Human immune cell engraftment does not alter development of severe acute Rift Valley fever in mice

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Jessica R. Spengler, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Anita Katherine McElroy, Emory University; Jessica R. Harmon, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; JoAnn D. Coleman-McCray, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Stephen R. Welch, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; James G. Keck, The Jackson Laboratory; Stuart T. Nichol, Emory University; Christina F. Spiropoulou, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Language: English
• Date: 2018-07-20
• Publisher: Public Library of Science
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: This is an open access article, free of all copyright, and may be freely reproduced, distributed, transmitted, modified, built upon, or otherwise used by anyone for any lawful purpose
• License: Creative Commons Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0201104
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: PLoS ONE
• ISSN: 1932-6203
• Volume: 13
• Issue: 7
• Start Page: e0201104
• End Page: e0201104
• Grant/Funding Information: This work was partially supported by a Burroughs Wellcome Career Award (1013362.01) and NIH K08 AI 119448 [AKM].
• Keywords: Science & Technology - Other Topics; DISEASE; TRANSCRIPTION; PROTEIN; Science & Technology; RESPONSES; VIRUS-INFECTION; NSS; Multidisciplinary Sciences; MODELS
• Research Categories: Health Sciences, Pathology

Abstract

Rift Valley fever (RVF) in humans is usually mild, but, in a subset of cases, can progress to severe hepatic and neurological disease. Rodent models of RVF generally develop acute severe clinical disease. Here, we inoculated humanized NSG-SGM3 mice with Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) to investigate whether the presence of human immune cells in mice would alter the progression of RVFV infection to more closely model human disease. Despite increased human cytokine expression, including responses mirroring those seen in human disease, and decreased hepatic viral RNA levels at terminal euthanasia, both high- and low-dose RVFV inoculation resulted in lethal disease in all mice with comparable time-to-death as unengrafted mice.