Biology subjects

Ferris, M. T.

Publications and source records attributed to Ferris, M. T..

25 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

bioRxiv2020

Host-pathogen genetic interactions underlie tuberculosis susceptibility in genetically diverse mice

The outcome of an encounter with Mycobacterium tuberculosis depends on the pathogens ability to adapt to the variable immune pressures exerted by the host. Understanding this interplay has proven difficult, largely because experimentally tractable animal models do not recapitulate the heterogeneity of tuberculosis disease. We leveraged the genetically diverse Collaborative Cross (CC) mouse panel in conjunction with a library of Mtb mutants to associate bacterial genetic requirements with host genetics and immunity. We report that CC strains vary dramatically in their susceptibility to infection and produce qualitatively distinct immune states. Global analysis of Mtb mutant fitness across the CC panel revealed that many virulence pathways are only in specific host microenvironments, identifying the large fraction of the pathogens genome that has been maintained to ensure fitness in a diverse population. Both immunological and bacterial traits were associated with genetic variants distributed across the mouse genome, identifying the specific host-pathogen genetic interactions that influence pathogenesis.

genetics↗

bioRxiv2020

Baseline T cell immune phenotypes predict virologic and disease control upon SARS-CoV infection

The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed that infection with SARS-CoV-2 can result in a wide range of clinical outcomes in humans, from asymptomatic or mild disease to severe disease that can require mechanical ventilation. An incomplete understanding of immune correlates of protection represents a major barrier to the design of vaccines and therapeutic approaches to prevent infection or limit disease. This deficit is largely due to the lack of prospectively collected, pre-infection samples from indiviuals that go on to become infected with SARS-CoV-2. Here, we utilized data from a screen of genetically diverse mice from the Collaborative Cross (CC) infected with SARS-CoV to determine whether circulating baseline T cell signatures are associated with a lack of viral control and severe disease upon infection. SARS-CoV infection of CC mice results in a variety of viral load trajectories and disease outcomes. Further, early control of virus in the lung correlates with an increased abundance of activated CD4 and CD8 T cells and regulatory T cells prior to infections across strains. A basal propensity of T cells to express IFNg and IL17 over TNFa also correlated with early viral control. Overall, a dysregulated, pro-inflammatory signature of circulating T cells at baseline was associated with severe disease upon infection. While future studies of human samples prior to infection with SARS-CoV-2 are required, our studies in mice with SARS-CoV serve as proof of concept that circulating T cell signatures at baseline can predict clinical and virologic outcomes upon SARS-CoV infection. Identification of basal immune predictors in humans could allow for identification of individuals at highest risk of severe clinical and virologic outcomes upon infection, who may thus most benefit from available clinical interventions to restrict infection and disease. SummaryWe used a screen of genetically diverse mice from the Collaborative Cross infected with mouse-adapted SARS-CoV in combination with comprehensive pre-infection immunophenotyping to identify baseline circulating immune correlates of severe virologic and clinical outcomes upon SARS-CoV infection.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2020

Regulation of protein abundance in genetically diverse mouse populations

Proteins constitute much of the structure and functional machinery of cells, forming signaling networks, metabolic pathways, and large multi-component complexes. Protein abundance is regulated at multiple levels spanning transcription, translation, recycling, and degradation to maintain proper balance and optimal function. To better understand how protein abundances are maintained across varying genetic backgrounds, we analyzed liver proteomes of three genetically diverse mouse populations. We observe strong concordance of genetic and sex effects across populations. Differences between the populations arise from the contributions of additive, dominance, and epistatic components of heritable variation. We find that the influence of genetic variation on proteins that form complexes relates to their co-abundance. We identify effects on protein abundance from mutations that arose and became fixed during breeding and can lead to unique regulatory responses and disease states. Genetically diverse mouse populations provide powerful tools for understanding proteome regulation and its relationship to whole-organism phenotypes. O_FIG O_LINKSMALLFIG WIDTH=196 HEIGHT=200 SRC="FIGDIR/small/296657v3_ufig1.gif" ALT="Figure 1"> View larger version (38K): org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@1c8a941org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@e022b6org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@106e361org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@13a2c2c_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_FIG C_FIG

genomics↗

bioRxiv2020

Mucin 4 Protects Female Mice from Coronavirus Pathogenesis

Using incipient lines of the Collaborative Cross (CC), a murine genetic reference population, we previously identified a quantitative trait loci (QTL) associated with low SARS-CoV titer. In this study, we integrated sequence information and RNA expression of genes within the QTL to identify mucin 4 (Muc4) as a high priority candidate for controlling SARS-CoV titer in the lung. To test this hypothesis, we infected Muc4-/- mice and found that female, but not male, Muc4-/- mice developed more weight loss and disease following infection with SARS-CoV. Female Muc4-/- mice also had more difficulty breathing despite reduced lung pathology; however, no change in viral titers was observed. Comparing across viral families, studies with chikungunya virus, a mosquito-borne arthralgic virus, suggests that Muc4s impact on viral pathogenesis may be widespread. Although not confirming the original titer QTL, our data identifies a role for Muc4 in the SARS-CoV disease and viral pathogenesis. ImportanceGiven the recent emergence of SARS-CoV-2, this work suggest that Muc4 expression plays a protective role in female mice not conserved in male mice following SARS-CoV infection. With the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak continuing, treatments that modulate or enhance Muc4 activity may provide an avenue for treatment and improved outcomes. In addition, the work highlights the importance of studying host factors including host genetics and biological sex as key parameters influencing infection and disease outcomes.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2019

Functionally overlapping variants control TB susceptibility in Collaborative Cross mice

Host genetics plays an important role in determining the outcome of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infection. We previously found that Collaborative Cross mouse strains differ in their susceptibility to Mtb, and that the CC042/GeniUnc (CC042) strain suffered from a rapidly progressive disease and failed to produce the protective cytokine, IFN{gamma}, in the lung. Here, we used parallel genetic and immunological approaches to investigate the basis of CC042 susceptibility. Using a population derived from a CC001/Unc (CC001) x CC042 intercross, we mapped four QTL underlying Tuberculosis ImmunoPhenotypes (Tip1-4). These included 2 major effect QTL on Chromosome 7 (Tip1 and Tip2) that were associated with bacterial burden. Tip2, along with Tip3 (Chromosome 15) and Tip4 (Chromosome 16) also correlated with IFN{gamma} production following infection, whereas Tip1 appeared to control an IFN{gamma}-independent mechanism of bacterial control. Further immunological characterization revealed that CC042 animals recruited relatively few antigen-specific T cells to the lung and these T cells failed to express the Integrin alpha L (L; i.e., CD11a), which contributes to T cell activation and migration. These defects could be explained by a CC042 private variant in the Itgal gene, which encodes CD11a, and is found within the Tip2 interval. This 15bp deletion leads to aberrant mRNA splicing and is predicted to result in a truncated protein product. The ItgalCC042 genotype was associated with all measured disease traits, indicating that this variant is a major determinant of susceptibility in CC042. The combined effect of functionally distinct Tip variants likely explains the profound susceptibility of CC042 and highlights the multigenic nature of TB control in the Collaborative Cross.\n\nImportance statementThe variable outcome of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection observed natural populations is difficult to model in genetically homogenous small animal models. The newly-developed Collaborative Cross (CC) represents a reproducible panel of genetically-diverse mice that display a broad range of phenotypic responses to infection. We explored the genetic basis of this variation, focusing on a CC line that is highly susceptible to M. tuberculosis infection. This study identified multiple quantitative trait loci associated with bacterial control and cytokine production, including one that is caused by a novel loss-of-function mutation in the Itgal gene that is necessary for T cell recruitment to the infected lung. These studies verify the multigenic control of mycobacterial disease in the CC panel, identify genetic loci controlling diverse aspects of pathogenesis, and highlight the utility of the CC resource.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2019

Zika virus infection in Collaborative Cross mice

The 2015-2016 emergence of Zika virus (ZIKV) in the Americas, and recognition that ZIKV infection during pregnancy can result in birth defects, revealed a need for small animal models to study ZIKV pathogenic mechanisms and evaluate candidate vaccines and antivirals. Mice would be an attractive system for such studies, but ZIKV replicates poorly in laboratory mice because it fails to antagonize murine STAT2 and STING. To address this, most ZIKV pathogenesis studies have used mice with impaired interferon signaling (e.g. Ifnar1-/- or treatment with IFNAR1-blocking antibodies). However, using mice with severe defects in innate antiviral signaling confounds studies of viral pathogenic mechanisms. Collaborative Cross (CC) mice have proven to be a valuable system for developing new mouse pathogenesis models for viral infections that are not well modeled in conventional laboratory mouse lines. To test whether CC mice could provide an immune-competent model for ZIKV pathogenesis, we infected CC lines with ZIKV and assessed weight loss, viremia, and production of neutralizing antibodies. We tested 21 CC lines (CC001, CC002, CC003, CC004, CC005, CC006, CC011, CC012, CC013, CC019, CC024, CC028, CC040, CC041, CC042, CC046, CC051, CC059, CC061, CC068, and CC072, 13 of which have non-functional alleles of the flavivirus restriction factor Oas1b) and 3 ZIKV strains (MR766, H/PF/2013, and a mouse-adapted variant of Dakar 41525). ZIKV infection did not induce weight loss compared to mock-infected controls and accordingly only low levels of viral RNA were detected in serum. Only a subset of mice developed neutralizing antibodies to ZIKV, likely due to overall low levels of infection and viremia. Our results are consistent with other studies demonstrating poor ZIKV infection in interferon-intact mice and suggest that the tested CC lines do not include polymorphic host genes that greatly increase susceptibility to ZIKV infection.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2017

Diallel analysis reveals Mx1-dependent and Mx1-independent effects on response to influenza A virus in mice

1.Influenza A virus (IAV) is a respiratory pathogen that causes substantial morbidity and mortality during both seasonal and pandemic outbreaks. Infection outcomes in unexposed populations are affected by host genetics, but this host genetic architecture is not well understood. Here we obtain a broad view of how heritable factors affect a mouse model of response to IAV infection using an 8x8 diallel of the eight inbred founder strains of the Collaborative Cross (CC). Expanding on a prior statistical framework for modeling treatment response in diallels, we explore how a range of heritable effects modify acute host response to IAV through 4 days post-infection. Heritable effects in aggregate explained about 57% of the variance in IAV-induced weight loss. Much of this was attributable to a pattern of additive effects that became more prominent through day 4 post-infection and was consistent with previous reports of anti-influenza myxovirus resistance 1 (Mx1) polymorphisms segregating between these strains; the additive effects largely recapitulated haplotype effects observed at the Mx1 locus in a previous study of the incipient CC (pre-CC), and are also replicated here in a CC recombinant intercross (CC-RIX) population. Genetic dominance of protective Mx1 haplotypes was observed to differ by subspecies origin: relative to the domesticus null Mx1 allele, musculus acts dominantly whereas castaneus acts additively. After controlling for Mx1, heritable effects, though less distinct, accounted for about 34% of the phenotypic variance. Implications for future mapping studies are discussed.

genetics↗