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J. Virol., 03 1997, 2100-2106, Vol 71, No. 3
SM Oberhaus, RL Smith, GH Clayton, TS Dermody and KL Tyler
Reovirus serotype 3 strains infect neurons within specific regions of the
neonatal mouse brain and produce a lethal meningoencephalitis. Viral
replication and pathology colocalize and have a predilection for the
cortex, hippocampus, and thalamus. We have shown previously that infection
of cultured fibroblasts and epithelial cells with reovirus type 3 Dearing
(T3D) and other type 3 reovirus strains results in apoptotic cell death,
suggesting that apoptosis is a mechanism of cell death in vivo. We now
report that T3D induces apoptosis in infected mouse brain tissue. To
determine whether reovirus induces apoptosis in neural tissues, newborn
mice were inoculated intracerebrally with T3D, and at various times after
inoculation, brain tissue was assayed for viral antigen by immunostaining
and apoptosis was identified by DNA oligonucleosomal laddering and in situ
terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling.
Cells were also stained with cresyl violet to detect morphological changes
characteristic of apoptosis, including chromatin condensation and cell
shrinkage. DNA laddering was detected in T3D- but not in mock-infected
brain tissue. Apoptotic cells were restricted to the same regions of the
brain in which infected cells and tissue damage were observed. These
findings suggest that virus-induced apoptosis is a mechanism of cell death,
tissue injury, and mortality in reovirus-infected mice. The correlation
between apoptosis and pathogenesis in vivo identifies apoptosis as a
potential target for molecular and pharmacological strategies designed to
curtail or prevent diseases resulting from induction of this cell death
pathway.
Copyright © 1997, American Society for Microbiology
Reovirus infection and tissue injury in the mouse central nervous system are associated with apoptosis
Department of Neurology, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver 80262, USA.
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