Viremia and AIDS in rhesus macaques after intramuscular inoculation of plasmid DNA encoding full-length SIVmac239.
We have succeeded in stably maintaining the entire genome of SIVmac239 as a plasmid clone. Supercoiled proviral plasmid DNA was inoculated intramuscularly into two adult rhesus macaques and into a neonate. All three animals became viremic and seroconverted. Viral kinetics were followed prospectively by quantitative competitive reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (QC-RT-PCR), measurement of proviral DNA load in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) by PCR, and virus isolation by cocultivation. The infant developed high virus loads and succumbed to AIDS and SIV-associated nephropathy at 10 weeks postinoculation. Both adults are still living but have progressed to AIDS; one adult has also developed severe thrombocytopenia. We conclude that infection through intramuscular inoculation of cloned plasmid DNA encoding the entire proviral genome is reproducible and will provide a useful tool for studying viral pathogenesis.
Liska
V
V
Laboratory of Viral Pathogenesis, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.
Khimani
A H
AH
Hofmann-Lehmann
R
R
Fink
A N
AN
Vlasak
J
J
Ruprecht
R M
RM
D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D008253:Macaca mulatta; D010957:Plasmids / Q000235:genetics*; D011533:Proviruses; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D016097:Simian Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000276:immunology / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000821:virology; D015302:Simian Immunodeficiency Virus / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000276:immunology; D019562:Viral Load; D014766:Viremia / Q000821:virology*
D004279:DNA, Viral