title: Measles virus inhibits mitogen-induced T cell proliferation but does not directly perturb the T cell activation process inside the cell.
abstract: Measles virus (MV) inhibits lymphocyte function in patients, as well as in cells infected in vitro. The proliferation of phytohemagglutinin-stimulated T lymphocytes is suppressed by in vitro MV infection, as shown by the diminished incorporation of [3H]thymidine into DNA and the reduced frequency of cells in the S phase of the cell cycle, as compared with mock-infected cells. MV infection itself, however, does not completely block DNA synthesis in infected cells, because infected T cells expressing MV antigens on the cell surface, isolated by fluorescence-activated cell sorter, could still proliferate. Northern blot analysis indicated that the expression of genes induced during T cell activation, such as those encoding interleukin 2 (IL-2), c-myc, IL-2 receptor, IL-6, c-myb, and cdc-2, was not significantly suppressed in MV-infected cells, suggesting that MV does not interfere with the T cell activation process. When anti-MV serum or carbobenzoxy-D-Phe-L-Phe-Gly, a synthetic oligopeptide known to inhibit MV-induced fusion, was added 24 hr after infection, the inhibition of T cell proliferation was reversed in a dose-dependent manner. From these results we propose a model for the inhibition of T cell proliferation by MV; MV glycoproteins expressed on the cell surface of infected cells interact with the MV receptor or other molecules on the cell membrane of adjacent T cells, which in turn affects the proliferation of those T cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropharmacology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, California 92037.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yanagi
authors.forename: B A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Cubitt
authors.forename: M B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Oldstone
mesh_terms: D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D002455:Cell Division; D004261:DNA Replication / Q000276:immunology; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000276:immunology; D007106:Immune Sera / Q000276:immunology; D007108:Immune Tolerance; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000276:immunology*; D008459:Measles virus / Q000276:immunology* / Q000502:physiology; D009842:Oligopeptides / Q000494:pharmacology; D010835:Phytohemagglutinins; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents; D007106:Immune Sera; D009842:Oligopeptides; D010835:Phytohemagglutinins; C044920:phenylalanyl-phenylalanyl-glycine