Primate innate immune responses to bacterial and viral pathogens reveals an evolutionary trade-off between strength and specificity

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Mohamed B. F. Hawash, University of Montreal; Joaquin Sanz-Remon, Universidad de Zaragoza; Jean-Christophe Grenier, University of Montreal; Jordan Kohn, Emory University; Vania Yotova, University of Montreal; Zachary Johnson, Emory University; Robert E. Lanford, Texas Biomedical Research Institute; Jessica F. Brinkworth, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Luis B. Barreiro, University of Montreal
• Language: English
• Date: 2021-03-30
• Publisher: National Academy of Sciences
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: © 2021 the Author(s). Published by PNAS.
• License: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2015855118
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
• Volume: 118
• Issue: 13
• Grant/Funding Information: J.F.B. is funded by NSF-BCS-1750675. The resources of the Southwest and Yerkes National Primate Research Centers are supported by NIH Grants P51-OD011133 and P51-OD011132, respectively, from the Office of Research Infrastructure Programs/Office of the Director.; This work was supported by RGPIN/435917-2013 from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and R01-GM134376 from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences to L.B.B.
• Keywords: primate evolution; early immune responses to infection; gram-negative bacteria; immunodeficiency viruses; pathogen-associated molecular patterns
• Research Categories: Biology, Neuroscience; Biology, Virology; Biology, Zoology; Anthropology, Medical and Forensic

Abstract

Humans and our close evolutionary relatives respond differently to a large number of infections. Such differences are thought to result, at least in part, from interspecies differences in immune function. Here, we report on the whole-genome expression of blood leukocytes from four primate species responding to bacterial and viral stimulation. We show that apes mount a markedly stronger early transcriptional response to both viral and bacterial stimulation when compared to African and Asian monkeys. In addition, our findings suggest that apes activate a broader array of defense molecules that may be beneficial for early pathogen killing at the potential cost of increased energy expenditure and tissue damage. Our results provide insight into the evolution of immune responses in primates.