Determinants of Macrophage Tropism
Laura K. Hanson and Ann E. Campbell
from: Cytomegaloviruses: Molecular Biology and Immunology (Edited by: Matthias J. Reddehase). Caister Academic Press, U.K. (2006)
Abstract
A complex array of cellular and viral factors serves as determinants of CMV macrophage tropism. Cellular determinants that stimulate CMV replication within this cell lineage are dictated largely by the stages of cell differentiation, a spectrum of physiological and molecular changes that are not entirely understood. Infection of blood monocytes and their progenitors favors latent infection. Differentiation of monocytes into tissue macrophages promotes viral replication; however, a second signal may be necessary for optimal viral gene expression and virus production. A final step in macrophage differentiation, that of activation, leads to production of a plethora of intrinsic and extrinsic antiviral agents that CMV must overcome in order to replicate efficiently in this host cell. Viral determinants of macrophage tropism therefore include specific CMV gene products that thwart these antiviral activities. Additional viral gene products that dictate macrophage tropism have unknown functions, although clues lie in their cellular locale and structural entities. Further understanding of the role of macrophage-tropic genes in CMV pathogenesis will require an expansion of our knowledge of the molecular events regulating macrophage differentiation and the molecular mechanisms of how specific macrophage-tropic genes encoded by the virus function to optimize replication in this selective cell type read more ...
