Gene expression responses to Zika virus infection in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from pregnant and non‐pregnant women

Abstract

Pregnancy is a unique immunological state that generally protects the fetus, but susceptibility during pregnancy to various infections has been observed. In parasitic infections, such as malaria and toxoplasmosis, increased host susceptibility and microbial virulence during pregnancy have been reported (Piao et al., 2018; Tuikue Ndam et al., 2018). Pregnancy is also associated with increased susceptibility to viral infections, including influenza virus, hepatitis E virus, herpes simplex virus, and Zika virus (ZIKV) (Kourtis et al., 2014; Silasi et al., 2015). Infectious mechanisms vary, and some involve the placenta and membranes while others could impact the fetus through immunological perturbations. ZIKV is an epidemic-causing pathogen transmissible through Aedes mosquitoes, sexual contact, and transplacental transfer (Paz-Bailey et al., 2019). Transplacental ZIKV transmission causes congenital Zika syndrome characterized by birth anomalies, including microcephaly, brain damage, ocular defects, and neuromuscular impairments (Mawson, 2016). ZIKV targets peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), particularly monocytes and, to a lesser extent, dendritic cells (Foo et al., 2017; Michlmayr et al., 2017). These circulating cells may facilitate ZIKV delivery to the placenta (Michlmayr

Molecular Approaches for the Validation of the Baboon as a Nonhuman Primate Model for the Study of Zika Virus Infection

“…Transcriptomic profiling of the baboon response to ZIKV infection revealed upregulation of genes associated with IFN alpha, beta, and gamma signaling and antiviral responses between days 0 and 3, then downregulation of the same sets of genes between days 3 and 15, a period when viral infection was effectively controlled. The upregulation of genes related to IFN signaling early in infection has been observed in other studies of ZIKV infection in whole blood of rhesus and cynomolgus macaques ( Schouest et al., 2020 ), as well as in human PBMCs in vitro ( Lim et al., 2020 ). Several genes found to be upregulated in both the Lim 2020 and Schouest 2020 studies were also upregulated (FDR ≤ 0.05 and LFC ≥ 1.0) in our results, including IFI44, IFIT1, IFIT3, MX1, OAS1, and OASL ( Supplemental Figures 4–6 ).…”

Genetic Behaviour of Zika Virus and Identification of Motif

“…Pregnancy-associated variations in reactions to ZIKV were identified using DNA expression of samples of different women. ZIKV infected pregnant showed proinflammatory responses [17].…”