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ANNUAL CONFERENCE :: Abstract Library
Abstract Library
2003 Conference Abstract
| Type of Submission |
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Submission Type: |
Poster Presentation |
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Subject Category: |
Virology |
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| Session Information |
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Presentation Date: |
May 27, 2003 |
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Abstract ID: |
H12 |
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Session: |
Poster 3 |
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Time: |
15:00 |
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| Presenting Author |
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M. GAGNON, Laboratoire de Neuroimmunovirologie, INRS-Institut Armand-Frappier, Université du Québec, 531 boulevard des Prairies, Laval, Québec, Canada H7V 1B7
mylene.gagnon@inrs-iaf.uquebec.ca |
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| Other Authors |
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T. MILETTI, Laboratoire de Neuroimmunovirologie, INRS-Institut Armand-Frappier, Université du Québec, 531 boulevard des Prairies, Laval, Québec, Canada H7V 1B7
P.J. TALBOT, Laboratoire de Neuroimmunovirologie, INRS-Institut Armand-Frappier, Université du Québec, 531 boulevard des Prairies, Laval, Québec, Canada H7V 1B7
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| Title |
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MONOCYTIC AND ENDOTHELIAL CELLS AS POSSIBLE ROUTES OF ENTRY OF HUMAN CORONAVIRUSES INTO THE BRAIN |
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| Abstract Text |
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Neurological diseases are diversified and often misunderstood. Both genetic and environmental factors such as viruses could be involved. Human coronaviruses (HCoV) are recognized respiratory pathogens and accumulating data suggest that these infectious agents have neurotropic and neuroinvasive properties. Indeed, we have shown that several human neural cell lines, as well as primary neural cell cultures were susceptible to HCoV infection, and that viral RNA was detected in post-mortem human brains. However, mechanisms of HCoV spread into the central nervous system (CNS) are still unknown. A possible neuroinvasive pathway consist in passage through the blood-brain barrier by infection or passage through brain endothelial cells and/or transport by infected leukocytes. To verify whether this may be relevant to HCoV, we investigated the susceptibility to HCoV infection of human brain microvascular endothelial cells (HBMEC), of established human leukocytic cell lines and of different cell components of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). Viral RNA was detected by RT-PCR, viral proteins stained by immunofluorescence labeling and infectious viral production quantified by an immunoperoxydase assay. HCoV-229E could infect and replicate in HBMEC, which may therefore represent one mode of viral spread to the CNS. Moreover, the promonocytic THP.1 cell line supported acute HCoV-229E infection and persistent HCoV-OC43 infection. This cell line became nonpermissive to both viral strains following cellular differentiation, which also led to a decrease in viral replication of persistently infected cells. Finally, preliminary results about susceptibility of PBMC to infection suggest that monocytes and macrophages are susceptible to HCoV infection and therefore may serve as vectors for viral transport to the CNS and could even represent reservoirs for infectious virus. Our results are consistent with the possibility that human coronaviruses penetrate the central nervous system through an hematogenous route after viremia and/or infection of monocytic cells. |
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