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Journal of Virology, August 2004, p. 8565-8572, Vol. 78, No. 16
0022-538X/04/$08.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/JVI.78.16.8565-8572.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Department of Pediatrics and Cardiovascular Research Institute, University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94118-1245,1 M.R.C. Immunochemistry Unit, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom OX1 3QU2
Received 14 December 2003/ Accepted 30 March 2004
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The results of in vitro studies suggest that both SP-A and SP-D might contribute to the containment of IAV spread by direct inhibition of IAV infectivity and/or promotion of virus uptake into phagocytic cells (4, 7, 8, 14, 15, 17-19). Although both SP-A and SP-D attach to and neutralize certain strains of IAV, they do so by different mechanisms. SP-D acts like a classic influenza virus ß-inhibitor by binding of the collectin carbohydrate-recognition domain (CRD) to high-mannose oligosaccharides present on the coat hemagglutinins (HA) on most strains isolated since 1968 (1, 13, 19). The neutralization of specific strains of IAV by SP-D in vitro correlates with virulence in vivo (32). In the present study we utilize two strains of IAV that vary by only one base change in the HA gene leading to the loss of a single glycosylation site at position 165 in HA (28). Glycosylation of HA N165 is important for the neutralization of IAV by SP-D (32).
In contrast, SP-A neutralizes IAV by directly occupying the HA cell attachment site with the terminal sialic acid on the oligosaccharide located on the CRD of SP-A, presumably blocking this site (3). Unlike the case with SP-D, the attachment of SP-A to influenza virus strains and SP-A-dependent neutralization in vitro are not influenced by the extent of HA glycosylation; in fact, SP-A is slightly more effective at neutralizing IAV strains that lack glycosylation completely (19). These models of SP-A and SP-D attachment suggest that the two collectins bind very similar regions of the HA molecule, albeit by different mechanisms and with different effectiveness. The available data suggest that SP-D binding is of significantly higher avidity and contributes most, if not all, the virus-neutralizing activity in human bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (15).
In addition to neutralizing influenza virus in vitro, SP-A and SP-D agglutinate influenza virus (14), enhance neutrophil uptake, and potentiate influenza virus-induced neutrophil hydrogen peroxide responses (17). SP-A but not SP-D enhances rat alveolar macrophage uptake of IAV in vitro (3). The collectins may also influence the host immune response to IAV without attaching to IAV by interacting in nonopsonic fashion with lung macrophages, neutrophils, dendritic cells, and T cells. At present, there is insufficient information to reliably translate the significance of these many in vitro studies to the physiological or clinical situation. In the present study we use different molecularly defined IAV strains, recombinant forms of SP-A and SP-D, and mouse lines deficient in SP-A, SP-D, and both SP-A and SP-D to dissect the relationship between collectin-IAV neutralization in vitro, viral IAV virulence in vivo, and early host responses.
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167, a mouse-adapted derivative of X-79 that has a point mutation in codon 167 of the HA1 chain of the HA molecule resulting in an amino acid change from threonine to isoleucine and the loss of the consensus sequence for glycosylation of the critical ß-type collectin binding site at position 165 (28). X-79
167 is highly virulent in wild-type (WT) mice (28). For mouse inoculations, virus was grown in the allantoic cavity of 10-day embryonated hen's eggs, titered by standard hemagglutination assay, and stored in single-use aliquots at 80°C. The hemagglutination titers of the X-79 and X-79
167 stocks were 2,048 and 1,024, respectively. Endotoxin was not detected in the virus stocks by the Limulus Amebocyte Lysate assay (BioWhittaker, Inc., Walkersville, Md.). Collectins. Recombinant mouse SP-D and recombinant human SP-A were expressed in Chinese hamster ovary cells and purified by maltose and mannose-agarose affinity chromatography, respectively, as previously described (12). SP-A was also purified from dog bronchoalveolar lavage fluid by sequential butanol and octyl-glucopyranoside extraction as previously described (20).
Virus neutralization assay. Neutralization of virus infectivity by purified pulmonary collectins was determined by a fluorescent focus reduction assay in MDCK cells cultured in 96-well plates (7 x 104 cells per well). The cells were grown to confluence in RPMI containing 10% fetal calf serum and 1% penicillin and streptomycin. The cells were washed twice in serum-free RPMI and incubated in virus with or without various collectin preparations diluted in RPMI for 1 h at 37°C. The cells were washed twice in serum-free RPMI and incubated in serum-free RPMI for 16 h at 37°C in 5% CO2. The medium was removed, and the cells were washed and then fixed for 1 h in 4% paraformaldehyde in phosphate-buffered saline. The cells were then washed in phosphate-buffered saline containing 0.3% triton X-100 and incubated with monoclonal antibody directed against the IAV nucleoprotein and then with Alexa 488-labeled goat anti-mouse immunoglobulin G. Cell nuclei were counterstained with 4',6'-diamidino-2-phenylindole before the monolayers were examined by fluorescence microscopy. IAV fluorescent foci were counted directly, and total cell number was determined using NIH Image. Preliminary experiments were conducted to determine a concentration of each virus that resulted in about 400 fluorescent foci per low-power field or roughly 20% of the total cells infected.
Mice. Mice deficient in SP-A (SP-A/) and SP-D (SP-D/) and both SP-A and SP-D (SP-AD/) were generated from embryonic stem cells targeted with replacement-type vectors as previously described (5, 21, 28). All three strains were backcrossed 10 generations onto a C57/BL6 background. WT C57/BL6 mice were generated from heterozygous matings. Study mice were housed in barrier containment until they were weaned on day 21. Male and female mice were infected with IAV on day 21 and housed separately from controls in isolator cages with free access to food and water. The protocols were reviewed and approved by the Committee for Animal Research of the University of California-San Francisco.
Mouse model. SP-D/ and SP-AD/ mice develop patchy lung inflammation and structural remodeling that becomes evident 3 to 4 weeks after birth (5). To study mice before these changes become prominent and potentially alter host defenses, we inoculated mice with IAV at the time of weaning on day 21. In preliminary experiments, 10 21-day-old mice of each genotype were lightly anesthetized with inhaled methoxyflurane and given a 25-µl intranasal inoculation containing various dilutions of IAV or undiluted allantoic fluid alone. The mice were weighed daily and observed for a total of 14 days. To further define the response to each influenza virus strain, mice were killed by intraperitoneal phenobarbital 2, 4, 6, and 11 days after inoculation using IAV concentrations determined from the preliminary experiments to decrease weight gain but not cause death. The lungs of 10 mice of each genotype on day 2 were lavaged four times with 1-ml aliquots of a solution containing 10 mM Tris, 100 mM NaCl, and 0.2 mM EGTA, pH 7.4, for analysis of total protein, cell count and differential, and SP-A and SP-D levels. The unlavaged lungs of 10 mice of each genotype at each time point were frozen for RNA isolation (right lung) and cytokine measurements (left lung). In rescue experiments, 25 µl of undiluted X-79 virus was incubated for 15 min at 37°C with 10 µg of SP-A, SP-D, or human albumin in a 25-µl volume of 10 mM Tris-100 mM NaCl-2 mM CaCl2 before intranasal inoculation. Additional mice infected with X-79 with or without collectins were sacrificed for histology on day 6.
Cell counts and differentials. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BAL) was centrifuged at 250 x g for 5 min at 4°C. The pellet was gently resuspended in 200 µl lavage buffer for cell counting. Cytospin slides were stained with Diff-Quik (Dade International, Miami, FL) for cell differential counts. 20 to 25 high-power fields from 10 mice of each genotype on day 2 after inoculation were counted.
SP-A and SP-D levels. The total protein content of the cell-free BAL was determined using bicinchoninic acid as a substrate. Serial dilutions of cell-free BAL from mice of each genotype on day 2 after inoculation were analyzed for SP-A and SP-D content with a quantitative dot blot assay using monospecific polyclonal antibodies against recombinant mouse SP-A and SP-D, respectively. Standard curves using recombinant mouse SP-A and SP-D expressed in Chinese hamster ovary cells were used to determine the linear range of these assays and calculate absolute SP-A and SP-D BAL pool sizes.
Cytokines. Interleukin 6 (IL-6) and MIP-2 levels were measured in the presence of protease inhibitors in fresh tissue homogenates of the left lung on days 2, 4, and 6 by sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISAs) using standard protocols (Endogen, Woburn, Mass.).
HA real-time quantitative PCR. RNA was extracted from the right lung 2, 4, 6, and 11 days after IAV inoculation, using the RNeasy reagents according to the manufacturer's recommendations (QIAGEN, Alameda, Calif.). Total RNA (200 ng per sample) was reverse transcribed using RETROscript reagents (Ambion, Austin, Tex.), and real-time quantitative PCR amplification of total cDNA (10 ng per sample) was performed using an ABI PRISM 7700HT sequence detector system with a 384-well block (PE Biosystems, Foster City, Calif.). For HA, the forward primer was 5'-GCTACATGTTCTGTCTGGTTTTCG-3', the reverse primer was 5'-TTCACTAGCGTTCCGTTTGG-3', and the probe was 5'6-FAM-AGCACAGCAACGCTGTGCCTGG-3'TAMRA for a product size of 105 bp. Differences in cDNA input were corrected for by normalization to signals obtained using primers specific for glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH). For GAPDH, the forward primer was 5'-TGAGCAAGAGAGGCCCTATCC-3', the reverse primer was 5'-TAGGCCCCTCCTGTTATTATGG-3', and the probe was 5'VIC-ACTGAGCATCTCCCTCACAATTTCCATCC 3'TAMRA for a product size of 95 bp. Standard curves for HA and GAPDH were constructed on each plate from serial log dilutions of a stock cDNA pool of several experimental samples (10 pg to 100 ng), and relative quantification in triplicate for each experimental sample was obtained by using the standard curve method. The normalized value obtained on day 11 for SP-D/ mice was arbitrarily set to 1, and the HA cDNA content of the other experimental samples was expressed as multiples thereof. Control reactions were performed without reverse transcriptase and in the absence of target DNA.
Microscopy. The lungs from mice 6 days after IAV inoculation were fixed intratracheally at 20 cm H2O with 4% freshly prepared paraformaldehyde in 0.1 M phosphate buffer and then prepared for paraffin sectioning using standard techniques. Mid-sagittal hematoxyln and eosin sections of the right lung were examined for morphological changes.
Mannose receptor PCR. RNA was extracted from BAL cells of uninfected 21-day-old mice (n = 7 per genotype) using the RNeasy reagents according to the manufacturer's recommendations (QIAGEN). Total RNA (200 ng per sample) was reverse transcribed using RETROscript reagents (Ambion). Real-time quantitative PCR amplification of total cDNA (10 ng per sample, each done in triplicate) was performed using SYBRGold (Molecular Probes, Eugene, Ore.) for detection. The forward primer was 5'-GGTTATGAAAGGCAAGGATGGA-3', and the reverse primer was 5'-TTGTCTGCACCCTCCGGTACTA-3', for a product size of 114 bp. Differences in cDNA input were corrected for by normalizing to signals obtained using primers specific for GAPDH.
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167 infection of MDCK cells in a dose-dependent manner (Fig. 1), but SP-D was much more effective in neutralizing X-79 than X-79
167 (94% neutralization of X-79 compared to 31% neutralization of X-79
167). Human recombinant SP-A partially neutralized X-79 infection (39% neutralization) but had no significant effect on the infectivity of X-79
167 (Fig. 1). Similar results were found with dog SP-A (not shown).
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FIG. 1. SP-D neutralizes IAV infection of MDCK cells. MDCK cells were grown to confluence in 96-well plates and incubated with a standard dose of IAV in the presence of increasing concentrations of collectins. After 16 h, the cells were stained for IAV and IAV fluorescent foci were counted and expressed as a percentage of total cells assessed by DAPI staining. The data shown are averaged from two separate experiments. Filled squares, recombinant mouse SP-D and X-79; empty circles, recombinant human SP-A and X-79; filled triangles, recombinant mouse SP-D and X-79 167; filled circles, recombinant human SP-A and X-79 167.
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167 inoculation (28). Weight gain after inoculation with X-79 is blunted in SP-D/ and SP-AD/ mice. Parental X-79 replicates poorly in WT mice and causes no detectable illness. In pilot studies, 21-day-old mice were inoculated with four serial log dilutions of X-79. All mice survived. WT and SP-A/ mice inoculated with all dilutions of X-79 gained weight at the same rate as mice given uninfected allantoic fluid or anesthesia only. In contrast, SP-D/ mice inoculated with the two highest concentrations of X-79 gained weight significantly less rapidly than WT or SP-A/-infected mice from days 2 to 7 after inoculation (Fig. 2). The weight curve of infected SP-AD/ mice was identical to that of infected mice deficient in SP-D alone (data not shown).
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FIG. 2. Weight change in mice after inoculation with X-79 virus. Mice were weighed daily after intranasal inoculation with X-79 virus or uninfected allantoic fluid. WT mice given X-79 (open circles) and SP-D/ mice given sterile allantoic fluid (shaded circles) or anesthetic only (shaded squares) gained weight at the same rate as uninfected controls or infected SP-A/ mice (data not shown). Infected SP-D/ mice (open squares) failed to gain weight for the first 7 days after inoculation and then recovered. Data are means ± standard errors of the means (n = 10 mice/group). The weights of infected SP-D/ mice were significantly different from those of infected WT and SP-A/ mice and uninfected SP-D/ mice from days 2 to 14 (P < 0.05).
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FIG. 9. Histology of the lung 6 days after inoculation with X-79 virus. Mid-sagittal sections of the right lung were prepared 6 days after inoculation with X-79 virus. (a) Twenty-seven-day-old control SP-D/ mouse lung; (b) WT mouse lung with X-79; (c) SP-A/ mouse lung with X-79; (d) SP-D/ mouse lung after X-79 inoculation; (e) SP-D/ after X-79 inoculation and cotreatment with recombinant mouse SP-D.
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FIG. 3. BAL neutrophil counts 2 days after X-79 inoculation. BAL neutrophil counts were significantly elevated after inoculation of X-79 compared to results with allantoic fluid only for all three genotypes (P < 0.05; n = 5 mice/group). The neutrophil count was significantly greater for infected SP-D/ mice than for infected WT and infected SP-A/ mice (*, P < 0.002; n = 5 mice/group). Cotreatment of SP-D/ mice with X-79 and recombinant mouse SP-D significantly reduced the neutrophil response to IAV (**, P < 0.05; n = 5 mice/group). (A) WT with allantoic fluid; (B) WT with X-79; (C) SP-A/ with allantoic fluid; (D) SP-A/ with X-79; (E) SP-D/ with allantoic fluid; (F) SP-D/ with X-79; (G) SP-D/ with X-79 and recombinant mouse SP-D. Data are means ± standard errors of the means; n = 5 mice/group).
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FIG. 4. Viral load assessed by HA mRNA is increased in SP-D/ mice during infection with X-79. Three-week-old mice were inoculated intranasally with X-79 virus and sacrificed 2, 4, 6, and 11 days later. HA mRNA levels in lungs were determined by quantitative real-time RT-PCR. Open bars, SP-A/ mice; shaded bars, SP-D/ mice; filled bars, WT mice. Data are means ± standard errors of the means (n = 10 mice/group). *, P < 0.005 compared with WT mouse results. #, P < 0.05 compared to WT mouse results.
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FIG. 5. Viral load assessed by HA mRNA is similar in SP-D/ and SP-AD/ mice during X-79 infection. Three-week old mice were inoculated intranasally with X-79 virus and sacrificed 2, 4, or 6 days later. Lung HA mRNA levels were determined by quantitative real-time RT-PCR. Open bars, SP-AD/ mice; shaded bars, SP-D/ mice; filled bars, WT mice. Data are means ± standard errors of the means (n = 5 mice/group). The viral load was significantly greater in SP-D/ and SP-AD/ mice than in WT mice at all time points. The viral load was significantly greater in SP-D/ mice than in SP-AD/ mice on day 2, but there were no differences on days 4 and 6.
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FIG. 6. Lung MIP-2 levels are significantly higher in SP-D/ mice after X-79 inoculation. MIP-2 levels in lung homogenates were measured by ELISA 2, 4, and 6 days after intranasal inoculation with X-79 virus. MIP-2 levels in uninfected mice or after inoculation with sterile allantoic fluid ranged from undetectable to 200 pg/g. The control values did not differ significantly between genotypes (data not shown). After X-79 inoculation, MIP-2 levels were significantly higher in SP-D/ mice (filled bars) than in WT (open bars) and SP-A/ (shaded bars) mice. There were no significant differences between WT and SP-A/ mice. Data are means ± standard errors of the means (n = 5 mice/group). *, P < 0.0001 compared with WT results.
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FIG. 7. Lung IL-6 levels are significantly higher in SP-D/ mice after inoculation with X-79. IL-6 levels in lung homogenates were measured by ELISA 2, 4, and 6 days after intranasal inoculation with X-79 virus. IL-6 was detectable in uninfected mice but did not differ between genotypes and did not change after inoculation with sterile allantoic fluid (not shown). After X-79 inoculation, IL-6 levels were significantly higher (*, P < 0.001) in SP-D/ mice (filled bars) than in WT (open bars) and SP-A/ (shaded bars) mice on day 2. There were no significant differences between WT and SP-A/ mice on day 2. On day 4, IL-6 levels were higher in both SP-A/ (P < 0.002) and SP-D/ (*, P < 0.001) mice compared to WT results. The levels in SP-D/ mice were significantly higher than those in SP-A/ mice on day 4, but on day 6, IL-6 levels were higher in SP-A/ mice than in both WT and SP-D/ mice (#, P < 0.01). Data are means ± standard errors of the means (n = 4 to 7 mice/group).
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FIG. 8. SP-D cotreatment reduces the cytokine response to X-79 virus in SP-D/ mice. MIP-2 (open bars) and IL-6 (black bars) were measured by ELISA 2 days after inoculation of SP-D/ mice with X-79 ± 10 µg of recombinant mouse SP-D or human albumin. (A) WT infected mice; (B) SP-D/ infected mice; (C) SP-D/ infected mice with 10 µg of recombinant mouse SP-D; (D) SP-D/ infected mice plus 10 µg of human albumin. Cotreatment with recombinant mouse SP-D (C) significantly reduced the MIP-2 and IL-6 to levels similar to those for infected WT mice. Human albumin had a small but significant effect on MIP-2 levels but no effect on IL-6 levels. Data are means ± standard errors of the means (n = 5 mice/group). *, P < 0.05 compared to results for SP-D/ mice with X-79 without cotreatment.
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Mannose receptor mRNA. The macrophage mannose receptor may enhance IAV clearance by alveolar macrophages (30). We therefore measured mannose receptor mRNA in BAL cells from all genotypes to exclude the possibility that the increased viral load in SP-D/ mice was secondary to a decrease in mannose receptor mRNA. There was no significant difference in the amounts of mannose receptor mRNA detected in BAL cells from WT mice and SP-D/ mice, but the BAL cells from SP-A/ mice contained significantly more mannose receptor mRNA than those from either WT mice (fourfold; P < 0.01; n = 7) or SP-D/ mice (threefold; P < 0.05; n = 7).
Responses to inoculation with X-79
167.
In contrast to X-79, X-79
167 is a highly virulent virus in mice. The 50% lethal dose (LD50) for our X-79
167 stock in mature WT mice is a 104 dilution with death occurring on days 6 to 8 after intranasal inoculation (28). In order to study viral clearance, mice in this study were inoculated with a sublethal 105 dilution of X-79
167 in endotoxin-free saline. The pattern of weight loss from days 5 through 9 followed by weight gain from days 9 through 14 was similar for all three genotypes after inoculation with X-79167 (Fig. 10). On day 2 after inoculation with a 105 dilution of X-79
167, the BAL neutrophil counts were not different between genotypes (per mouse, WT, 0.5 x 104 ± 0.2 x 104; SP-A/, 1.0 x 104 ± 0.2 x 104; SP-D/, 1.5 x 104 ± 0.4 x 104).
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FIG. 10. Weight change in mice after inoculation with X-79 167 virus. Mice were weighed daily after intranasal inoculation with X-79 167 virus (101 LD50). WT mice (squares), SP-D/ mice (filled circles), and SP-A/ mice (open circles) all had similar patterns of initial weight gain similar to the control pattern (see controls in Fig. 3) followed by weight loss from days 5 to 10 and then recovery. No differences between genotypes were observed (n = 10 per genotype).
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167.
As assessed by real-time quantitative PCR, the viral load of X-79
167 was not significantly different between genotypes on days 4, 6, and 11. By day 11, viral load was very low for all mice. On day 2, SP-D/ mice had a small but significantly higher viral load than either WT or SP-A/ mice (Fig. 11).
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FIG. 11. Viral load assessed by HA mRNA is similar for all genotypes during infection with X-79 167. Three-week-old mice were inoculated intranasally with X-79 167 virus and sacrificed 2, 4, 6, and 11 days later. Lung HA mRNA levels were determined by quantitative real-time RT-PCR. Open bars, WT mice; grey bars, SP-D/ mice; black bars, SP-A/ mice. Data are means ± standard errors of the means (n = 10 mice/group). *, P < 0.05 compared with WT results.
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167.
Cytokine levels in lungs were measured on days 2, 4, 6, and 11 after inoculation with X-79
167. Both IL-6 and MIP-2 were significantly increased above uninfected levels for all three genotypes at each time point except for the MIP-2 levels on day 11 in SP-D/ mice. In contrast to infection with X-79, neither IL-6 nor MIP-2 levels were significantly increased in SP-D/ mice compared to WT mice at any time point. Levels of MIP-2 but not IL-6 were higher on days 4 and 6 in SP-A/ mice than levels in both WT and SP-D/ mice (Table 1). The cytokine levels after X-79
167 inoculation peaked on day 6, coincident with rapid weight loss, for all three genotypes and were declining towards baseline on day 11 as mice of all genotypes reestablished weight gain. |
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TABLE 1. Cytokine levels after X-79 167 inoculationa
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167 strain and were possibly responsible for the weak residual neutralizing activity of SP-D against this strain in vitro and on day 2 in vivo. Glycosylation around the cell attachment site on the HA1 domain decreases binding of neutralizing antibodies, suggesting that the continual changes in amino acids around the sialic acid binding cleft resulting in antigenic drift result in a dynamic balance between SP-D and neutralizing antibody inhibition.
The collectins are a protein family characterized by extended collagen-like domains and calcium-dependent carbohydrate recognition domains homologous to the large C-type lectin superfamily (7). In the mouse and human, three collectins, SP-A, SP-D, and Mbl, have been identified. Each has IAV-neutralizing activity in vitro, with relative potency being dependent on the specific IAV strain tested (1, 19). Gene-targeted mice on a C57/BL6 background were used in this study to extend these studies. The phenotypes of SP-A- and SP-D-deficient mice in several different backgrounds have been reported previously. While uninfected SP-A/ mice are largely indistinguishable from WT mice except for the absence of a surfactant fraction called tubular myelin (25), SP-D/ mice develop patchy pulmonary inflammation, airspace remodeling, and surfactant accumulation (5, 33). These apparently noninfectious changes start early in life but are pronounced by 6 weeks of age (33). Mice in this study were inoculated at 3 weeks of age. The BAL cell counts prior to inoculation were already elevated due to increased numbers of macrophages, but baseline cytokine levels and the histology of the SP-D/ lung were similar to those of the WT at this age. SP-A levels did not change in SP-D/ mice in response to IAV infection with either strain of virus. The viral load, neutrophil counts, and cytokine levels were all significantly higher in SP-D/ mice inoculated with X-79 than in WT or SP-A/ mice. In contrast, there were no sustained differences in viral load between genotypes when the mice were inoculated with X-79
167, a strain resistant to neutralization by SP-D. These results support a role for SP-D in limiting early viral growth and spread, provided specific sites on HA are glycosylated. Similar results have recently been reported with mature Swiss Black mice (27).
The potential mechanism of SP-D protection remains to be determined. The dependence of SP-D neutralizing activity on IAV glycosylation is consistent with a key role for the CRD domain. Although the CRD domain alone is sufficient to protect mice against aspergillosis (29, 30) and respiratory syncytial virus (22), an SP-D mutant lacking the ability to assemble beyond a single trimeric subunit only partially protects mice from IAV infection (37). This finding supports the importance of the full oligomeric quaternary structure of SP-D in preventing IAV replication and associated inflammation. Other CRD-containing lectins in the lung could also conceivably contribute to strain-dependent IAV clearance. Specifically, the macrophage mannose receptor may have a role in macrophage uptake and clearance of glycosylated IAV strains (31). Although decreased expression of the mannose receptor could potentially contribute to IAV load, we found no significant difference in mannose receptor mRNA levels in macrophages from 3-week-old WT and SP-D/ mice. Interestingly, we found a significant increase in macrophage mannose receptor RNA in macrophages from SP-A/ mice, in apparent contrast to the reduced surface expression of mannose receptor on alveolar macrophages from SP-A/ mice (2). Although surface expression of the mannose receptor was not assessed in our study, the significant reduction of IAV load in SP-D/ mice by recombinant mouse SP-D suggests that the susceptibility of these mice to IAV infection is due directly to SP-D deficiency and not to a secondary change in another immune mediator.
Although SP-A has previously been shown to bind and neutralize nonglycosylated strains of IAV (4, 19), we did not detect significant neutralizing activity of either recombinant human SP-A or dog SP-A towards either X-79 or X-79
167 in our in vitro assay. Consistent with these results, both strains of IAV replicated similarly in WT and SP-A/ mice. We also saw no difference in viral replication in WT and SP-A/ mice in a prior study using outbred SP-A/ mice and a dose of X-79
167 10 times the LD50 (28). In that study, the SP-A/ mice responded to the virus with increased MIP-2 levels, and neutrophil counts compared to those for the WT (28). In this study, 3-week-old SP-A/ mice inoculated with 1/100 the dose of X-79
167 also had significantly higher MIP-2 levels in the lung on days 4 and 6 after inoculation than WT mice. Taken together, our results suggest that SP-A might alter the host response to viral infection without directly influencing viral growth and spread, at least when the virus is resistant to neutralization by SP-D. SP-A/ mice inoculated with X-79 responded similarly to WT mice. This result is consistent with the observation that SP-D neutralizes X-79 and that SP-D levels increase threefold within 2 days of inoculation in both WT and SP-A/ mice. The response to X-79 in mice deficient in both SP-A and SP-D was similar to that in mice deficient in SP-D alone, consistent with a primary role for SP-D and a minimal, if any, role for SP-A in protecting mice from IAV infection. These results and conclusions are somewhat different from those recently reported by LeVine and colleagues using mature 129 strain SP-A/ mice and H3N2 A/Philadelphia/82 IAV, a strain glycosylated at N165 and neutralized by SP-D (26). Despite finding a significant increase in SP-D levels in response to Phil/82, titers of virus and inflammatory responses were higher in SP-A/ mice in these experiments (26). The reasons for the differences between studies remain to be resolved.
In summary, in young mice SP-D helps control IAV growth and spread, thereby minimizing the host inflammatory response provided that key sites on the viral surface are glycosylated. Since most IAV strains currently circulating in the human population are glycosylated at N165, SP-D may play a role in limiting the ability of IAV to spread to the lower respiratory tract in most individuals. Low SP-D levels in premature infants, chronic smokers, and patients with cystic fibrosis may contribute to the increase morbidity from IAV seen in these populations.
Viruses and the anti-IAV nucleoprotein monoclonal antibody were kindly provided by David Schnurr of the Division of Communicable Disease Control, Department of Health Services, Richmond, CA 94804.
Present address: Division of Neonatology, University of California at Davis, Davis, CA 95616. ![]()
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