Viruses for the treatment of malignant glioma.

Viruses have been considered for use as therapeutic agents against cancer, and malignant glioma in particular. Oncolytic viruses were designed to target malignant cells supporting efficient virus replication, or rendered vulnerable to viral destruction due to tumor-specific defects in their defense against virus infection. Other than conventional cancer chemotherapy, viral antineoplastic agents require complex interactions with the host organism to reach their target and to unleash their oncolytic activity. Recent progress in the design and therapeutic application of oncolytic viruses carries the promise to make these agents available for treatment of malignant glioma.

Expression of the human poliovirus receptor/CD155 gene during development of the central nervous system: implications for the pathogenesis of poliomyelitis.

The gene for the human poliovirus receptor (hPVR/CD155) is the founding member of a new family of genes encoding proteins belonging to the immunoglobulin superfamily. To determine whether CD155 is expressed during mammalian development, we have made use of the previously characterized promoter of the CD155 gene and generated mice transgenic for a CD155 promoter-driven beta-galactosidase reporter gene. Expression of the reporter gene in transgenic embryos was observed during midgestation in anterior midline structures of the developing central nervous system and in the neuroretina. During that period, reporter gene expression appeared within the notochord and floor plate along the entire spinal cord reaching into the caudal diencephalon. In addition, transgene expression was observed in axonal projections emanating from retinal ganglion cells forming the optic nerve to reach the future region of the optic chiasm. Analysis of expression of CD155 during human embryonic development confirmed the distribution of reporter gene expression specified by CD155 promoter activity. The anatomical distribution of CD155 promoter activity during embryogenesis matches that of transacting factors previously identified to regulate transcription of the CD155 gene. Expression of CD155 within embryonic structures giving rise to spinal cord anterior horn motor neurons may explain the restrictive host cell tropism of poliovirus for this cellular compartment of the CNS.

Intergeneric poliovirus recombinants for the treatment of malignant glioma.

Poliovirus neuropathogenicity depends on sequences within the 5' nontranslated region of the virus. Exchange of the poliovirus internal ribosomal entry site with its counterpart from human rhinovirus type 2 resulted in attenuation of neurovirulence in primates. Despite deficient virus propagation in cells of neuronal origin, nonpathogenic polio recombinants retain excellent growth characteristics in cell lines derived from glial neoplasms. Susceptibility of malignant glioma cells to poliovirus may be mediated by expression of a poliovirus receptor, CD155, in glial neoplasms. Intergeneric polio recombinants with heterologous internal ribosomal entry site elements unfolded strong oncolytic potential against experimentally induced gliomas in athymic mice. Our observations suggest that highly attenuated poliovirus recombinants may have applicability as biotherapeutic antineoplastic agents.

Dual stem loops within the poliovirus internal ribosomal entry site control neurovirulence.

In the human central nervous system, susceptibility to poliovirus (PV) infection is largely confined to a specific subpopulation of neuronal cells. PV tropism is likely to be determined by cell-external components such as the PV receptor CD155, as well as cell-internal constraints such as the availability of a suitable microenvironment for virus propagation. We reported previously that the exchange of the cognate internal ribosomal entry site (IRES) within the 5' nontranslated region of PV with its counterpart from human rhinovirus type 2 (HRV2) can eliminate the neuropathogenic phenotype in a transgenic mouse model for poliomyelitis without diminishing the growth properties in HeLa cells. We now show that attenuation of neurovirulence of PV/HRV2 chimeras is not confined to CD155 transgenic mice but is evident also after intraspinal inoculation into Cynomolgus monkeys. We have dissected the PV and HRV2 IRES elements to determine those structures responsible for neurovirulence (or attenuation) of these chimeric viruses. We report that two adjacent stem loop structures within the IRES cooperatively determine neuropathogenicity.

A small yeast RNA blocks hepatitis C virus internal ribosome entry site (HCV IRES)-mediated translation and inhibits replication of a chimeric poliovirus under translational control of the HCV IRES element.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection frequently leads to chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis of the liver and has been linked to development of hepatocellular carcinoma. We previously identified a small yeast RNA (IRNA) capable of specifically inhibiting poliovirus (PV) internal ribosome entry site (IRES)-mediated translation. Here we report that IRNA specifically inhibits HCV IRES-mediated translation both in vivo and in vitro. A number of human hepatoma (Huh-7) cell lines expressing IRNA were prepared and characterized. Constitutive expression of IRNA was not detrimental to cell growth. HCV IRES-mediated cap-independent translation was markedly inhibited in cells constitutively expressing IRNA compared to control hepatoma cells. However, cap-dependent translation was not significantly affected in these cell lines. Additionally, Huh-7 cells constitutively expressing IRNA became refractory to infection by a PV-HCV chimera in which the PV IRES is replaced by the HCV IRES. In contrast, replication of a PV-encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV) chimera containing the EMCV IRES element was not affected significantly in the IRNA-producing cell line. Finally, the binding of the La autoantigen to the HCV IRES element was specifically and efficiently competed by IRNA. These results provide a basis for development of novel drugs effective against HCV infection.

Mechanism of injury-provoked poliomyelitis.

Skeletal muscle injury is known to predispose its sufferers to neurological complications of concurrent poliovirus infections. This phenomenon, labeled "provocation poliomyelitis," continues to cause numerous cases of childhood paralysis due to the administration of unnecessary injections to children in areas where poliovirus is endemic. Recently, it has been reported that intramuscular injections may also increase the likelihood of vaccine-associated paralytic poliomyelitis in recipients of live attenuated poliovirus vaccines. We have studied this important risk factor for paralytic polio in an animal system for poliomyelitis and have determined the pathogenic mechanism linking intramuscular injections and provocation poliomyelitis. Skeletal muscle injury induces retrograde axonal transport of poliovirus and thereby facilitates viral invasion of the central nervous system and the progression of spinal cord damage. The pathogenic mechanism of provocation poliomyelitis may differ from that of polio acquired in the absence of predisposing factors.

Poliovirus and its cellular receptor: a molecular genetic dissection of a virus/receptor affinity interaction.

The ability of a virus to attach to a susceptible host cell is of utmost importance for the initiation of viral life cycle. Cell surface proteins called viral receptors mediate the initial steps of virus attachment and uptake. Poliovirus (PV) is one of the most studied animal viruses and its interaction with its cellular receptor, the human poliovirus receptor (hPVR) has been well characterized. This review will present our current understanding of the PV/hPVR interaction at the genetic and biochemical level. In addition, we will also discuss the implications of the PV/hPVR interaction on PV tissue tropism and the evolution of the three PV serotypes.

Genetic recombination of poliovirus in a cell-free system.

Genetic recombination of plus-strand RNA viruses is an important process for promoting genetic variation. By using genetically marked poliovirus RNAs, we have demonstrated that genetic recombination can occur in a cell-free system that generates infective virus from added poliovirus RNA. Recombinant polioviruses were isolated, and the region of crossing over was roughly mapped. Recombinants could be isolated even under conditions where the yield of viruses from one of the parental RNAs was depressed to levels comparable to or less than the yield of recombinant viruses, an observation suggesting that only one of the recombining RNAs needs to be replication-competent. The generation of poliovirus recombinants in a cell-free system offers new possibilities for studying recombination and evolution of RNA viruses.

Internal ribosomal entry site substitution eliminates neurovirulence in intergeneric poliovirus recombinants.

Neuropathogenicity of poliovirus can be attenuated by mutations in the internal ribosomal entry site (IRES) within the 5' nontranslated region of its genome. The Sabin vaccine strains used in prevention of poliomyelitis carry such mutations in their IRES elements. In addition, mutations within the structural and nonstructural proteins of Sabin strains may equally contribute to the attenuation phenotype. Despite their effectiveness as vaccines, the Sabin strains retain a neuropathogenic potential in animal models for poliomyelitis and, at a very low rate, they can cause poliomyelitis in vaccine recipients. The elimination of the neurocytopathic phenotype was achieved through the exchange of the entire poliovirus IRES with its counterpart from human rhinovirus type 2 without affecting growth properties in nonneuronal cells. The attenuating effect of the human rhinovirus type 2 IRES within the context of a poliovirus genome has been mapped to the 3' portion of this genetic element.

The human poliovirus receptor. Receptor-virus interaction and parameters of disease specificity.

The host range of poliovirus is determined by the expression of the hPVR, a member of the immunoglobulin superfamily. We characterized hPVR proteins biochemically and found them to be complex-type glycoproteins. The outermost V-like domain of three extracellular domains harbors the PVR function. A panel of single or multiple amino acid exchanges were introduced throughout this domain in order to localize regions involved in virus-receptor interactions. Putative contact amino acids were found to reside in the C'C"D and DE regions. Binding and uptake of poliovirus paralleled virus replication in all mutants tested suggesting that virus binding was affected without abrogating the ability to mediate subsequent events in the infection. Although the primate PVR is essential in conferring susceptibility to poliovirus infection, certain strains can induce neurological disease in rodents. Mouse neurovirulent PV isolates of divergent serotypical origin each provoked a distinctive, characteristic neurological syndrome upon intracerebral infection of wild-type mice. We analyzed clinical and histopathological features of diffuse encephalomyelitis caused by these PV strains and compared the condition with poliomyelitis in mice transgenic for the hPVR. Diffuse PV encephalomyelitis in wild-type mice could be distinguished clinically and histopathologically from hPVR-mediated poliomyelitis in trangenic mice. We localized the determinants of mouse neurovirulence of PV1(LS-a), a derivative of PV1 (Mahoney), in a portion of the viral genome encompassing parts of the capsid protein VP1 as well as the nonstructural protein 2A. Mouse neuropathogenicity could possibly be conferred by reduced particle stability of PV1(LS-a) inasmuch as we found particles to be thermolabile.

Mouse neuropathogenic poliovirus strains cause damage in the central nervous system distinct from poliomyelitis.

Poliomyelitis as a consequence of poliovirus infection is observed only in primates. Despite a host range restricted to primates, experimental infection of rodents with certain genetically well defined poliovirus strains produces neurological disease. The outcome of infection of mice with mouse-adapted poliovirus strains has been described previously mainly in terms of paralysis and death, and it was generally assumed that these strains produce the same disease syndromes in normal mice and in mice transgenic for the human poliovirus receptor (hPVR-tg mice). We report a comparison of the clinical course and the histopathological features of neurological disease resulting from intracerebral virus inoculation in normal mice with those of murine poliomyelitis in hPVR-tg mice. The consistent pattern of clinical deficits in poliomyelitic transgenic mice contrasted with highly variable neurologic disease that developed in mice infected with different mouse-adapted polioviruses. Histopathological analysis showed a diffuse encephalomyelitis induced by specific poliovirus serotype 2 isolates in normal mice, that affected neuronal cell populations without discrimination, whereas in hPVR-tg animals, damage was restricted to spinal motor neurons. Mouse neurovirulent strains of poliovirus type 2 differed from mouse neurovirulent poliovirus type 1 derivatives in their ability to induce CNS lesions. Our findings indicate that the characteristic clinical appearance and highly specific histopathological features of poliomyelitis are mediated by the hPVR.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Dicistronic polioviruses as expression vectors for foreign genes.

We have made use of certain novel genetic elements of picornaviruses termed internal ribosomal entry sites (IRES) to construct a viral RNA with the following genetic order: PV 5' NTR-EMCV IRES-PV ORF-3' NTR (PV, poliovirus; NTR, nontranslated region; EMCV, encephalomyocarditis virus; ORF, open reading frame). Transfection of this RNA into HeLa cells yielded a poliovirus (W1-PNENPO) that contained two heterologous IRES elements (type 1 IRES of PV; type 2 IRES of EMCV) in tandem. The insertion of foreign coding sequences into the genome of W1-PNENPO between the IRES elements yielded viable polioviruses with the gene order PV 5' NTR-foreign ORF-EMCV IRES-PV ORF-3' NTR. The foreign ORFs we have employed in this study included the coding region for chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT), or segments of either luciferase or the HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein gp120. W1-PV/V3-3, a dicistronic poliovirus that contained HIV-1-specific sequences that included the V3 domain of gp120, was used to infect transgenic mice (PVR+) that were engineered to express the poliovirus receptor. The genetic stability of the dicistronic viruses and the HIV-1-specific immune response in PVR+ mice after infection with these novel agents are discussed.

Kinetics of poliovirus uncoating in HeLa cells in a nonacidic environment.

Lysis of HeLa cells infected with poliovirus revealed intact virus; 135S particles, devoid of VP4 but containing the viral RNA; and 80S empty capsids. During infection the kinetics of poliovirus uncoating showed a continuous decrease of intact virus, while the number of 135S particles and empty shells increased. After 1.5 h of infection conformational transition to altered particles resulted in complete disappearance of intact virions. To investigate the mechanism of poliovirus uncoating, which has been suggested to depend on low pH in endosomal compartments of cells, we used lysosomotropic amines to raise the pH in these vesicles. In the presence of ammonium chloride, however, the kinetics of uncoating were similar to those for untreated cells, whereas in cells treated with methylamine, monensin, or chloroquine, uncoating was merely delayed by about 30 min. This effect could be attributed to a delay of virus entry into cells after treatment with methylamine and monensin, whereas chloroquine stabilized the viral capsid itself. Thus, elevation of endosomal pH did not affect virus uncoating. We therefore propose a mechanism of poliovirus uncoating which is independent of low pH.