Project description:Dengue represents one of the most serious life-threatening vector-borne infectious diseases that afflict ~50 million people across the globe annually. Whilst symptomatic infections are frequently reported, asymptomatic dengue largely remain unnoticed. The immune correlates conferring protection to individuals that remain clinically asymptomatic have seldom been investigated. We determined the gene expression profiles of host immune factors in individuals with asymptomatic infections, and whose cognate household members showed symptoms and signs consistent to clinical dengue infection. Results provide insight in association of certain host genes to protection against clinical dengue. Blood samples were collected from Dengue Fever (DF) and Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever (DHF) patients in Malaysia who were admitted to university of Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC), Ampang Hospital (AmpangHospital), and Hospital Tengku Ampuan Rahimah (HTAR) Klang. Blood from their asymptomatic household members were also collected. Their peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were isolated. 29 sample pairs (SP) of dengue patients and their accompanying asymptomatic household members were chosen on the following basis for two-channel microarray experiments: patients who have shown positive results for DENV infection with at least 2 diagnostics tests indicating positivity. Positive results for the IgM-captured ELISA were P/N ratio more than 2.0, while total antibody titer of more than 1:2560 or 4 fold increase from acute to convalescence phase was considered positive in HI assay. PRNT, a neutralization test, was used as a measure for levels of neutralizing antibodies and was considered high when it was more than 1:640, based on a reduction neutralization of 50%.
Project description:Dengue represents one of the most serious life-threatening vector-borne infectious diseases that afflict ~50 million people across the globe annually. Whilst symptomatic infections are frequently reported, asymptomatic dengue largely remain unnoticed. The immune correlates conferring protection to individuals that remain clinically asymptomatic have seldom been investigated. We determined the gene expression profiles of host immune factors in individuals with asymptomatic infections, and whose cognate household members showed symptoms and signs consistent to clinical dengue infection. Results provide insight in association of certain host genes to protection against clinical dengue.
Project description:Clinical symptoms of dengue virus (DENV) infection, the most prevalent arthropod-borne viral disease, range from classical mild dengue fever to severe, life-threatening dengue shock syndrome. However, most DENV infections cause few or no symptoms. Asymptomatic DENV-infected patients provide a unique opportunity to decipher the host immune responses leading to virus elimination without negative impact on an individual’s health. We used an integrated approach of transcriptional profiling and immunological analysis to compare a Cambodian population of strictly asymptomatic viremic individuals with clinical dengue patients. Whereas inflammatory pathways and innate immune response pathways were similar between asymptomatic individuals and clinical dengue patients, expression of proteins related to antigen presentation and subsequent T and B cell activation pathways were differentially regulated, independent of viral load and previous DENV infection history. Feedback mechanisms controlled the immune response in asymptomatic viremic individuals, as demonstrated by increased activation of T cell apoptosis-related pathways and FcγRIIB signaling associated with decreased anti-DENV specific antibody concentrations. Taken together, our data illustrate that symptom-free DENV infection in children is associated with determined by increased activation of the adaptive immune compartment and proper control mechanisms, leading to elimination of viral infection without excessive immune activation, with implications for novel vaccine development strategies
Project description:We will have 274 individuals typed for the Illumina Human Omni 2.5 chip. The individuals are from two locations in Cuba (Havana and Guantanamo) and from four phenotype classes (asymptomatic, control dengue fever and dengue hemorrhagic fever).
Project description:Cumulative malaria parasite exposure in endemic regions often results in the acquisition of partial immunity and asymptomatic infections. However, there is limited information on how host-parasite interactions mediate maintenance of chronic symptomless infections that sustain malaria transmission. In this study, we identified uninfected and asymptomatic individuals and followed them until they manifested with symptoms of fever in the presence of malaria parasites and compared the gene expression profiles of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). The host response of asymptomatic children was characterized by downregulation of genes associated with inflammatory responses, compared to uninfected children and children with febrile malaria. They did show greater expression of some genes associated with the humoral response compared to uninfected children. Interestingly, the host responses during febrile infections that followed an asymptomatic infection featured stronger inflammatory responses, whereas the febrile host responses from previously uninfected children featured increased humoral immune responses.
Project description:In this study, we assessed the contribution of dengue-specific CD8+T cells in hospitalized samples with mild (dengue fever; DF) and severe (dengue hemorrhagic fever; DHF) forms of the disease. Our in-depth transcriptomic analysis provides no evidence for qualitative differences in terms of CD8+T cell response against dengue, therefore, concluding that CD8+T cell response is not a contributing factor in the development of severe dengue disease.
Project description:Infection with dengue viruses (DENVs) leads to a spectrum of disease outcomes. The pathophysiology of severe versus non-severe manifestations of DENV infection may be driven by host responses, which could be reflected in the transcriptional profiles of peripheral blood immune cells. We conducted genome-wide microarray analysis of whole blood RNA from 34 DENV-infected children in Nicaragua collected on days 3–6 of illness, with different disease manifestations. Gene expression analysis identified genes that are differentially regulated between clinical subgroups. The most striking transcriptional differences were observed between dengue patients with and without shock, especially in the expression of mitochondrial ribosomal proteins associated with protein biosynthesis. In the dengue hemorrhagic fever patients, one subset of differentially expressed genes encode neutrophil-derived anti-microbial peptides associated with innate immunity. We analyzed 44 HEEBO arrays on which were hybridized RNA amplified from whole blood collected into PAXgene tubes. 34 samples were collected from DENV-infected patients who presented between days 3-6 of illness. Six convalescent samples collected 14-19 days after onset of symptoms were from two dengue fever patients, one dengue hemorrhagic fever patient and three dengue shock syndrome patients. Additionally, samples from four normal healthy individuals were also analyzed.
Project description:We looked at the whole-blood transcriptional profiling on dengue patients sampled within 72h of fever presentation and compared the signatures with autologous samples drawn at defervescence and convalescence and to control patients with fever of other etiology. Our data show that the early response in patients mimics those previously only described in vitro and suggests that this innate immune responses may initiate the later adaptive immune responses. Total RNA obtained from whole-blood of dengue patients with fever presentation, defervescence and convalescence are compared. Also, dengue patients with fever presentation are compared with control patients which are with fever of other etiology. 119 samples are analysed, which include 31 dengue patients and 26 control patients.