Neutrophil dysfunction consequent to influenza A virus infection has been described in vivo and in vitro and may contribute to the serious bacterial sequelae which occur in influenza-infected hosts. On the premise that such dysfunction may represent a form of “deactivation,” we sought to characterize neutrophil activation by the virus in comparison with other agonists. The virus induces a respiratory burst in which H2O2 (but not O2-) are formed. Preceding the respiratory burst, a rise in intracellular calcium (Ca2+i) is noted, but both responses are nearly independent of extracellular Ca2+, unlike those elicited by the other well-characterized Ca2+-dependent agonists, formyl-methyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (FMLP), or Concanavalin-A (Con-A). The Ca2+ increase is paralleled by IP3 generation, implying that it is the result of phospholipase C (PLC) activation. The virus also elicits neutrophil membrane depolarization, which is independently mediated from the Ca2+ increase and respiratory burst and may reflect protein kinase C (PK-C) activation. Virus-induced responses are insensitive to pertussis toxin (PT); cholera toxin does inhibit these responses but in a nonspecific manner. Thus, although influenza virus activates PLC in neutrophils, it does so in a PT-insensitive manner and does not elicit or require a discernible Ca2+ influx to generate a respiratory burst response. In aggregate, the data indicate that influenza A virus activates neutrophils in a manner distinct from that of other well- described neutrophil agonists. These results illustrate the diversity of neutrophil activation mechanisms and support the notion that further characterization of this pathway may facilitate understanding of neutrophil dysfunction induced by the virus.
Influenza A virus (IAV) activates the human neutrophil, but induces a dysfunctional state as well. Cell activation may contribute to the containment of the virus and/or cause local tissue damage. Certain features of the neutrophil activation response elicited by IAV are distinctive when compared with that triggered by formyl-methyl-leucyl- phenylalanine (FMLP). An atypical respiratory burst response occurs in which hydrogen peroxide, but no superoxide, is formed. This unusual respiratory burst stoichiometry persists despite marked priming of the IAV-induced response. A comprehensive examination of the activation cascade initiated by these stimuli failed to show an explanation for these differences. Both IAV and FMLP comparably stimulate inositol trisphosphate and phosphatidic acid production. The subsequent increase in intracellular calcium (Ca2+i) upon FMLP stimulation was more dependent on extracellular Ca2+ than with IAV activation, but both stimuli induced Ca2+ influx. FMLP and IAV exhibited equal susceptibility to inhibition by protein kinase inhibitors in eliciting the respiratory burst, and actin polymerization occurred in response to each agonist. A possible explanation for the anomalous respiratory burst induced by IAV is that O2- is generated at an intracellular site inaccessible to assay, and/or virus binding to sialic acid constituents of the plasma membrane alters the O2- generating capacity of the respiratory burst oxidase; evidence for each mechanism is offered.
Although neutrophils are not viewed as a principal defense against influenza A virus (IAV) infection, their interactions are both complex and clinically relevant. Activation of the neutrophil is distinctive from that described for chemoattractants. To more fully characterize the pathway by which IAV stimulates the human neutrophil, we have examined its binding characteristics. First, inhibition studies with various sialic acid-containing and sialic-free sugars showed that IAV binds to sialic acid residues and activates receptors distinct from those used by Concanavalin-A (Con-A) and formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (FMLP) and that overlap those bound by wheat germ agglutinin (WGA). That viral hemagglutinin (HA) mediates viral binding and activation was shown by preincubating neutrophils with purified monovalent bromelain-released HA (BHA) and showing that IAV-induced membrane depolarization and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) production were inhibited approximately 95%. However, binding inhibition required significantly higher concentrations of purified HA, suggesting that binding and cell activation have different interactive requirements. Desialation of the neutrophil surface membrane by neuraminidase treatment resulted in a 90.6% +/- 4.4% and 53.1% +/- 8.7% inhibition of IAV activation of neutrophils and viral binding, respectively. Resialation with ganglioside GT1b totally restored viral binding, but did not reverse the inhibition of activation. Thus, although HA was shown to mediate binding and neutrophil activation, viral binding per se was insufficient to stimulate the cell. Having demonstrated the functional role of HA, we sought to establish the mechanism of stimulation. HA in three different forms (BHA, HA-rosettes, and HA-liposomes) failed to activate the cell, although H2O2 production evoked by IAV stimulation was reduced in competitive inhibition studies with each preparation. Upon cross-linking with a monoclonal antibody to HA, activation comparable to that of intact virus was observed. The requirement for cross-linking of functional receptors, as opposed to activation through the neutrophil Fc receptor, was confirmed in experiments using staphylococcal A protein. These studies have shown the chemical specificity of IAV binding to the human neutrophil, the character of the receptor(s) stimulated to activate the IAV-evoked response, and the activation requirement for cross-linking those receptors responsible for stimulating functional responses.
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