Borna disease: association with a maturation defect in the cellular immune response.
Borna disease virus (BDV) is a negative-strand RNA virus which produces persistent infection in a variety of experimental animals. In the rat, the presence or absence of clinical signs of Borna disease, a characteristic, biphasic neurobehavioral illness, depends on host-related factors. A window of opportunity exists after birth wherein inoculation with BDV produces a persistently infected rat without signs of Borna disease or encephalitis (persistent, tolerant infection-newborn [PTI-NB] rat). Although immunopathological destruction of the nervous system does not occur in the PTI-NB rat, significant alterations in the development of the nervous system were noted, including site-specific lysis of neurons. Unlike the case with other pharmacologically produced, persistent, tolerant BDV infections, adoptive transfer of spleen cells from BDV-infected rats did not produce disease in the PTI-NB rats. PTI-NB rats developed Borna disease after being connected by parabiosis to rats with Borna disease. Bone marrow transplantation experiments revealed that bone marrow cells from PTI-NB rats produced Borna disease in lethally irradiated, BDV-infected recipient rats. Bone marrow from PTI-NB rats contained a complement of inflammatory cells capable of inducing Borna disease. Thus, the loss of BDV-specific cellular immunity appeared to occur after the release of cells from the bone marrow.
Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21205.
K M
KM
Carbone
S W
SW
Park
S A
SA
Rubin
R W
RW
Waltrip
G B
GB
Vogelsang
D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D000956:Antigens, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D016026:Bone Marrow Transplantation / Q000276:immunology; D001890:Borna Disease / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D001891:Borna disease virus / Q000276:immunology*; D001921:Brain / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000473:pathology; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D015395:Histocompatibility Antigens Class I / Q000032:analysis; D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II / Q000032:analysis; D016219:Immunotherapy, Adoptive; D011689:Purkinje Cells / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D051381:Rats; D011917:Rats, Inbred Lew; D012584:Sciatic Nerve / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D013154:Spleen / Q000276:immunology
D000956:Antigens, Viral; D015395:Histocompatibility Antigens Class I; D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II