Long-Term Arthralgia after Mayaro Virus Infection Correlates with Sustained Pro-inflammatory Cytokine Response.
Mayaro virus (MAYV), an alphavirus similar to chikungunya virus (CHIKV), causes an acute debilitating disease which results in the development of long-term arthralgia in more than 50% of infected individuals. Currently, the immune response and its role in the development of MAYV-induced persistent a...
Published in: | PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases |
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Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2015
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Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0004104 https://doaj.org/article/e1db52caad0747d7a3ffa45014823f22 |
Summary: | Mayaro virus (MAYV), an alphavirus similar to chikungunya virus (CHIKV), causes an acute debilitating disease which results in the development of long-term arthralgia in more than 50% of infected individuals. Currently, the immune response and its role in the development of MAYV-induced persistent arthralgia remain unknown. In this study, we evaluated the immune response of individuals with confirmed MAYV infection in a one-year longitudinal study carried out in Loreto, Peru. We report that MAYV infection elicits robust immune responses that result in the development of a strong neutralizing antibody response and the secretion of pro-inflammatory immune mediators. The composition of these inflammatory mediators, in some cases, differed to those previously observed for CHIKV. Key mediators such as IL-13, IL-7 and VEGF were strongly induced following MAYV infection and were significantly increased in subjects that eventually developed persistent arthralgia. Although a strong neutralizing antibody response was observed in all subjects, it was not sufficient to prevent the long-term outcomes of MAYV infection. This study provides initial immunologic insight that may eventually contribute to prognostic tools and therapeutic treatments against this emerging pathogen. |
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