| First Author | Hao XY | Year | 2019 |
| Journal | Animal Model Exp Med | Volume | 2 |
| Issue | 4 | Pages | 269-281 |
| PubMed ID | 31942559 | Mgi Jnum | J:286454 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:6403677 | Doi | 10.1002/ame2.12088 |
| Citation | Hao XY, et al. (2019) The characteristics of hDPP4 transgenic mice subjected to aerosol MERS coronavirus infection via an animal nose-only exposure device. Animal Model Exp Med 2(4):269-281 |
| abstractText | Background: Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), which is not fully understood in regard to certain transmission routes and pathogenesis and lacks specific therapeutics and vaccines, poses a global threat to public health. Methods: To simulate the clinical aerosol transmission route, hDPP4 transgenic mice were infected with MERS-CoV by an animal nose-only exposure device and compared with instillation-inoculated mice. The challenged mice were observed for 14 consecutive days and necropsied on days 3, 5, 7, and 9 to analyze viral load, histopathology, viral antigen distribution, and cytokines in tissues. Results: MERS-CoV aerosol-infected mice with an incubation period of 5-7 days showed weight loss on days 7-11, obvious lung lesions on day 7, high viral loads in the lungs on days 3-9 and in the brain on days 7-9, and 60% survival. MERS-CoV instillation-inoculated mice exhibited clinical signs on day 1, obvious lung lesions on days 3-5, continuous weight loss, 0% survival by day 5, and high viral loads in the lungs and brain on days 3-5. Viral antigen and high levels of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines were detected in the aerosol and instillation groups. Disease, lung lesion, and viral replication progressions were slower in the MERS-CoV aerosol-infected mice than in the MERS-CoV instillation-inoculated mice. Conclusion: hDPP4 transgenic mice were successfully infected with MERS-CoV aerosols via an animal nose-only exposure device, and aerosol- and instillation-infected mice simulated the clinical symptoms of moderate diffuse interstitial pneumonia. However, the transgenic mice exposed to aerosol MERS-CoV developed disease and lung pathology progressions that more closely resembled those observed in humans. |
