The Role of Lung Development in Age Related Susceptibility of Ferrets to Influenza Virus

Abstract

We present two cases of acute r enal failure associated wi t h a microangiopathic haemol ytic anaemia followin g pneu mococcal infections. In both children t here was evidence o.f red cell T-poly-egglutinability (bsing msn i f es t initially as discrspant ABO blood group ing) . In one child pneumococci were i so l at e d from the blood whilst in the other there wee antigenic ev idence of a recent pneumococcal i nf ec t i on . Both ch ildren had a period of oliguric renal failure requiring dialysis. Prostaglandin metabolism was s hown to be normal in both children. Renal biopsy in one Case showed evidence of exposure of the T antigen on the re nal glomeruli, tubules and fed cell casts. Pneumococci are known to produce the enzyme neuraminidase which has been implicated in Tactivstion. We suggest that T-activation following pneumococcal infection should be included In the spectrum of the Haemolytic Uraemic Syndrome. in all l'/'<4>S. It 19~tl'at in tl'l>o SIIIS the lU1@;3 are rot cnly free fran 1nIlaImntory changes, tut also """ s1g19 of prev100s eventa causI~peteclllal ha<mc:rrtlages, for """"Ple rear-ense episodes. fBEDXlSider1n-<:ootaining lIBcrqhages in the 1nt<rstltiun, witha1t tree red cejjs nearby IIBY be the IIBl'k of axtl an event. 74I dentificaticn of Rectal Ga'lIlicn Cells usirg /otroclcnal Antibodies. ( i i) a pro porti on of th e j.nfected neonatal ferret s succumb 'Wit h pa t hological evidence of an upper respira t or y tract i nfection but no parenchymal l e s i ons in t he lungs, a finding BDalOgOU 5 to th at in a pro por tion of human sudden infant dea ths (S I llS) .( i i i ) or gan cultures of neonatal ferret lung ar e mor e su sceptible than adult lung and ciliated epithelium is more susceptible t han alve olar epithelium to inf l ue nza virus. 'ntat these differences in s urvival might be related to changes in the structure of the lung associated with growth was inve stigated by morphomet r i c techniques. These demonstrat ed: (1) that the ratio of ciliated to alveolar epitheliumhalved between birth and 15 days and halved again with the attainment of adulthood.(ii) that the size of the bronchi and bronchioles but not their number increased during the same period. The possible significance of these findings is discussed both in relation to the ferret and human neonate and infant. 73F OETAL PULMONARY LYMPHANGIECTASIS D. GAILLARD, N. MULLIEZ* Laboratoire Pol BOUIN. C.H.U , 51092 REIMS Cedex -France-*C.H.U. Saint-Antoine PARIS -FranceLess than 70 cases of congenital pulmona ry lymphangiectas is in neonates are reported in the literature. Half of them are stillborn, howe ver to our knowledge no such foetal cases have yet been reported. The occurrence of these les ions in 2nd term gestation and the absence of valves, would indicate that this disease is probably a malfor mation and not an acquired les ion. We report here 5 new ca ses of pulmonary lymphangiectasis with the classic al micr oc ystic honeycomb appea ranc e on c ut sect ion. 3 of them are isolated pulmonary lymphangiectasis fr om 20 and...

Viral diseases of ferrets

“…Influenza infection may involve the lower respiratory tract in some susceptible animals [1,59]. Usually, influenza virus is confined to the bronchial and bronchiolar tissues [53,60]. The disease may be fatal in 1-to 2-day-old ferret kits secondary to bronchiolitis, pneumonia, and aspiration of material from the upper respiratory tract [57,61,62].…”

The Power of First Impressions: Can Influenza Imprinting during Infancy Inform Vaccine Design?

“…The ferret model has also been used to investigate age-related host response and disease severity to influenza virus infection both for the old [110] and young [17,18,111,112]. Ferrets were first used to investigate infant responses to influenza virus infection in the late 1970s by a group from the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom [19,[113][114][115][116][117]. In adult ferrets, influenza virus infection with seasonal influenza virus strains typically leads to a non-fatal disease characterized by weight loss, temperature increase, and respiratory symptoms including coughing and sneezing [118,119] at varying degrees dependent on the strain.…”

“…In a follow up study that compared influenza illness in newborn ferrets to 15-day old suckling ferrets, it was found that while newborn ferrets succumb to illness, 15-day old ferrets seemed resilient to fatal disease and developed pathology similar to adults [120]. Furthermore, the increased disease severity in infants was suggested to be due to an increased proportion of ciliated epithelium-lined airway when compared to the adult and 15-day old ferret lungs [19]. This suggested a rapid development of the ferret respiratory tract, which may influence influenza severity.…”

“…A literature review of infant mice studies has shown decreased T cell immune responses in infant animals [15,16], but studies investigating humoral and antibody responses are currently lacking. Reviewing literature from infant ferret studies has demonstrated that outcomes of influenza virus infection may be significantly dependent on ferret age post-partum [17][18][19][20]. These models, discussed in detail below, may be useful for future studies involving imprinting and development of immune memory so that infant-specific vaccines can be developed.…”

The Power of First Impressions: Can Influenza Imprinting during Infancy Inform Vaccine Design?

“…A literature review of infant mice studies has shown decreased T cell immune responses in infant animals [ 17 , 18 ], but studies investigating humoral and antibody responses are currently lacking. Reviewing literature from infant ferret studies has demonstrated that outcomes of influenza virus infection may be significantly dependent on ferret age post-partum [ 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 ]. These models, discussed in detail below, may be useful for future studies involving imprinting and development of immune memory so that infant-specific vaccines can be developed.…”