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Supernatants from human cytomegalovirus (HCMV)-infected retinal glial cells increase transepithelial electrical resistance in a cell culture model: evidence of HCMV immune escape in the eye?

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Abstract

The underlying mechanisms leading to persistence of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) in the immune privileged retina are not fully understood. This in vitro study was done to evaluate the influence of HCMV-infected retinal glial cells on epithelial barrier functions. Glial cells derived from human eyes were cultured and infected with the clinical HCMV isolate Hi91. Supernatants of mock (GSmock) and Hi91 (GSHi91) -infected glial cells were collected at 72 h post inoculation and used for incubation of CaCo-2 cells grown in transwell chambers. Transepithelial electrical resistance (TER) was analyzed as a measure of epithelial integrity. Virus-free GSHi91 but not GSmock increased TER from 250 Ω/cm2 to more than 1,000 Ω/cm2 within 2 h. Increased TER values were measured up to 48 h (n=3). No changes in TER were observed when conditioned supernatants from HCMV-infected human foreskin fibroblasts were used. No evidence of GSHi91-induced modification of β-catenin (zonula adherens) or occludin and ZO-1 (zonula occludens) was found. Our results suggest that HCMV-infected glial cells may support epithelial barrier functions by a yet unknown mechanism. Our findings may help to explain the ocular persistence of HCMV and the maintenance of ocular immune privilege early in infection.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Lena Kleinbub for the highly appreciated technical assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Zentrum der Hygiene, Institut für Medizinische Virologie; Klinikum der Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität, Paul-Ehrlich-Strasse 40, 60596, Frankfurt am Main, Germany

    Martin Scholz, Stefan Margraf, Sanjay Menon, Alina Schuller, Hans Wilhelm Doerr & Jindrich Cinatl

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  1. Martin Scholz
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  2. Stefan Margraf
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  3. Sanjay Menon
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  4. Alina Schuller
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  5. Hans Wilhelm Doerr
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  6. Jindrich Cinatl
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Correspondence to Jindrich Cinatl.

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Scholz, M., Margraf, S., Menon, S. et al. Supernatants from human cytomegalovirus (HCMV)-infected retinal glial cells increase transepithelial electrical resistance in a cell culture model: evidence of HCMV immune escape in the eye?. Med Microbiol Immunol 193, 205–208 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00430-003-0187-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00430-003-0187-9

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