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Journal of Virology, November 2002, p. 11236-11244, Vol. 76, No. 22
0022-538X/02/$04.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/JVI.76.22.11236-11244.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Departments of Pediatrics,1 Medicine, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York,2 Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Rush University,3 Department of Pharmaceutics and Pharmacodynamics, College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois4
Received 29 March 2002/ Accepted 5 August 2002
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The ideal microbicide should fulfill a number of criteria that include not only an acceptable antimicrobial and toxicity profile but also features that would lead to extensive use worldwide (21). The compound must have broad activity against transmission of primary HIV isolates, inhibit transmission to relevant cell types within the mucosa, be easy to use without side effects, be essentially odorless and colorless, and be inexpensive to allow worldwide distribution. Ideally, the compound should be active against other sexually transmitted pathogens, especially those causing ulcerative disease such as herpes simplex virus (HSV).
There are several reasons to also focus on genital herpes in the development of topical microbicides. Epidemiological studies have shown that genital ulcer disease, which is caused primarily by HSV-2 (9), enhances the transmission and acquisition of HIV infection (7). HSV may potentiate HIV acquisition by disrupting or activating epithelial cells, which produce proinflammatory cytokines, and may activate or recruit HIV target cells. Additionally, heat-inactivated HSV particles enhance HIV replication in macrophages in vitro, by activating cellular pathways involving NF-
B (24). HSV-infected epithelial cells may release noninfectious viral particles, which, in turn, may enhance HIV replication within macrophages or peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) (36). Thus, topical microbicides that block both HSV and HIV transmission offer distinct advantages.
The earliest approach to microbicide development focused on spermicidal detergents. The surfactant nonoxynol-9 (N-9), the most commonly used spermicide worldwide, was initially thought to be a potentially safe microbicide. However, N-9 was highly cytotoxic in primary human cervical or vaginal epithelial cells (16). The results of a recently completed randomized, placebo-controlled study are consistent with these in vitro observations: women who used N-9 gel became infected with HIV at a 50% higher rate than did women who used a placebo gel, and had significantly higher incidence of inflammatory lesions than did the placebo group (5). One possibility is that the break in the critical epithelial barrier contributed to the higher transmission rate. This experience highlights the need for novel candidate topical microbicides and for a rigorous preclinical evaluation of candidate agents.
Recently, a novel compound, a polymer derived from sulfuric acid treatment of mandelic acid (mandelic acid condensation product, SAMMA), has been identified as a candidate topical contraceptive (developed by the Topical Prevention for Conception and Disease, Rush University, Chicago, Ill.) (40). Mandelic acid has been used effectively as a urinary antiseptic, particularly as a bladder irrigant during urological procedures (19, 32). In preliminary work, SAMMA exhibited an excellent safety profile and was active against HIV, HSV, bovine papillomavirus, and Neisseria gonorrhoeae (40). Importantly, SAMMA has no deleterious effects on lactobacilli (40). Its simple chemical structure, solubility in water, apparent stability, and characteristics of being colorless and odorless make it attractive as a candidate microbicide. Moreover, unlike other compounds being developed as topical microbicides, it does not contain sulfur, i.e., is not sulfated or sulfonated, and is not a surfactant. These studies were undertaken, therefore, to examine the spectrum and mechanisms of antiviral activity of this unique compound against HIV and HSV by using cells most likely to be early targets during sexual transmission.
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Viral strains and glycoproteins.
Laboratory-adapted HIV-1 strains included the R5 laboratory isolate HIV-1BAL and the X4 laboratory isolate HIV-1IIIB (Advanced Biotechnologies Inc, Columbia, Md.). Primary isolates included the R5 isolate BR/92/003 and the X4 isolate UG021 (ARRRP and UNAIDS Network for HIV Isolation and Characterization and the Division of AIDS, NIAID). For the single-cycle experiments, replication-defective virus was used. Pseudotyped recombinant viruses were produced in 293T cells by using a three-plasmid cotransfection system described previously (26). The packaging construct pCMV
R8.2 was previously described (26). The HIV-1 reporter construct pNL4-3.Luc.R-E (obtained from ARRRP) contains the firefly luciferase gene inserted into the pNL4-3 nef gene. Two frameshift mutations (in 5' Env and Vpr at amino acid 26) render this clone replication defective. Pseudotyped replication-defective viruses were generated by cotransfection of the packaging and reporter constructs with either of two envelope-expressing constructs, pJR-FL and pHXB2, expressing an R5 and X4 envelope, respectively (donated by D. Littman, Skirball Institute, New York University, New York, N.Y.) (14). Transfections were performed in 10-cm2 tissue culture dishes using Lipofectamine 2000 (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, Calif.). Viral supernatants were harvested 48 h posttransfection and treated with 29 U of DNase I (Invitrogen) per ml for 1 h at 37°C to remove any residual plasmid DNA.
The HSV-2 strains used were the laboratory wild-type isolates 333 and G. The clinical isolates MMA and MTWTA were obtained from patients attending a sexually transmitted disease clinic (gift from P. Spear, Northwestern University) and have been partially sequenced (37). DT-1 and DT-2 are acyclovir-sensitive and -resistant strains, respectively, isolated from a neonate (28). Adenovirus type 5 (Ad5) was obtained from ATCC.
Reagents. Recombinant envelope glycoprotein 120 (gp120) from an X4 (MN) and R5 (YU2) virus, as well as oligomeric IIIB gp120, was obtained from Immunodiagnostics Inc., Woburn, Mass. HSV-2 recombinant glycoprotein B (gB-2) was generated using the Bac-to-Bac system (Gibco) and purified by heparin-affinity chromatography. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and silver staining confirmed purity. Details of its synthesis will be provided elsewhere (N. Cheshenko and B. C. Herold, unpublished data).
Heparin, N-9, and zidovudine (AZT) were purchased from Sigma (St. Louis, Mo.). Acyclovir was obtained from Glaxo-Wellcome, Research Triangle Park, N.C. TAK-779 was obtained from the ARRRP. The SAMMA polymer was prepared by condensation of methyl mandelate in concentrated H2SO4 and precipitated with ethanol. The product was converted to the disodium salt by treatment with aqueous NaOH. Elemental analyses, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, high-performance liquid chromatography NMR and HPLC identified the product as 2,2'-diphenyl-2,2'-oxy-diacetic acid with a molecular weight of 256 (330 as the disodium salt) (40).
HIV in vitro assays. (i) Infectivity assays. Macrophages and phytohemagglutinin-stimulated CD4+ T cells were preincubated with either SAMMA (concentration, 0.1 to 1,000 µg/ml) or control medium for 1 h at 37°C and then subjected to a 2-h infection with virus at 37°C. Laboratory strains were used at a multiplicity of infection (MOI) of 0.1 to 0.25, and primary isolates were used at a final concentration of 34 to 78 ng of p24/ml. Following infection, the cells were washed twice with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) to remove unbound virus and compound and incubated in fresh media. Viral replication was monitored using a p24 (Gag) protein enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) (Du-Pont, Wilmington, Del).
(ii) Time course assays. In the single-cycle infection time course assays, U87 cells were cultured in 96-well plates at a concentration of 105 cells/ml (200 µl/well) and allowed to adhere and grow until confluent. They were preincubated with compound or control medium for 1 h at 37°C (t = -1) and then subjected to a 2-h infection with the replication-defective virus. The cells were washed twice with PBS to remove unbound virus.
Alternatively, compound was added immediately, 6, 12, or 24 h after the wash (e.g., t = 2, 8, 14, or 26 h postinfection [p.i.], respectively). The reverse transcriptase inhibitor AZT and the CCR5-specific inhibitor TAK-779, which prevents fusion of HIV with the host cell, were used as added controls (1, 11). The cells were lysed in luciferase lysis buffer after 48 h, and a luciferase assay was performed using a luciferase assay system (Promega, Madison, Wis.). Values were standardized with respect to total protein concentration.
(iii) Preincubation of virus or cells with SAMMA.
To examine whether SAMMA interacts primarily and/or irreversibly with HIV, cells, or both, the compound was preincubated with concentrated HIV-1IIIB for 1 h at 37°C and the mixture was diluted 50-fold so that the final concentration of the virus was an MOI of 0.1. For comparison, diluted virus (MOI
0.1) was preincubated for 1 h with various concentrations of SAMMA and the mixture was plated (without diluting) on U87 CD4+ CXCR4+ cells. Alternatively, SAMMA (or Dulbecco minimal essential medium [DMEM] as a control) was preincubated with the cells for 1 h at 37°C and then the cells were either washed extensively or not prior to inoculation with HIV-1IIIB at an MOI of 0.1.
(iv) Soluble-gp120 assays. To more specifically examine whether SAMMA blocks the binding of gp120 to cells, U87 MG, U87 CD4+, U87 CD4+ CCR5+, and U87 CD4+ CXCR4+ were grown to approximately 75% confluency, trypsinized, washed once in DMEM, and resuspended at a concentration of 2 x 106/ml. Cell aliquots of 1 ml each were preincubated for 15 min with SAMMA (10 µg/ml to 1 mg/ml) or DMEM as control. Then 50 ng of either MN (X4) or YU2 (R5) gp120 (ImmunoDiagnostics, Inc., Woburn, Mass.) was added, and the mixture was incubated at 37°C with constant rotation. The cells were washed with chilled PBS, and the pellets were resuspended in 80 µl of distilled H2O and further incubated with 20 µl of 5x sodium dodecyl sulfate sample buffer. The lysate was boiled for 10 min, and an aliquot was analyzed on an 8% Tris-glycine gel and then subjected to Western transfer probing for gp120 using a 1:1,000 dilution of the 1169 polyclonal antiserum (a gift from R. Doms, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pa.) and colorimetric detection using an alkaline phosphatase-conjugated anti-rabbit immunoglobulin G and Western Blue stabilized substrate (Promega).
HSV in vitro assays. (i) Infectivity assays. Plaque assays were conducted to evaluate the effect of SAMMA on HSV or Ad5 infection (13, 16). Serial dilutions of SAMMA were mixed with virus immediately before inoculation of cell monolayers. HSV plaques were counted after 48 h by a blue-plaque immunoassay (17). Adenovirus plaques on 293 cells were counted after 14 days by visualization (13).
(ii) Time course assays.
Time course plaque assays were conducted to determine which steps in viral infection (attachment, entry, or postentry) were inhibited by SAMMA (15). Heparin, a competitive inhibitor of viral binding, and acyclovir, an inhibitor of viral DNA polymerase activity, were included for comparison. Confluent monolayers of CaSki cells were precooled to 4°C and inoculated with
200 to 1,000 PFU of virus/well at 4°C for 3 h. Unbound virus was removed by washing the cells three times, and the cells were then shifted to 37°C to allow penetration for 1 h. Unpenetrated virus was inactivated by washing the cell monolayer with a low-pH citrate buffer. The cells were then overlaid with medium. The drugs were added during the 4°C binding period, at the time the cells were transferred to 37°C, or 4 h after citrate treatment for 1 h, followed by a wash, to determine if the compounds act at the level of viral binding, entry, or postentry, respectively. In addition, to determine if the drug could remove bound virus after the 4°C adsorption period, cells were washed three times (5 min, 5 min, and 1 h) with various dilutions of drug and then the plates were shifted to 37°C.
(iii) Preincubation of virus or target cells with SAMMA.
To examine whether SAMMA interacts primarily and/or irreversibly with HSV, epithelial cells, or both, SAMMA was preincubated with
104 PFU of HSV-2 (G) per ml for 1 h at 37°C and the mixture was diluted 50-fold to yield
200 PFU/well on control plates and inoculated onto monolayers of CaSki cells in duplicate on six-well dishes. For comparison, diluted virus (
200 PFU) was preincubated for 1 h with various concentrations of SAMMA and the mixture was plated (without dilution) on cells. Alternatively, SAMMA (or DMEM as a control) was preincubated with epithelial cells for 1 h at 37°C and the cells were either washed extensively or not prior to inoculation with HSV-2 (G).
(iv) Soluble-glycoprotein assay. To more specifically examine whether SAMMA targets HSV-2 gB-2, CaSki cells were exposed to various concentrations of recombinant glycoprotein in the absence or presence of SAMMA (or heparin for comparison) for 1 h at 37°C. The cells were washed, cell lysates were prepared, and the bound gB-2 was quantified by optical density scanning of Western blots using monoclonal antibody 1123(Goodwin Institute, Plantation, Fla.).
Cytotoxicity assays. The cytotoxic effect of SAMMA (dose ranging from 0.1 to 10 mg/ml) on cervical epithelial cells, CD4+ T cells, or macrophages was determined by quantitating cell viability using an MTS assay (CellTiter96; Promega). Cytotoxicity was examined following a 24-h exposure to drug (acute) or a 1-h daily exposure for seven consecutive days (chronic).
Statistical analysis. The data presented are means with standard deviation. Student's unpaired, two-tailed t tests were performed as indicated in the figure legends.
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FIG. 1. Effects of SAMMA on HIV infection of macrophages and PBMC. Primary macrophages were infected with the R5 laboratory isolate BaL (A) or the R5 clinical isolate BR/92/003 (C) in the presence of the indicated concentrations of SAMMA. Viral replication was monitored by determining supernatant HIV-1 p24 (Gag) protein by ELISA on day 7. (C and D) Primary CD4+ T cells were infected with the X4 laboratory isolate IIIB (B) or the X4 clinical isolate UG021 (D) in the presence or absence of SAMMA, and p24 was quantified on day 5. Results represent the average p24 concentrations from triplicate wells (error bars indicate standard deviation) and are representative of at least two independent experiments.
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FIG. 2. Effects of SAMMA on HSV or Ad5 infection. (A) Duplicate wells of CaSki cells were exposed to a laboratory isolate (G), clinical isolates (MMA, MTWTA, or DT-1), or an acyclovir-resistant isolate (DT-2) of HSV-2 in the absence or presence of 1, 10, or 100 µg of SAMMA per ml. (B) For comparison, 293 cells were exposed to HSV-2(G) or Ad5 in the absence or presence of SAMMA. Results are presented as PFU formed in the presence of drug as a percentage of PFU formed in the absence of drug. Asterisks indicate that no HSV plaques were observed by immunoassay. Results are means of three independent experiments conducted in duplicate, and error bars indicate standard deviations.
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FIG. 3. Cytotoxicity was quantified using an MTS assay following a 24-h exposure of CaSki, immortalized human endocervical, primary macrophage, or CD4+ T cells to the indicated concentrations of SAMMA (left) or N-9 (right). Results are presented as the number of viable cells as a percentage of control cells incubated in the medium. Each value is the mean of at least two independent experiments conducted in triplicate; error bars indicate standard deviation.
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FIG. 4. Anti-HIV activity of SAMMA in U87 CD4+ CCR5+ cells infected with the R5 virus virus HIV-BaL (A) and in U87 CD4+ CXCR4+ cells infected with the X4 isolate IIIB (B). U87 cells were preincubated with the indicated SAMMA concentrations or control medium for 1 h at 37°C and then subjected to a 2-h infection with virus. After 2 h, the cells were washed twice with PBS to remove unbound virus and compound. Viral replication was monitored by measuring p24 protein in culture supernatants by ELISA 48 h postinfection. Results are the mean p24 values from triplicate wells and are representative of at least two independent experiments; error bars indicate standard deviation.
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FIG. 5. Anti-HIV activity of SAMMA, AZT, or TAK-779 added at different times to U87 CD4+ CCR5+ cells infected with the R5 replication-defective virus JR-FL. Cells were preincubated with compound or control medium for 1 h at 37°C (t = -1) and then subjected to a 2-h infection with the replication-defective virus. The cells were washed twice with PBS to remove unbound virus and overlaid with fresh medium. Alternatively, the compounds were added immediately (2 h) or 8, 14, and 26 h after initiation of infection. The cells were lysed in luciferase lysis buffer after 48 h. Luciferase values were standardized with respect to total protein concentration. Results are the mean p24 values from triplicate wells and are representative of two independent experiments; error bars indicate standard deviation.
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TABLE 1. Viral infection following preincubation of cells or virus for 1 h with SAMMA or control media
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FIG. 6. Effects of SAMMA on HIV-1 gp120-cell membrane interactions. U87MG control, CD4+, CD4+CXCR4+, or CD4+CCR5+ cells were preincubated with medium or 500 µg of SAMMA per ml for 15 min. Then 50 ng of MN gp120 (MG, CD4+, and CD4+CXC4+ cells) or YU2 gp120 (CD4+CCR5+ cells) was added, and the mixture was incubated at 37°C with constant rotation for 1 h and washed extensively. The cell lysates were analyzed on an 8% Tris-glycine gel and then subjected to Western transfer and probing for gp120 using a 1:1,000 dilution of the 1169 polyclonal antiserum. Colorimetric detection was performed using an alkaline phosphatase-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG and Western Blue stabilized substrate. Controls include cells alone (lane 1) and recombinant gp120 alone (lane 4). Data are representative of three independent experiments.
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FIG. 7. Mechanism of anti-HSV activity of SAMMA compared with heparin and ACV. Time course experiments were conducted as described in Materials and Methods. (A) Results when each of the drugs (SAMMA [10 µg/ml], heparin [10 µg/ml], or acyclovir [10 µg/ml]) was added either during the 4°C binding period, at the time of the temperature shift, or 4 h postentry. (B) Dose response to SAMMA added during the 4°C binding period (binding), during the postbinding washes to remove bound virus (elution), at the time of temperature shift (entry), and 4 h postentry (cells were exposed to compounds for 1 h for each of the postbinding treatments and then washed and overlaid with fresh medium). Results are presented as PFU formed in the presence of drug as a percentage of PFU formed in the presence of medium and are means of three independent experiments performed in duplicate; error bars indicate standard deviation.
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50% reduction in viral infection, suggesting that only part of the postbinding effect is explained by elution of bound virus (Fig. 7B). This suggests that SAMMA may directly block entry. Consistent with this notion is the observation that addition of SAMMA to culture plates at the time of the temperature shift (during entry) prevents the expression of viral immediate-early gene products (data not shown). To further assess the effects of SAMMA on HSV binding and to assess whether the drug targets gB-2, we examined the effects of SAMMA on the binding of recombinant gB-2 to cells. gB-2 plays the key role in mediating the binding of HSV-2 to cells and is also required for viral entry (6). SAMMA inhibited the binding of recombinant gB-2 (Fig. 8).
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FIG. 8. Effects of SAMMA on binding of recombinant gB-2 to CaSki cells. Cells were exposed to recombinant gB-2 (10-5 µg/cell for 1 h at 37°C) in the presence or absence of the indicated concentrations of SAMMA or heparin. Bound gB-2 was detected by analyzing Western blots of cell lysates. Results are representative of three independent experiments.
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SAMMA is unique because, unlike these other compounds, it has no surfactant properties and does not contain sulfur groups. However, the studies described here suggest that SAMMA may function at a similar point in the virus life cycle to the point at which SPs act, by binding to viral envelope glycoproteins during attachment and entry. The cell surface glycosaminoglycan HS forms a point of initial attachment for a number of organisms including HIV and HSV. HS is the primary attachment receptor for HSV (33, 39). Although HS is not a primary receptor, several studies have shown that HIV also binds to HS and that the quantity of HS on a cell predicts in vitro infectivity (23, 27, 29, 30). HIV infection is significantly reduced in some cell types if binding to HS is blocked either by enzymatic treatment of cells with heparin lyases or by soluble heparin or other competitive inhibitors (23, 27, 29, 30). Interactions between gp120 and HS may concentrate the virus at a cell surface and facilitate subsequent interactions with CD4 and coreceptors. Although SAMMA is not sulfated, it is negatively charged and thus may competitively block viral glycoprotein-HS interactions. This may account for the antiviral activity of SAMMA against both HIV and HSV. Notably, SAMMA showed no activity against Ad5, which binds primarily to CAR and enters via endocytic vesicles (3).
SAMMA inhibits both R5 and X4 HIV infection; however, activity in the lower dose range appears to be greater against X4 viruses. An even greater differential activity for R5 and X4 viruses has been observed with dextran sulfate and was attributed to the higher cationic charge associated with the X4 V3 loop (22). It is important to note that dextran sulfate inhibits X4 gp120 binding to coreceptors and not to CD4 (25) whereas SAMMA blocks binding to CD4. Importantly, SAMMA, at concentrations that are not cytotoxic, efficiently inhibits the entry of R5 viruses, the viral type that predominates early in infection.
SAMMA is also highly effective against HSV-2 and appears to target gB-2, inhibiting both attachment and entry. gB-2 plays the predominant role in mediating HSV-2 binding to cell surface HS but is also required (along with gD and the heterodimeric complex of gH and gL) for viral entry (6, 34). Although the domains of gB-2 required for HS binding have not been defined, a lysine-rich region at the amino acid terminus is presumed to mediate viral binding to HS (4, 35). This region (gB-2 residues 60 to 84) may be a target for SAMMA. Whether an interaction with gB-2 is also the mechanism responsible for the inhibition of HSV entry is not clear. Notably, heparin, which also competes with cell surface HS for gB-2 binding, has little or no antiviral activity if added after binding. Possibly SAMMA, but not heparin, interacts with additional domains of gB-2 or with the other glycoproteins required for viral entry. Alternatively, SAMMA may bind more avidly to gB-2 than does heparin.
SAMMA also exhibits an excellent safety profile in vitro. In addition to its activity against HIV and HSV described here, preliminary studies show that SAMMA is active against N. gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia trachomatis, although the mechanisms have not been explored (40). Importantly, SAMMA has no deleterious effects on lactobacilli. It is also a very effective inhibitor of sperm function and is contraceptive in the rabbit model (40).
The results obtained in these and other preliminary studies suggest that SAMMA warrants further investigation. First, SAMMA inhibits HIV infection of both primary CD4+ T cells and macrophages. Notably, it inhibits isolates that use either CCR5 or CXCR4 coreceptors and does so at concentrations that are readily achievable in a formulated compound. Second, SAMMA contains no sulfur and is not a surfactant or detergent; these features distinguish it from other microbicides in preclinical development. Third, SAMMA exhibits no cytotoxicity in tissue cultures using primary cervical cells, human macrophages, or PBMC. These results are in contrast with those obtained for N-9, sodium dodecyl sulfate, or C31G, which are toxic to primary vaginal cells (16, 20). Fourth, SAMMA is soluble in water and saline, probably inexpensive to manufacture, and likely to be easily formulated. In addition, it is essentially colorless and odorless. These characteristics, combined with its activity in culture against HIV, HSV, and other sexually transmitted disease pathogens, render it an optimal candidate ingredient for preclinical development.
We thank R. Fichorova and D. Anderson (Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass.) for the generous gift of the immortalized human endocervical cells.
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