1
|
Liu M, Bakker AS, Narimatsu Y, van Kuppeveld FJM, Clausen H, de Haan CAM, de Vries E. H3N2 influenza A virus gradually adapts to human-type receptor binding and entry specificity after the start of the 1968 pandemic. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2304992120. [PMID: 37467282 PMCID: PMC10401031 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2304992120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2023] [Accepted: 06/01/2023] [Indexed: 07/21/2023] Open
Abstract
To become established upon zoonotic transfer, influenza A viruses (IAV) need to switch binding from "avian-type" α2-3-linked sialic acid receptors (2-3Sia) to "human-type" Siaα2-6-linked sialic acid receptors (2-6Sia). For the 1968 H3N2 pandemic virus, this was accomplished by two canonical amino acid substitutions in its hemagglutinin (HA) although a full specificity shift had not occurred. The receptor repertoire on epithelial cells is highly diverse and simultaneous interaction of a virus particle with a range of low- to very low-affinity receptors results in tight heteromultivalent binding. How this range of affinities determines binding selectivity and virus motility remains largely unknown as the analysis of low-affinity monovalent HA-receptor interactions is technically challenging. Here, a biolayer interferometry assay enabled a comprehensive analysis of receptor-binding kinetics evolution upon host-switching. Virus-binding kinetics of H3N2 virus isolates slowly evolved from 1968 to 1979 from mixed 2-3/2-6Sia specificity to high 2-6Sia specificity, surprisingly followed by a decline in selectivity after 1992. By using genetically tuned HEK293 cells, presenting either a simplified 2-3Sia- or 2-6Sia-specific receptor repertoire, receptor-specific binding was shown to correlate strongly with receptor-specific entry. In conclusion, the slow and continuous evolution of entry and receptor-binding specificity of seasonal H3N2 viruses contrasts with the paradigm that human IAVs need to rapidly acquire and maintain a high specificity for 2-6Sia. Analysis of the kinetic parameters of receptor binding provides a basis for understanding virus-binding specificity, motility, and HA/neuraminidase balance at the molecular level.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mengying Liu
- Virology section, Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Department of Biomolecular Health Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, 3584CLUtrecht, the Netherlands
| | - A. Sophie Bakker
- Virology section, Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Department of Biomolecular Health Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, 3584CLUtrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Yoshiki Narimatsu
- Center for Glycomics, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen, DK-2200Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Frank J. M. van Kuppeveld
- Virology section, Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Department of Biomolecular Health Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, 3584CLUtrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Henrik Clausen
- Center for Glycomics, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen, DK-2200Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Cornelis A. M. de Haan
- Virology section, Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Department of Biomolecular Health Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, 3584CLUtrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Erik de Vries
- Virology section, Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Department of Biomolecular Health Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, 3584CLUtrecht, the Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|