ts-1[E] virus and its Udorn/72 and Georgia/74 recombinants, which have a 38 degrees C shutoff temperature and a ts lesion(s) on the genes coding for the P3 and NP proteins, were adequately attenuated and immunogenic in adult volunteers who lacked serum hemagglutination-inhibiting antibody (titer, </=1:8), but who possessed serum neuraminidase-inhibiting antibody. Two Victoria/75-ts-1[E] clones that also had a 38 degrees C shutoff temperature and a ts lesion(s) on the same two genes were administered to adult volunteers who lacked both serum hemagglutination-inhibiting antibody (titer, </=1:8) and neuraminidase-inhibiting antibody (titer, </=1:4). In contrast to the behavior of the earlier ts-1[E] recombinants, the Vic/75-ts-1[E] recombinants retained the capacity to cause febrile, systemic illness. However, the recombinants were attenuated compared with wild-type virus. The Vic/75-ts-1[E] virus vaccinees shed a larger amount of virus for a longer time than the previous ts-1[E] vaccinees, but they shed less virus than volunteers infected with wild-type virus. The ts-1[E] virus shed retained its ts phenotype in most instances and failed to spread to susceptible contacts. Vaccinees were partially protected against homologous wild-type virus challenge. The failure of HK/68, Udorn/72, and Georgia/74 ts-1[E] vaccinees to develop systemic reactions may reflect the presence of neuraminidase immunity before infection. In this situation, attenuation probably resulted from the degree of defectiveness of the ts-1[E] recombinant virus and the existence of neuraminidase immunity in the recipients. The 50% human infectious dose of the Vic/75 ts-1[E] virus was less than 10(5.2) 50% tissue culture infective doses. This suggests that at the time of a pandemic shift involving both the hemagglutinin and neuraminidase glycoproteins, a small amount of live virus vaccine might be effective in initiating infection.
Enzymatic formation of uracil and azauriail nucleotides in Streptococcus faecalis.
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An evaluation of influenza A/Victoria/3/75-ts-1 [E] recombinant viruses for attenuation and immunogenicity in adult seronegative volunteers.
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