Influenza A virus infection of primary differentiated airway epithelial cell cultures derived from Syrian golden hamsters.
The ability of several different influenza A virus strains to infect and replicate in primary, differentiated airway epithelial cell cultures from Syrian golden hamsters was investigated. All virus strains tested replicated equivalently in the cultures and displayed a preference for infecting nonciliated cells. This tropism correlated with the expression of both alpha2,3- and alpha2,6-linked sialic acid on the nonciliated cells. In contrast, the ciliated cells did not have detectable alpha2,6-linked sialic acid and expressed only low amounts of alpha2,3-linked sialic acid. In contrast to clinical isolates, laboratory strains of influenza A virus infected a limited number of ciliated cells at late times post-infection. The presence of alpha2,3- and alpha2,6-linked sialic acid residues on the same cell type suggests that Syrian golden hamsters and differentiated airway epithelial cell cultures derived from hamsters may provide a system for studying the reassortment of influenza A virus strains which utilize different forms of sialic acid as a primary virus receptor.
Newby
Celeste M
CM
Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, 660 S. Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8230, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Rowe
Regina K
RK
Pekosz
Andrew
A
D000818:Animals; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002923:Cilia / Q000821:virology; D006224:Cricetinae; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000737:chemistry / Q000821:virology*; D009980:Influenza A virus / Q000502:physiology*; D008647:Mesocricetus; D019158:N-Acetylneuraminic Acid / Q000032:analysis; D011991:Receptors, Virus / Q000032:analysis; D020545:Respiratory Mucosa / Q000166:cytology / Q000821:virology*; D010948:Viral Plaque Assay; D014779:Virus Replication
D011991:Receptors, Virus; D019158:N-Acetylneuraminic Acid