The apparent interferon resistance of transmitted HIV-1 is possibly a consequence of enhanced replicative fitness.

HIV-1 transmission via sexual exposure is an inefficient process. When transmission does occur, newly infected individuals are colonized by the descendants of either a single virion or a very small number of establishing virions. These transmitted founder (TF) viruses are more interferon (IFN)-resis...

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Main Authors: Elena Sugrue, Arthur Wickenhagen, Nardus Mollentze, Muhamad Afiq Aziz, Vattipally B Sreenu, Sven Truxa, Lily Tong, Ana da Silva Filipe, David L Robertson, Joseph Hughes, Suzannah J Rihn, Sam J Wilson
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2022-11-01
Series:PLoS Pathogens
Online Access:https://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1010973&type=printable
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author Elena Sugrue
Arthur Wickenhagen
Nardus Mollentze
Muhamad Afiq Aziz
Vattipally B Sreenu
Sven Truxa
Lily Tong
Ana da Silva Filipe
David L Robertson
Joseph Hughes
Suzannah J Rihn
Sam J Wilson
author_facet Elena Sugrue
Arthur Wickenhagen
Nardus Mollentze
Muhamad Afiq Aziz
Vattipally B Sreenu
Sven Truxa
Lily Tong
Ana da Silva Filipe
David L Robertson
Joseph Hughes
Suzannah J Rihn
Sam J Wilson
author_sort Elena Sugrue
collection DOAJ
description HIV-1 transmission via sexual exposure is an inefficient process. When transmission does occur, newly infected individuals are colonized by the descendants of either a single virion or a very small number of establishing virions. These transmitted founder (TF) viruses are more interferon (IFN)-resistant than chronic control (CC) viruses present 6 months after transmission. To identify the specific molecular defences that make CC viruses more susceptible to the IFN-induced 'antiviral state', we established a single pair of fluorescent TF and CC viruses and used arrayed interferon-stimulated gene (ISG) expression screening to identify candidate antiviral effectors. However, we observed a relatively uniform ISG resistance of transmitted HIV-1, and this directed us to investigate possible underlying mechanisms. Simple simulations, where we varied a single parameter, illustrated that reduced growth rate could possibly underly apparent interferon sensitivity. To examine this possibility, we closely monitored in vitro propagation of a model TF/CC pair (closely matched in replicative fitness) over a targeted range of IFN concentrations. Fitting standard four-parameter logistic growth models, in which experimental variables were regressed against growth rate and carrying capacity, to our in vitro growth curves, further highlighted that small differences in replicative growth rates could recapitulate our in vitro observations. We reasoned that if growth rate underlies apparent interferon resistance, transmitted HIV-1 would be similarly resistant to any growth rate inhibitor. Accordingly, we show that two transmitted founder HIV-1 viruses are relatively resistant to antiretroviral drugs, while their matched chronic control viruses were more sensitive. We propose that, when present, the apparent IFN resistance of transmitted HIV-1 could possibly be explained by enhanced replicative fitness, as opposed to specific resistance to individual IFN-induced defences. However, further work is required to establish how generalisable this mechanism of relative IFN resistance might be.
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spelling doaj-art-312eb46f19e0404c960c54ff41b6efb32025-08-20T02:22:26ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS Pathogens1553-73661553-73742022-11-011811e101097310.1371/journal.ppat.1010973The apparent interferon resistance of transmitted HIV-1 is possibly a consequence of enhanced replicative fitness.Elena SugrueArthur WickenhagenNardus MollentzeMuhamad Afiq AzizVattipally B SreenuSven TruxaLily TongAna da Silva FilipeDavid L RobertsonJoseph HughesSuzannah J RihnSam J WilsonHIV-1 transmission via sexual exposure is an inefficient process. When transmission does occur, newly infected individuals are colonized by the descendants of either a single virion or a very small number of establishing virions. These transmitted founder (TF) viruses are more interferon (IFN)-resistant than chronic control (CC) viruses present 6 months after transmission. To identify the specific molecular defences that make CC viruses more susceptible to the IFN-induced 'antiviral state', we established a single pair of fluorescent TF and CC viruses and used arrayed interferon-stimulated gene (ISG) expression screening to identify candidate antiviral effectors. However, we observed a relatively uniform ISG resistance of transmitted HIV-1, and this directed us to investigate possible underlying mechanisms. Simple simulations, where we varied a single parameter, illustrated that reduced growth rate could possibly underly apparent interferon sensitivity. To examine this possibility, we closely monitored in vitro propagation of a model TF/CC pair (closely matched in replicative fitness) over a targeted range of IFN concentrations. Fitting standard four-parameter logistic growth models, in which experimental variables were regressed against growth rate and carrying capacity, to our in vitro growth curves, further highlighted that small differences in replicative growth rates could recapitulate our in vitro observations. We reasoned that if growth rate underlies apparent interferon resistance, transmitted HIV-1 would be similarly resistant to any growth rate inhibitor. Accordingly, we show that two transmitted founder HIV-1 viruses are relatively resistant to antiretroviral drugs, while their matched chronic control viruses were more sensitive. We propose that, when present, the apparent IFN resistance of transmitted HIV-1 could possibly be explained by enhanced replicative fitness, as opposed to specific resistance to individual IFN-induced defences. However, further work is required to establish how generalisable this mechanism of relative IFN resistance might be.https://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1010973&type=printable
spellingShingle Elena Sugrue
Arthur Wickenhagen
Nardus Mollentze
Muhamad Afiq Aziz
Vattipally B Sreenu
Sven Truxa
Lily Tong
Ana da Silva Filipe
David L Robertson
Joseph Hughes
Suzannah J Rihn
Sam J Wilson
The apparent interferon resistance of transmitted HIV-1 is possibly a consequence of enhanced replicative fitness.
PLoS Pathogens
title The apparent interferon resistance of transmitted HIV-1 is possibly a consequence of enhanced replicative fitness.
title_full The apparent interferon resistance of transmitted HIV-1 is possibly a consequence of enhanced replicative fitness.
title_fullStr The apparent interferon resistance of transmitted HIV-1 is possibly a consequence of enhanced replicative fitness.
title_full_unstemmed The apparent interferon resistance of transmitted HIV-1 is possibly a consequence of enhanced replicative fitness.
title_short The apparent interferon resistance of transmitted HIV-1 is possibly a consequence of enhanced replicative fitness.
title_sort apparent interferon resistance of transmitted hiv 1 is possibly a consequence of enhanced replicative fitness
url https://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1010973&type=printable
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