Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Republic of Singapore.
National University of Singapore, Faculty of Science (Department of Biological Science), Singapore.
Emerg Microbes Infect. 2024 Dec;13(1):2382235. doi: 10.1080/22221751.2024.2382235. Epub 2024 Jul 25.
Enterovirus A71 (EV-A71) causes Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease and has been clinically associated with neurological complications. However, there is a lack of relevant models to elucidate the neuropathology of EV-A71 and its mechanism, as the current models mainly utilize animal models or immortalized cell lines. In this study, we established a human motor neuron model for EV-A71 infection. Single cell transcriptomics of a mixed neuronal population reveal higher viral RNA load in motor neurons, suggesting higher infectivity and replication of EV-A71 in motor neurons. The elevated RNA load in motor neurons correlates with the downregulation of ferritin-encoding genes. Subsequent analysis confirms that neurons infected with EV-A71 undergo ferroptosis, as evidenced by increased levels of labile Fe and peroxidated lipids. Notably, the Fe chelator Deferoxamine improves mitochondrial function and promotes survival of motor neurons by 40% after EV-A71 infection. These findings deepen understanding of the molecular pathogenesis of EV-A71 infection, providing insights which suggest that improving mitochondrial respiration and inhibition of ferroptosis can mitigate the impact of EV-A71 infection in the central nervous system.
肠道病毒 A71(EV-A71)可引起手足口病,并与神经系统并发症有关。然而,目前缺乏相关模型来阐明 EV-A71 的神经病理学及其机制,因为目前的模型主要利用动物模型或永生化细胞系。在这项研究中,我们建立了用于 EV-A71 感染的人类运动神经元模型。混合神经元群体的单细胞转录组学揭示了运动神经元中更高的病毒 RNA 载量,这表明 EV-A71 在运动神经元中具有更高的感染力和复制能力。运动神经元中 RNA 载量的升高与铁蛋白编码基因的下调相关。随后的分析证实,感染 EV-A71 的神经元发生铁死亡,这表现为不稳定铁和过氧化脂质水平的增加。值得注意的是,铁螯合剂去铁胺可改善线粒体功能,并使 EV-A71 感染后的运动神经元存活率提高 40%。这些发现加深了对手足口病病毒感染的分子发病机制的理解,并表明改善线粒体呼吸和抑制铁死亡可以减轻 EV-A71 感染对中枢神经系统的影响。