Tag: cellular communication

Tunneling nanotubes provide a route for SARS-CoV-2 spreading

Abstract:

Neurological manifestations of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection represent a major issue in long coronavirus disease. How SARS-CoV-2 gains access to the brain and how infection leads to neurological symptoms are not clear because the principal means of viral entry by endocytosis, the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 receptor, are barely detectable in the brain.

We report that human neuronal cells, nonpermissive to infection through the endocytic pathway, can be infected when cocultured with permissive infected epithelial cells. SARS-CoV-2 induces the formation of tunneling nanotubes (TNTs) and exploits this route to spread to uninfected cells. In cellulo correlative fluorescence and cryo-electron tomography reveal that SARS-CoV-2 is associated with TNTs between permissive cells. Furthermore, multiple vesicular structures such as double-membrane vesicles, sites of viral replication, are observed inside TNTs between permissive and nonpermissive cells.

Our data highlight a previously unknown mechanism of SARS-CoV-2 spreading, likely used as a route to invade nonpermissive cells and potentiate infection in permissive cells.

Source: Pepe A, Pietropaoli S, Vos M, Barba-Spaeth G, Zurzolo C. Tunneling nanotubes provide a route for SARS-CoV-2 spreading. Sci Adv. 2022 Jul 22;8(29):eabo0171. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.abo0171. Epub 2022 Jul 20. PMID: 35857849; PMCID: PMC9299553.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9299553/ (Full text)

Circulating extracellular vesicles as potential biomarkers in chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis: an exploratory pilot study

Abstract:

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), also known as Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) is an acquired, complex and multisystem condition of unknown etiology, no established diagnostic lab tests and no universally FDA-approved drugs for treatment. CFS/ME is characterised by unexplicable disabling fatigue and is often also associated with numerous core symptoms. A growing body of evidence suggests that extracellular vesicles (EVs) play a role in cell-to-cell communication, and are involved in both physiological and pathological processes. To date, no data on EV biology in CFS/ME are as yet available.

The aim of this study was to isolate and characterise blood-derived EVs in CFS/ME. Blood samples were collected from 10 Spanish CFS/ME patients and 5 matched healthy controls (HCs), and EVs were isolated from the serum using a polymer-based method. Their protein cargo, size distribution and concentration were measured by Western blot and nanoparticle tracking analysis. Furthermore, EVs were detected using a lateral flow immunoassay based on biomarkers CD9 and CD63.

We found that the amount of EV-enriched fraction was significantly higher in CFS/ME subjects than in HCs (p = 0.007) and that EVs were significantly smaller in CFS/ME patients (p = 0.014). Circulating EVs could be an emerging tool for biomedical research in CFS/ME. These findings provide preliminary evidence that blood-derived EVs may distinguish CFS/ME patients from HCs. This will allow offer new opportunities and also may open a new door to identifying novel potential biomarkers and therapeutic approaches for the condition.

Source: Castro-Marrero J, Serrano-Pertierra E, Oliveira-Rodríguez M, Zaragozá MC, Martínez-Martínez A, Blanco-López MDC, Alegre J. Circulating extracellular vesicles as potential biomarkers in chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis: an exploratory pilot study. J Extracell Vesicles. 2018 Mar 22;7(1):1453730. doi: 10.1080/20013078.2018.1453730. eCollection 2018. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29696075