Bovine herpesvirus-1 infection reduces bronchial epithelial cell migration to extracellular matrix proteins

Knowledge translation: airway epithelial cell migration and respiratory diseases

Airway epithelial cell migration is essential for lung development and growth, as well as the maintenance of respiratory tissue integrity. This vital cellular process is also important for the repair and regeneration of damaged airway epithelium. More importantly, several lung diseases characterized by aberrant tissue remodeling result from the improper repair of damaged respiratory tissue. Epithelial cell migration relies upon extracellular matrix molecules and is further regulated by numerous local, neuronal, and hormonal factors. Under inflammatory conditions, cell migration can also be stimulated by certain cytokines and chemokines. Many well-known environmental factors involved in the pathogenesis of chronic lung diseases (e.g., cigarette smoking, air pollution, alcohol intake, inflammation, viral and bacterial infections) can inhibit airway epithelial cell migration. Further investigation of cellular and molecular mechanisms of cell migration with advanced techniques may provide knowledge that is relevant to physiological and pathological conditions. These studies may eventually lead to the development of therapeutic interventions to improve lung repair and regeneration and to prevent aberrant remodeling in the lung.

Reorganization of the host cytoskeleton by the intracellular pathogen Chlamydia trachomatis

Chlamydiae are obligate intracellular pathogens that cause a wide range of human diseases. Chlamydia resides in a membrane bound vacuole ("inclusion") that expands to accommodate replicating bacteria. We recently reported that Chlamydia remodels and recruit two major cytoskeletal components of the host cell- F-actin and Intermediate filaments-to form a dynamic scaffold that provides structural stability to the inclusion. As the inclusion expands, a secreted chlamydial protease progressively modifies the intermediate filaments scaffold, presumably to increase the inclusion's flexibility and accommodate the increased bacterial load. This represents a unique mechanism employed by an intracellular pathogen to support its intracellular niche and may be linked to immune evasion by this pathogen. Here, we discuss the potential consequences of Chlamydia-mediated alteration of host cytoskeletal dynamics on the pathogenesis of chlamydial infections.

Bovine herpesvirus 1 infection and infectious bovine rhinotracheitis

Bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1), classified as an alphaherpesvirus, is a major pathogen of cattle. Primary infection is accompanied by various clinical manifestations such as infectious bovine rhinotracheitis, abortion, infectious pustular vulvovaginitis, and systemic infection in neonates. When animals survive, a life-long latent infection is established in nervous sensory ganglia. Several reactivation stimuli can lead to viral re-excretion, which is responsible for the maintenance of BoHV-1 within a cattle herd. This paper focuses on an updated pathogenesis based on a molecular characterization of BoHV-1 and the description of the virus cycle. Special emphasis is accorded to the impact of the latency and reactivation cycle on the epidemiology and the control of BoHV-1. Several European countries have initiated BoHV-1 eradication schemes because of the significant losses incurred by disease and trading restrictions. The vaccines used against BoHV-1 are described in this context where the differentiation of infected from vaccinated animals is of critical importance to achieve BoHV-1 eradication.