Immune Protection against Virus Challenge in Aging Mice Is Not Affected by Latent Herpesviral Infections.
Latent herpesvirus infections alter immune homeostasis. To understand if this results in aging-related loss of immune protection against emerging infections, we challenged old mice carrying latent mouse cytomegalovirus (CMV), herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1), and/or murine gammaherpesvirus 68 (MHV-68) with influenza virus, West Nile virus (WNV), or vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV). We observed no increase in mortality or weight loss compared to results seen with herpesvirus-negative counterparts and a relative but not absolute reduction in CD8 responses to acute infections. Therefore, the presence of herpesviruses does not appear to increase susceptibility to emerging infections in aging patients.
Department of Vaccinology and Applied Microbiology, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI), Braunschweig, Germany Dar es Salaam University College of Education, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Thomas F
TF
Marandu
Department of Vaccinology and Applied Microbiology, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI), Braunschweig, Germany.
Jennifer D
JD
Oduro
Department of Vaccinology and Applied Microbiology, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI), Braunschweig, Germany.
Lisa
L
Borkner
Department of Vaccinology and Applied Microbiology, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI), Braunschweig, Germany.
Iryna
I
Dekhtiarenko
Department of Immunobiology and the Arizona Center on Aging, University of Arizona College of Medicine, Tucson, Arizona, USA.
Jennifer L
JL
Uhrlaub
Department of Vaccinology and Applied Microbiology, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI), Braunschweig, Germany.
Anja
A
Drabig
Research Group Innate Immunity and Infection, HZI, Braunschweig, Germany.
Andrea
A
Kröger
Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU), Portland, Oregon, USA Department of Immunobiology and the Arizona Center on Aging, University of Arizona College of Medicine, Tucson, Arizona, USA.
Janko
J
Nikolich-Zugich
Department of Vaccinology and Applied Microbiology, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI), Braunschweig, Germany Institute for Virology, Medical School Hannover, Hanover, Germany luka.cicin-sain@helmholtz-hzi.de.
Luka
L
Cicin-Sain
D000375:Aging / Q000276:immunology*; D000818:Animals; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D006566:Herpesviridae Infections / Q000276:immunology*; D018259:Herpesvirus 1, Human / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D018146:Muromegalovirus / Q000276:immunology; D009975:Orthomyxoviridae / Q000276:immunology; D018144:Rhadinovirus / Q000276:immunology; D014721:Vesicular stomatitis Indiana virus / Q000276:immunology; D017735:Virus Latency; D014902:West Nile virus / Q000276:immunology