title: Noninvasive visualization of respiratory viral infection using bioorthogonal conjugated near-infrared-emitting quantum dots.
abstract: Highly pathogenic avian influenza A viruses are emerging pandemic threats in human beings. Monitoring the in vivo dynamics of avian influenza viruses is extremely important for understanding viral pathogenesis and developing antiviral drugs. Although a number of technologies have been applied for tracking viral infection in vivo, most of them are laborious with unsatisfactory detection sensitivity. Herein we labeled avian influenza H5N1 pseudotype virus (H5N1p) with near-infrared (NIR)-emitting QDs by bioorthogonal chemistry. The conjugation of QDs onto H5N1p was highly efficient with superior stability both in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, QD-labeled H5N1p (QD-H5N1p) demonstrated bright and sustained fluorescent signals in mouse lung tissues, allowing us to visualize respiratory viral infection in a noninvasive and real-time manner. The fluorescence signals of QD-H5N1p in lung were correlated with the severity of virus infection and significantly attenuated by antiviral agents, such as oseltamivir carboxylate and mouse antiserum against H5N1p. The biodistribution of QD-H5N1p in lungs and other organs could be easily quantified by measuring fluorescent signals and cadmium concentration of virus-conjugated QDs in tissues. Hence, virus labeling with NIR QDs provides a simple, reliable, and quantitative strategy for tracking respiratory viral infection and for antiviral drug screening.
authors.affiliation: Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nanomedicine, CAS Key Laboratory of Health Informatics, Institute of Biomedicine and Biotechnology, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.forename: Pengfei
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Duyang
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.forename: Yijuan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Ping
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Lanlan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Ce
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Hanzhong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Yifan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Lintao
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cai
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000737:chemistry; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D005260:Female; D057809:HEK293 Cells; D006801:Humans; D053124:Influenza A Virus, H5N1 Subtype; D008168:Lung / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D036103:Nanotechnology; D053139:Oseltamivir / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000737:chemistry; D011208:Powders; D045663:Quantum Dots; D013050:Spectrometry, Fluorescence; D019265:Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared; D014018:Tissue Distribution; D014777:Virus Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000821:virology
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents; D011208:Powders; D053139:Oseltamivir; C535162:oseltamivir carboxylate