The virulent Lassa fever virus (LASV) and the non-pathogenic Mopeia virus (MOPV) infect rodents and incidentally people in West Africa. The mechanism of LASV damage in human beings is unclear. A live-attenuated reassortant of MOPV and LASV protects rodents and primates from Lassa fever disease. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy human subjects were expose to either LASV or ML29 in order to identify early cellular responses that could be attributed to the difference in virulence between both viruses. Differential expression of interferon-related genes as well as coagulation-related genes could lead to an explanation for Lassa fever pathogenesis and lead to protective treatments for Lassa fever disease.
Transcriptome analysis of human peripheral blood mononuclear cells exposed to Lassa virus and to the attenuated Mopeia/Lassa reassortant 29 (ML29), a vaccine candidate.
Specimen part
View SamplesLassa fever virus is a zoonotic pathogen that plagues the endemic areas of West Africa. Rhesus macaques infected with a related arenavirus, LCMV-WE, serve as a model for Lassa-infection of human beings. Using a dose similar to that expected from a needle-stick, monkeys experience an early pre-viremic phase (day 1-3), a viremic phase with febrile onset (day 4-7), and, like human beings who succumb, they die within two weeks. Our goal was to monitor changes in gene expression that parallel disease progression in an effort to 1) identify genes with altered expression after infection, 2) identify genes that could discriminate between a virulent and non-virulent infection, and 3) identify genes encoding products that could serve as treatment targets for FDA-approved pharmaceuticals. Genes related to all three of these categories have been identified and some have been given preliminary validation by quantitative PCR and proteomic studies. These genes will be valuable candidates for future validation as prognostic biomarkers
Early blood profiles of virus infection in a monkey model for Lassa fever.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesLassa fever (LF) is a rodent-borne viral disease that can be fatal for human beings. In this study, an attenuated Lassa vaccine candidate, ML29, was tested in SIV-infected rhesus macaques for its ability to elicit immune responses without instigating signs of virulent disease. ML29 is a reassortant between Lassa and Mopeia viruses that causes a transient infection in non-human primates and confers sterilizing protection from lethal Lassa viral challenge. However, since the LF endemic area of West Africa also has high HIV seroprevalence, it is important to determine whether vaccination could be safe in the context of AIDS. SIV-infected and uninfected rhesus macaques were vaccinated with the ML29 virus and monitored for classical and non-classical signs of arenavirus disease. Classical disease signs included viremia, rash, weight loss, high liver enzyme levels, and virus invasion of the central nervous system. Non-classical signs derived from profiling the blood transcriptome of virulent and non-virulent arenavirus infections included increased expression of interferon response genes and decreased expression of COX2, IL-1?, coagulation intermediates and nuclear receptors needed for stress signaling. Here it is demonstrated that SIV-infected and uninfected rhesus macaques responded similarly to ML29 vaccination, and that none developed signs of arenavirus disease or persistence. Furthermore, 5 of 5 animals given a heterologous challenge with a lethal dose of LCMV-WE survived without developing disease signs.
An attenuated Lassa vaccine in SIV-infected rhesus macaques does not persist or cause arenavirus disease but does elicit Lassa virus-specific immunity.
Specimen part
View SamplesTo identify signature genes that help distinguish (1) sepsis from non-infectious causes of systemic inflammatory response syndrome, (2) between Gram-positive and Gram-negative sepsis.
Gene-expression profiling of peripheral blood mononuclear cells in sepsis.
No sample metadata fields
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Alterations in miRNA levels in the dentate gyrus in epileptic rats.
Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesAnalysis of the dentate gyrus of amygdala electrical stimulation model of temporal lobe epilepsy. Results provide insight into the molecular mechanism underlying epileptogenesis.
Alterations in miRNA levels in the dentate gyrus in epileptic rats.
Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesTo characterize underlying changes in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE)/choroid with age, we produced gene expression profiles for the RPE/choroid and compared the transcriptional profiles of the RPE/choroid from young and old mice. The changes in the aged RPE/choroid suggest that the tissue has become immunologically active. Such phenotypic changes in the normal aged RPE/choroid may provide a background for the development of age-related macular degeneration.
The aged retinal pigment epithelium/choroid: a potential substratum for the pathogenesis of age-related macular degeneration.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesWe used optic nerve injury as a model to study early signaling events in the neuronal soma following axonal injury. Optic nerve injury results in the selective death of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). The time course of cell death takes place over a period of days with the earliest detection of RGC death at about 48 hr post injury. We hypothesized that in the period immediately following axonal injury, there are changes in the soma that signal surrounding glia and neurons and that start programmed cell death. In the current study, we investigated early changes in cellular signaling and gene expression that occur within the first 6 hrs post optic nerve injury. We detected differences in phosphoproteins and gene expression within this time period that we used to interpret temporal events. Our studies revealed that the entire retina has been signaled by the RGC soma within 30 min after optic nerve injury and that pathways that modulate cell death are likely to be active in RGCs within 6 hrs following axonal injury
Early cellular signaling responses to axonal injury.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesmRNA expression in the spinal cords of the G93A-SOD1 familial ALS transgenic mouse model was compared to that in nontransgenic (Normal mouse) and transgenic mice expressing wild-type (WT)SOD1. Gene Ontology (GO)analysis was used to characterize differences in expression between G93A-SOD1 mouse and nontransgenic mouse spinal cord. Changes in multiple GO categories were found. Many of these were associated with subsystems involving cell-cell communication and intracellular signal transduction. Expression profiles of mice expressing WT-SOD1 did not differ from nontransgenic mice. In contrast, protein profiling using proteomics technology indicated changes in mitochondrial protein expression in the G93A-SOD1 mouse spinal cord that were not found in the mRNA expression analysis.
Informatics-assisted protein profiling in a transgenic mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Age
View SamplesThis SuperSeries is composed of the SubSeries listed below.
Chronically dysregulated NOTCH1 interactome in the dentate gyrus after traumatic brain injury.
Sex, Specimen part, Treatment, Time
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