Skip to Content
Merck

JC polyomavirus mutants escape antibody-mediated neutralization.

Science translational medicine (2015-09-25)
Upasana Ray, Paola Cinque, Simonetta Gerevini, Valeria Longo, Adriano Lazzarin, Sven Schippling, Roland Martin, Christopher B Buck, Diana V Pastrana
ABSTRACT

JC polyomavirus (JCV) persistently infects the urinary tract of most adults. Under conditions of immune impairment, JCV causes an opportunistic brain disease, progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML). JCV strains found in the cerebrospinal fluid of PML patients contain distinctive mutations in surface loops of the major capsid protein, VP1. We hypothesized that VP1 mutations might allow the virus to evade antibody-mediated neutralization. Consistent with this hypothesis, neutralization serology revealed that plasma samples from PML patients neutralized wild-type JCV strains but failed to neutralize patient-cognate PML-mutant JCV strains. This contrasted with serological results for healthy individuals, most of whom robustly cross-neutralized all tested JCV variants. Mice administered a JCV virus-like particle (VLP) vaccine initially showed neutralizing "blind spots" (akin to those observed in PML patients) that closed after booster immunization. A PML patient administered an experimental JCV VLP vaccine likewise showed markedly increased neutralizing titer against her cognate PML-mutant JCV. The results indicate that deficient humoral immunity is a common aspect of PML pathogenesis and that vaccination may overcome this humoral deficiency. Thus, vaccination with JCV VLPs might prevent the development of PML.

MATERIALS
Product Number
Brand
Product Description

Sigma-Aldrich
Aluminum potassium sulfate dodecahydrate, puriss. p.a., ACS reagent, reag. Ph. Eur., ≥99.5%
Sigma-Aldrich
Aluminum potassium sulfate dodecahydrate, BioXtra, ≥98.0%
Sigma-Aldrich
Aluminum potassium sulfate dodecahydrate, BioReagent, suitable for insect cell culture
Sigma-Aldrich
Imiquimod, ≥98% (HPLC), solid
Sigma-Aldrich
Aluminum potassium sulfate dodecahydrate, ACS reagent, ≥98%