Cooperation between the hemagglutinin of avian viruses and the matrix protein of human influenza A viruses.

Abstract

To analyze the compatibility of avian influenza A virus hemagglutinins (HAs) and human influenza A virus matrix (M) proteins M1 and M2, we doubly infected Madin-Darby canine kidney cells with amantadine (1-aminoadamantane hydrochloride)-resistant human viruses and amantadine-sensitive avian strains. By using antisera against the human virus HAs and amantadine, we selected reassortants containing the human virus M gene and the avian virus HA gene. In our system, high virus yields and large, well-defined plaques indicated that the avian HAs and the human M gene products could cooperate effectively; low virus yields and small, turbid plaques indicated that cooperation was poor. The M gene products are among the primary components that determine the species specificities of influenza A viruses. Therefore, our system also indicated whether the avian HA genes effectively reassorted into the genome and replaced the HA gene of the prevailing human influenza A viruses. Most of the avian HAs that we tested efficiently cooperated with the M gene products of the early human A/PR/8/34 (H1N1) virus; however, the avian HAs did not effectively cooperate with the most recently isolated human virus that we tested, A/Nanchang/933/95 (H3N2). Cooperation between the avian HAs and the M proteins of the human A/Singapore/57 (H2N2) virus was moderate. These results suggest that the currently prevailing human influenza A viruses might have lost their ability to undergo antigenic shift and therefore are unable to form new pandemic viruses that contain an avian HA, a finding that is of great interest for pandemic planning.

• Authors: Christoph Scholtissek, Jürgen Stech, Scott Krauss, Robert G Webster
• Journal: Journal of virology (J Virol) Vol. 76 Issue 4 Pg. 1781-6 (Feb 2002) ISSN: 0022-538X [Print] United States
• PMID: 11799173 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.)

Chemical References

• Antiviral Agents
• Hemagglutinin Glycoproteins, Influenza Virus
• Viral Matrix Proteins
• hemagglutinin, avian influenza A virus
• Amantadine

Topics

• Amantadine (pharmacology)
• Animals
• Antiviral Agents (pharmacology)
• Cell Line
• Dogs
• Drug Resistance, Viral
• Hemagglutinin Glycoproteins, Influenza Virus (genetics, metabolism)
• Humans
• Influenza A virus (drug effects, genetics, growth & development, metabolism)
• Influenza in Birds (virology)
• Influenza, Human (virology)
• Kidney (cytology, virology)
• Poultry
• Reassortant Viruses
• Viral Matrix Proteins (genetics, metabolism)
• Viral Plaque Assay