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HSV type 1 (HSV-1) is one of the leading etiologies of sporadic viral encephalitis. Early antiviral intervention is crucial to the survival of herpes simplex encephalitis patients; however, many survivors suffer from long-term neurologic deficits. It is currently understood that HSV-1 establishes a latent infection within sensory peripheral neurons throughout the life of the host. However, the tissue residence of latent virus, other than in sensory neurons, and the potential pathogenic consequences of latency remain enigmatic. In the current study, we characterized the lytic and latent infection of HSV-1 in the CNS in comparison with the peripheral nervous system following ocular infection in mice. We used RT-PCR to detect latency-associated transcripts and HSV-1 lytic cycle genes within the brain stem, the ependyma (EP), containing the limbic and cortical areas, which also harbor neural progenitor cells, in comparison with the trigeminal ganglia. Unexpectedly, HSV-1 lytic genes, usually identified during acute infection, are uniquely expressed in the EP 60 d postinfection when animals are no longer suffering from encephalitis. An inflammatory response was also mounted in the EP by the maintenance of resident memory T cells. However, EP T cells were incapable of controlling HSV-1 infection ex vivo and secreted less IFN-γ, which correlated with expression of a variety of exhaustion-related inhibitory markers. Collectively, our data suggest that the persistent viral lytic gene expression during latency is the cause of the chronic inflammatory response leading to the exhaustion of the resident T cells in the EP., (Copyright © 2016 by The American Association of Immunologists, Inc.)

CXCR3 deficient (CXCR3(-/-)) mice are resistant to ocular HSV-1 infection in that less mice develop encephalitis and succumb to infection in comparison to wild type (WT) animals. A region of the brain previously identified to be crucial for development of encephalitis was evaluated in HSV-1-infected CXCR3(-/-) and WT mice. In this region, known as the ependyma, viral titer, infiltrating leukocyte populations, and key anti-viral cytokine message levels were evaluated. We found that CXCR3(-/-) mice possessed significantly less HSV-1 and expressed significantly more IFN-β mRNA in the brain ependyma compared to WT animals during the development of encephalitis., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV) infection of mice is a widely used animal model for demyelinating disorders, such as multiple sclerosis (MS). The aim of the present study was to identify topographical differences of TMEV spread and demyelination in the brain of experimentally infected susceptible SJL/J mice and resistant C57BL/6 mice., Methods: Demyelination was confirmed by Luxol fast blue and cresyl violet staining and axonal damage by neurofilament-specific and β-amyloid precursor protein-specific immunohistochemistry. Viral dissemination within the central nervous system (CNS) was quantified by immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization. Further, the phenotype of infected cells was determined by confocal laser scanning microscopy., Results: An early transient infection of periventricular cells followed by demyelination and axonopathies around the fourth ventricle in SJL/J mice was noticed. Periventricular and brain stem demyelination was associated with a predominant infection of microglia/macrophages and oligodendrocytes., Conclusions: Summarized, the demonstration of ependymal infection and subjacent spread into the brain parenchyma as well as regional virus clearance despite ongoing demyelination and axonal damage in other CNS compartments allows new insights into TME pathogenesis. This novel aspect of TMEV CNS interaction will enhance the understanding of region-specific susceptibilities to injury and regenerative capacities of the brain in this MS model., (Copyright © 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Oncolytic viruses that selectively infect and lyse cancer cells have potential as therapeutic agents. Myxoma virus, a poxvirus that is known to be pathogenic only in rabbits, has not been reported to infect normal tissues in humans or mice. We observed that when recombinant virus was injected directly into the lateral ventricle of the mouse brain, virally encoded red fluorescent protein was expressed in ependymal and subventricular cells. Cells were positive for nestin, a marker of neural stem cells. Rapamycin increased the number of cells expressing the virally encoded protein. However, protein expression was transient. Cells expressing the virally encoded protein did not undergo apoptosis and the ependymal lining remained intact. Myxoma virus appears to be safe when injected into the brain despite the transient expression of virally derived protein in a small population of periventricular cells.

Viral infection of the central nervous system can lead to disability and death. Yet the majority of viral infections with central nervous system involvement resolve with only mild clinical manifestations, if any. This is generally attributed to efficient elimination of the infection from the brain coverings, i.e. the meninges, ependyma and chorioplexus, which are the primary targets of haematogeneous viral spread. How the immune system is able to purge these structures from viral infection with only minimal detrimental effects is still poorly understood. In the present work we studied how an attenuated lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus can be cleared from the central nervous system in the absence of overt disease. We show that elimination of the virus from brain ependyma, but not from brain parenchyma, could be achieved by a T cell-dependent mechanism operating independently of major histocompatibility class I antigens and perforin. Considering that cytotoxic T lymphocyte-mediated cytotoxicity is a leading cause of viral immunopathology and tissue damage, our findings may explain why the most common viral intruders of the central nervous system rarely represent a serious threat to our health.

Aim: To study the pathology of two cases of human Hendra virus infection, one with no clinical encephalitis and one with relapsing encephalitis., Methods: Autopsy tissues were investigated by light microscopy, immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization., Results: In the patient with acute pulmonary syndrome but not clinical acute encephalitis, vasculitis was found in the brain, lung, heart and kidney. Occasionally, viral antigens were demonstrated in vascular walls but multinucleated endothelial syncytia were absent. In the lung, there was severe inflammation, necrosis and viral antigens in type II pneumocytes and macrophages. The rare kidney glomerulus showed inflammation and viral antigens in capillary walls and podocytes. Discrete necrotic/vacuolar plaques in the brain parenchyma were associated with antigens and viral RNA. Brain inflammation was mild although CD68(+) microglia/macrophages were significantly increased. Cytoplasmic viral inclusions and antigens and viral RNA in neurones and ependyma suggested viral replication. In the case of relapsing encephalitis, there was severe widespread meningoencephalitis characterized by neuronal loss, macrophages and other inflammatory cells, reactive blood vessels and perivascular cuffing. Antigens and viral RNA were mainly found in neurones. Vasculitis was absent in all the tissues examined., Conclusions: The case of acute Hendra virus infection demonstrated evidence of systemic infection and acute encephalitis. The case of relapsing Hendra virus encephalitis showed no signs of extraneural infection but in the brain, extensive inflammation and infected neurones were observed. Hendra virus can cause acute and relapsing encephalitis and the findings suggest that the pathology and pathogenesis are similar to Nipah virus infection.

Neural precursor cells, including neural stem and progenitor cells, in the subventricular zone (SVZ) are the main targets for cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection in developing brains. The neural precursor cells in the SVZ of the adult brain have been reported to respond by proliferating after infusion with epidermal growth factor (EGF). Here we report the susceptibility of the precursor cells in the adult mouse brain to murine CMV (MCMV) infection. Adult mouse brains from 10-, 25-, and 70-week-old (W) mice were infused with either phosphate-buffered saline or EGF into the brain for 3 days, and then intracerebrally infected with MCMV for 5 days. The susceptibility of the adult brains to MCMV was significantly increased by infusion of EGF in terms of viral titers and viral antigen-positive cells. The susceptibility of the young adult brain from 10-week-old mice to MCMV was higher than that of the adult brains from 25-week-old or 70-week-old mice. Both the ependymal and the SVZ cells were susceptible to MCMV infection. The number of virus-infected cells in the SVZ was significantly increased by infusion of EGF, whereas the number of infected ependymal cells was not significantly increased. Among the virus-infected cells in the SVZ, 73% were positive for nestin, 87% were positive for Musashi, 86% were positive for GFAP, and 96% were positive for PCNA. These results indicate that the susceptibility of the adult brain to MCMV is correlated with the proliferative ability of the neural precursor cells in the SVZ of the adult brain., (2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc.)

Future gene therapy for brainstem variant amyotrophic lateral sclerosis may be technically difficult if gene therapy vectors are injected near vital cardiorespiratory centers or if large portions of the tongue and pharyngeal muscles must be peripherally injected for retrograde transport of vectors to motor neurons. In this study we show that it is possible to deliver recombinant proteins to the hypoglossal nuclei without brainstem or muscle injections, by taking advantage of enhanced uptake of fusion proteins containing the protein transduction domain from the human immunodeficiency virus TAT protein. Adenoviral vectors expressing either TAT-modified or native beta-glucuronidase (beta-gluc) were injected into the lateral cerebral ventricles of mice, transducing ventricular epithelium down to the level of the obex in the brainstem. There was significant uptake into the hypoglossal nuclei of TAT-modified but not native beta-glucuronidase. The TAT-modified beta-gluc appeared to encompass half or more of the hypoglossal nuclei as visualized by retrograde labeling with cholera toxin subunit b in adjacent sections. TAT-modification of gene products may allow a relatively non-invasive approach to brainstem gene therapy via cerebroventricular injection.

Modulation of adult neurogenesis may offer new therapeutic strategies for various brain disorders. In the adult mammalian brain the subventricular zone (SVZ) of the lateral ventricle is a region of continuous neurogenesis. Lentiviral vectors stably integrate into dividing and nondividing cells, in contrast to retroviral vectors, which integrate only into dividing cells. We compared their potential for gene transfer into both quiescent and slowly dividing stem cells as well as into more rapidly dividing progenitor cells. In contrast to retroviral vectors, stereotactic injection of lentiviral vectors into the SVZ of adult mice resulted in efficient and long-term marker gene expression in cells with characteristics of both immature type B cells and migrating precursor cells. After migration along the rostral migratory stream and differentiation, the number of enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP)-expressing granular and periglomerular interneurons increased over time in the ipsilateral olfactory bulb. Moreover, the number of eGFP-labeled neuronal progenitor cells in the SVZ increased over time. By intraventricular injection of lentiviral vectors we could restrict gene transfer to ependymal cells and type B astroglial-like stem cells. In conclusion, lentiviral vectors surpass retroviral vectors in efficient long-term in vivo marking of subventricular zone stem cells for basic research and therapeutic applications.

The subventricular zone (SVZ) is one of the neurogenic niches in the adult mammalian brain. The SVZ is of interest for studies on neurogenesis and stem cell therapy. Here, we report specific transduction of ependyma and/or astrocytes by recombinant adeno-associated virus type 4 (AAV4) viral vectors. AAV4 vectors encoding beta-galactosidase or eGFP were injected into the lateral ventricles of neonatal and adult C57BL/6 mouse brains. In addition, SVZ injections were conducted on adult mice. AAV4 vectors show a characteristic transduction of the ependyma independent of delivery route. However, AAV4 virus injected into the SVZ targeted GFAP positive astrocytes forming the glial tube in the SVZ and rostral migratory stream (RMS). Our results introduce AAV4 as a new tool by which to manipulate glial cells in the RMS.

Evaluation of gene transfer into the developing mouse brain has shown that when adeno-associated virus serotype 1 (AAV1) or AAV2 vectors are injected into the cerebral lateral ventricles at birth, widespread parenchymal transduction occurs. Lentiviral vectors have not been tested by this route. In this study, we found that injection of lentiviral vectors pseudotyped with vesicular stomatitis virus glycoprotein (VSV-G) resulted in targeted transduction of the ependymal cells lining the ventricular system and the choroid plexus along the entire rostrocaudal axis of the brain, whereas a Mokola pseudotype transduced only a few cells after injection into the neonatal ventricle. In contrast, when lentiviral vectors pseudotyped with either VSV-G or Mokola glycoprotein are injected into the adult mouse brain, they transduce similar patterns of cells. An Ebola-Zaire-pseudotyped vector did not transduce any neonatal CNS cells, as was also the case for adult parenchymal injections. Long-term gene expression (12 months) occurred with a constitutively active mammalian promoter and a self-inactivating long terminal repeat (LTR), whereas the cytomegalovirus promoter in a vector with an intact LTR was expressed only in short-term experiments. We found that an AAV5 vector also targeted the ependymal and choroid plexus cells throughout the ventricular system. This vector exhibited limited penetration from the ventricle to other structures, which was significantly different from the previously reported patterns of transduction after intraventricular injection of AAV1 and AAV2 vectors.

Recombinant adeno-associated virus serotype 2 (rAAV2) vectors have shown promise as therapeutic agents for neurologic disorders. However, intracerebral administration of this vector leads to preferential transduction of neurons and a restricted region of transgene expression. The recently developed rAAV vectors based upon nonserotype 2 viruses have the potential to overcome these limitations. Therefore, we directly compared a rAAV type 1 to a type 2 vector in the murine brain. The vectors were engineered to carry identical genomes (AAV2 terminal repeat elements flanking an enhanced green fluorescent protein expression cassette) and were administered by stereotaxic-guided intracerebral injection. We found that the rAAV1 vector (rAAV1-GFP) had a 13- to 35-fold greater transduction efficiency than that of the rAAV2 vector (rAAV2-GFP). Also, rAAV1-transduced cells were observed at a greater distance from the injection site than rAAV2-transduced cells. Neurons were the predominant cell type transduced by both vector types. However, in contrast to rAAV2-GFP, rAAV1-GFP was capable of transducing glial and ependymal cells. Thus, rAAV1-based vectors have biologic properties within the brain distinct from that of rAAV2. These differences might be capitalized upon to develop novel gene transfer strategies for neurologic disorders.

A case of AIDS with varicella zoster virus fulminant necrotizing encephalitis associated with cytomegalovirus ependymitis-subependymitis and a periventricular Epstein-Barr virus-related lymphoma is described. The patient had no herpes zoster cutaneous eruptions and died three days after the onset of symptoms. Varicella zoster virus and cytomegalovirus antigens were found by immunohistochemistry in the same area around a necrotic periventricular lesion; a periventricular lymphoma, large B cell type, was also observed. In situ hybridization with Epstein-Barr virus-encoded- RNAs probe was positive in about 40% of the neoplastic cells. The association of herpes-related lesions in the same cerebral region should be consistent in AIDS cases with acute neurological symptoms.

Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) variant 1716 is deleted in the gene encoding ICP34.5 and is neuroattenuated after intracranial inoculation of mice. Although the mechanism of attenuation is unclear, this property has been exploited to eliminate experimental brain tumours. Previously, it was shown that infectious 1716 was recoverable for up to 3 days after intracranial inoculation suggesting that there may be limited replication in the central nervous system (CNS). Here it is demonstrated that 1716 replicates in specific cell types (predominantly CNS ependymal cells) of BALB/c mice, using immunohistochemical, immunofluorescence, in situ hybridization and virus titration studies. While 1716-infected mice exhibited no overt signs of encephalitis, histological analysis showed a persistent loss of the ependymal lining. Thus, although ICP34.5-deficient viruses are neuroattenuated, they do retain the ability to replicate in and destroy the ependyma of the murine CNS. A detailed understanding of the mechanism(s) of neuroattenuation and limited replication could lead to the rational design of safe HSV vectors for cancer and gene therapy in the CNS.

A case of an AIDS patient with a CMV-infected subependymoma of the fourth ventricle is presented. The tumor was incidentally found at autopsy and was not suspected during the clinical course. This is the first report of a subependymoma in HIV-1 infection. Moreover, infection of a tumor with CMV is an extremely rare condition, which has until now been described only once in an anaplastic astrocytoma.