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Journal of Virology, September 2001, p. 8063-8073, Vol. 75, No. 17
Gladstone Institute of Virology and
Immunology1 and Departments of
Physiology2 and
Medicine,4 School of Medicine,
University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California
94141-9100, and Department of Neurology and Neurological
Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, California
943053
Received 5 April 2001/Accepted 2 June 2001
Progress in developing a small animal model of human
immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) disease would greatly facilitate studies of transmission, pathogenesis, host immune responses, and
antiviral strategies. In this study, we have explored the potential of
rats as a susceptible host. In a single replication cycle, rat cell
lines Rat2 and Nb2 produced infectious virus at levels 10- to 60-fold
lower than those produced by human cells. Rat-derived cells supported
substantial levels of early HIV-1 gene expression, which was further
enhanced by overexpression of human cyclin T1. Rat cells displayed
quantitative, qualitative, and cell-type-specific limitations in the
late phase of the HIV-1 replication cycle including relative expression
levels of HIV-1 Gag proteins, intracellular Gag processing, and viral
egress. Nb2 cells were rendered permissive to HIV-1 R5 viruses by
coexpression of human CD4 and CCR5, indicating that the major
restriction on HIV-1 replication was at the level of cellular entry. We
also found that primary rat lymphocytes, macrophages, and microglia expressed considerable levels of early HIV-1 gene products following infection with pseudotyped HIV-1. Importantly, primary rat macrophages and microglia, but not lymphocytes, also expressed substantial levels
of HIV-1 p24 CA and produced infectious virions. Collectively, these
results identify the rat as a promising candidate for a transgenic
small animal model of HIV-1 infection and highlight pertinent
cell-type-specific restrictions that are features of this species.
0022-538X/01/$04.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/JVI.75.17.8063-8073.2001
Copyright © 2001, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
Susceptibility of Rat-Derived Cells to Replication
by Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1


and
*
Corresponding author. Mailing address: Gladstone
Institute of Virology and Immunology, P.O. Box 419100, San Francisco,
CA 94141. Phone: (415) 695-3775. Fax: (415) 695-1364. E-mail:
mgoldsmith{at}gladstone.ucsf.edu.
Present address: Dynavax Technologies Corporation, Berkeley, CA 94710.
Present address: Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc., South San
Francisco, CA 94080.
§
Present address: Agilent Technologies, Palo Alto, CA 94304.
Present address: University Hospital Zürich, CH-8091
Zürich, Switzerland.
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