Défenses innées antivirales du poisson zèbre : de la signalisation aux cellules specialisées

This thesis is based on the studies of two aspects of innate immunity in zebrafish: 1) proteins involved in the regulation of type I interferon (Ifn) and 2) specialized myeloid cells that patrol neuromasts – mechano-sensory organs embed in the skin that could be pathogen entry sites. In this thesis two different proteins are described for the capability to enhance Ifn production. In one part, two zebrafish orthologues of mammalian transcription factor PLZF (Promyelocytic leukemia zinc finger) are shown to augment type I Ifn and ISG in response to double-stranded RNA viruses. PLZF is a BTB/POZ transcription factor that was recently shown to induce a subset of ISG, in human and mouse. Thus, zebrafish Plzf proteins can operate at multiple steps in the Ifn system. Furthermore, their activity was not dependent on the presence of BTB-domain implying that the underlying mechanism is different from the usual mode of action of BTB/POZ transcription factors. In the second part, fish-specific TRIM ubiquitin ligase - Ftr83 (Fish novel tripartite motif protein 83), mounted a strong anti-viral protection through the upregulation of Ifn. Interestingly a strong correlation between the expression of Ftr83 and Ifn was seen in the gills suggesting that Ftr83 might maintain a low basal level of Ifn signalling in organs constantly exposed to pathogens. In the second part, a GFP reporter transgenic line called medaktin:EGFP has been characterized. It marks leukocytes in the skin surrounding neuromasts. Deep sequencing revealed that these cells express several macrophage and dendritic cell markers, including genes involved in autophagy, microbicidial functions and antigen presentation, thus highlighting them as possible sentinel cells.Cette thèse est basée sur deux projets principaux: (1) l'étude de la réponse innée antivirale du poisson zèbre, en particulier des voies de signalisation des interférons de type I et (2) l'étude de leucocytes particuliers localisés au voisinage des neuromastes, structures permettant au poisson de percevoir le flux d'eau qu'il traverse et constituant potentiellement des brèches dans la peau de l'animal. La voie des IFN de type I est le principal composant de l'immunité antivirale innée. Dans cette thèse, deux types de protéines de poisson-zèbre capables d'augmenter l'induction des IFN de type I ont été étudiés. Nous avons montré que les deux orthologues chez le poisson zèbre du facteur de transcription à domaine BTB/POZ nommé PLZF (Promyelocytic leukemia zinc finger) augmentent l'induction de l'Ifn par différents stimuli. Ce travail montre que l'implication de PLZF dans la régulation de la voie IFN est ancienne et peut intervenir à différents niveaux de la voie Ifn. Le second modèle étudié est le gène Ftr83 (finTRIM83), qui appartient à un groupe de TRIM très diversifié et spécifique des poissons. L'expression de cette protéine TRIM induit une très forte induction des Ifn de type I et une protection contre différents virus, via la surexpression de différents ISGs. Ftr83 est exprimé dans la peau et dans les branchies, régions très exposées aux pathogènes, et son niveau d'expression est fortement corrélé au niveau d'expression de l'Ifn. Dans cette thèse, une lignée transgénique où les cellules spécifiquement fluorescentes évoquent des leucocytes localisés à proximité des neuromastes a été étudiée. Ces cellules ont été observées, leurs mouvements suivis et leur transcriptome analysé par séquençage profond après tri au FACS. Cette analyse a identifié des marqueurs typiques de cellules myéloides (macrophages, dendritiques); ces observations sont cohérentes avec l'idée de cellules sentinelles autour des neuromastes

Incidence of SARS-CoV-2 in people with cystic fibrosis in Europe between February and June 2020

Funding Information: We thank the people with CF, and their families, for consenting to their data being included in the ECFSPR. We thank the centers and individual country representatives for allowing the use of the anonymized patient data. This work was supported by an unrestricted grant from Chiesi Farmaceutici SpA, Parma, Italy. The funder had no role in the design, conduct or reporting of this study. Datasets for the general population were provided by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) based on data provided by WHO and Ministries of Health from the affected countries. The views and opinions of the authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the ECDC. The accuracy of the authors' statistical analysis and the findings they report are not the responsibility of ECDC. ECDC is not responsible for conclusions or opinions drawn from the data provided. ECDC is not responsible for the correctness of the data and for data management, data merging and data collation after provision of the data. ECDC shall not be held liable for improper or incorrect use of the data. Funding Information: This work was supported by an unrestricted grant from Chiesi Farmaceutici SpA, Parma, Italy. The funder had no role in the design, conduct or reporting of this study. Publisher Copyright: © 2021Background: Viral infections can cause significant morbidity in cystic fibrosis (CF). The current Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic could therefore have a serious impact on the health of people with CF (pwCF). Methods: We used the 38-country European Cystic Fibrosis Society Patient Registry (ECFSPR) to collect case data about pwCF and SARS-CoV-2 infection. Results: Up to 30 June 2020, 16 countries reported 130 SARS-CoV-2 cases in people with CF, yielding an incidence of 2.70/1000 pwCF. Incidence was higher in lung-transplanted patients (n=23) versus non-transplanted patients (n=107) (8.43 versus 2.36 cases/1000). Incidence was higher in pwCF versus the age-matched general population in the age groups <15, 15-24, and 25-49 years (p<0.001), with similar trends for pwCF with and without lung transplant. Compared to the general population, pwCF (regardless of transplantation status) had significantly higher rates of admission to hospital for all age groups with available data, and higher rates of intensive care, although not statistically significant. Most pwCF recovered (96.2%), however 5 died, of whom 3 were lung transplant recipients. The case fatality rate for pwCF (3.85%, 95% CI: 1.26-8.75) was non-significantly lower than that of the general population (7.46%; p=0.133). Conclusions: SARS-CoV-2 infection can result in severe illness and death for pwCF, even for younger patients and especially for lung transplant recipients. PwCF should continue to shield from infection and should be prioritized for vaccination.publishersversionPeer reviewe

FTR83, a member of the large fish-specific finTRIM family, triggers IFN pathway and counters viral infection

Publisher Copyright: © 2017 Langevin, Aleksejeva, Houel, Briolat, Torhy, Lunazzi, Levraud and Boudinot.Tripartite motif (TRIM) proteins are involved in various cellular functions and constitute key factors of the antiviral innate immune response. TRIM proteins can bind viral particles directly, sending them to degradation by the proteasome, or ubiquitinate signaling molecules leading to upregulation of innate immunity. TRIM proteins are present in across metazoans but are particularly numerous in vertebrates where genes comprising a B30.2 domain have been often duplicated. In fish, a TRIM subset named finTRIM is highly diversified, with large gene numbers and clear signatures of positive selection in the B30.2 domain suggesting they may be involved in antiviral mechanisms. finTRIM provides a beautiful model to investigate the primordial implication of B30.2 TRIM subsets in the arsenal of vertebrate antiviral defenses. We show here that ftr83, a zebrafish fintrim gene mainly expressed in the gills, skin and pharynx, encodes a protein affording a potent antiviral activity. In vitro, overexpression of FTR83, but not of its close relative FTR82, induced IFN and IFN-stimulated gene expression and afforded protection against different enveloped and non-enveloped RNA viruses. The kinetics of IFN induction paralleled the development of the antiviral activity, which was abolished by a dominant negative IRF3 mutant. In the context of a viral infection, FTR83 potentiated the IFN response. Expression of chimeric proteins in which the B30.2 domain of FTR83 and the non-protective FTR82 had been exchanged, showed that IFN upregulation and antiviral activity requires both the Ring/BBox/Coiled coil domain (supporting E3 ubiquitin ligase) and the B30.2 domain of FTR83. Finally, loss of function experiments in zebrafish embryos confirms that ftr83 mediates antiviral activity in vivo. Our results show that a member of the largest TRIM subset observed in fish upregulates type I IFN response and afford protection against viral infections, supporting that TRIMs are key antiviral factors across vertebrates.publishersversionPeer reviewe

Novel transcripts reveal a complex structure of the human TRKA gene and imply the presence of multiple protein isoforms

Publisher Copyright: © 2015 Luberg et al.Background: Tropomyosin-related kinase A (TRKA) is a nerve growth factor (NGF) receptor that belongs to the tyrosine kinase receptor family. It is critical for the correct development of many types of neurons including pain-mediating sensory neurons and also controls proliferation, differentiation and survival of many neuronal and non-neuronal cells. TRKA (also known as NTRK1) gene is a target of alternative splicing which can result in several different protein isoforms. Presently, three human isoforms (TRKAI, TRKAII and TRKAIII) and two rat isoforms (TRKA L0 and TRKA L1) have been described. Results: We show here that human TRKA gene is overlapped by two genes and spans 67 kb-almost three times the size that has been previously described. Numerous transcription initiation sites from eight different 5' exons and a sophisticated splicing pattern among exons encoding the extracellular part of TRKA receptor indicate that there might be a large variety of alternative protein isoforms. TrkA genes in rat and mouse appear to be considerably shorter, are not overlapped by other genes and display more straightforward splicing patterns. We describe the expression profile of alternatively spliced TRKA transcripts in different tissues of human, rat and mouse, as well as analyze putative endogenous TRKA protein isoforms in human SH-SY5Y and rat PC12 cells. We also characterize a selection of novel putative protein isoforms by portraying their phosphorylation, glycosylation and intracellular localization patterns. Our findings show that an isoform comprising mainly of TRKA kinase domain is capable of entering the nucleus. Conclusions: Results obtained in this study refer to the existence of a multitude of TRKA mRNA and protein isoforms, with some putative proteins possessing very distinct properties.publishersversionPeer reviewe

Incidence of SARS-CoV-2 in people with cystic fibrosis in Europe between February and June 2020

Background Viral infections can cause significant morbidity in cystic fibrosis (CF). The current Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic could therefore have a serious impact on the health of people with CF (pwCF). Methods We used the 38-country European Cystic Fibrosis Society Patient Registry (ECFSPR) to collect case data about pwCF and SARS-CoV-2 infection. Results Up to 30 June 2020, 16 countries reported 130 SARS-CoV-2 cases in people with CF, yielding an incidence of 2.70/1000 pwCF. Incidence was higher in lung-transplanted patients (n=23) versus non-transplanted patients (n=107) (8.43 versus 2.36 cases/1000). Incidence was higher in pwCF versus the age-matched general population in the age groups <15, 15-24, and 25-49 years (p<0.001), with similar trends for pwCF with and without lung transplant. Compared to the general population, pwCF (regardless of transplantation status) had significantly higher rates of admission to hospital for all age groups with available data, and higher rates of intensive care, although not statistically significant. Most pwCF recovered (96.2%), however 5 died, of whom 3 were lung transplant recipients. The case fatality rate for pwCF (3.85%, 95% CI: 1.26-8.75) was non-significantly lower than that of the general population (7.46%; p=0.133). Conclusions SARS-CoV-2 infection can result in severe illness and death for pwCF, even for younger patients and especially for lung transplant recipients. PwCF should continue to shield from infection and should be prioritized for vaccination

Innate antiviral defense of zebrafish : from signalling to specialized cells

Cette thèse est basée sur deux projets principaux: (1) l'étude de la réponse innée antivirale du poisson zèbre, en particulier des voies de signalisation des interférons de type I et (2) l'étude de leucocytes particuliers localisés au voisinage des neuromastes, structures permettant au poisson de percevoir le flux d'eau qu'il traverse et constituant potentiellement des brèches dans la peau de l'animal. La voie des IFN de type I est le principal composant de l'immunité antivirale innée. Dans cette thèse, deux types de protéines de poisson-zèbre capables d'augmenter l'induction des IFN de type I ont été étudiés. Nous avons montré que les deux orthologues chez le poisson zèbre du facteur de transcription à domaine BTB/POZ nommé PLZF (Promyelocytic leukemia zinc finger) augmentent l'induction de l'Ifn par différents stimuli. Ce travail montre que l'implication de PLZF dans la régulation de la voie IFN est ancienne et peut intervenir à différents niveaux de la voie Ifn. Le second modèle étudié est le gène Ftr83 (finTRIM83), qui appartient à un groupe de TRIM très diversifié et spécifique des poissons. L'expression de cette protéine TRIM induit une très forte induction des Ifn de type I et une protection contre différents virus, via la surexpression de différents ISGs. Ftr83 est exprimé dans la peau et dans les branchies, régions très exposées aux pathogènes, et son niveau d'expression est fortement corrélé au niveau d'expression de l'Ifn. Dans cette thèse, une lignée transgénique où les cellules spécifiquement fluorescentes évoquent des leucocytes localisés à proximité des neuromastes a été étudiée. Ces cellules ont été observées, leurs mouvements suivis et leur transcriptome analysé par séquençage profond après tri au FACS. Cette analyse a identifié des marqueurs typiques de cellules myéloides (macrophages, dendritiques); ces observations sont cohérentes avec l'idée de cellules sentinelles autour des neuromastes.This thesis is based on the studies of two aspects of innate immunity in zebrafish: 1) proteins involved in the regulation of type I interferon (Ifn) and 2) specialized myeloid cells that patrol neuromasts – mechano-sensory organs embed in the skin that could be pathogen entry sites. In this thesis two different proteins are described for the capability to enhance Ifn production. In one part, two zebrafish orthologues of mammalian transcription factor PLZF (Promyelocytic leukemia zinc finger) are shown to augment type I Ifn and ISG in response to double-stranded RNA viruses. PLZF is a BTB/POZ transcription factor that was recently shown to induce a subset of ISG, in human and mouse. Thus, zebrafish Plzf proteins can operate at multiple steps in the Ifn system. Furthermore, their activity was not dependent on the presence of BTB-domain implying that the underlying mechanism is different from the usual mode of action of BTB/POZ transcription factors. In the second part, fish-specific TRIM ubiquitin ligase - Ftr83 (Fish novel tripartite motif protein 83), mounted a strong anti-viral protection through the upregulation of Ifn. Interestingly a strong correlation between the expression of Ftr83 and Ifn was seen in the gills suggesting that Ftr83 might maintain a low basal level of Ifn signalling in organs constantly exposed to pathogens. In the second part, a GFP reporter transgenic line called medaktin:EGFP has been characterized. It marks leukocytes in the skin surrounding neuromasts. Deep sequencing revealed that these cells express several macrophage and dendritic cell markers, including genes involved in autophagy, microbicidial functions and antigen presentation, thus highlighting them as possible sentinel cells

Trims and antiviral immunity in fish: A FINTRIM inducing constitutive IFN signaling is expressed at surfaces exposed to pathogens

International audienceThe tripartite - motif - protein (TRIM) family includes many key components of the antiviral arsenal expressed in mammals; antiviral TRIMs mediate intrinsic viral restriction at diverse points of the viral cycle, or positively regulate innate immune signaling pathways. The TRIM family is ancient and has been greatly diversified in vertebrates and especially in fish. Our previous survey of fish TRIM genes in fish identifie d subsets with different evolutionary dynamics, with several subsets highly diversified li ke th e finTRIMs. We show here that a zebrafish finTRIM gene constitutively expressed in the gills, skin and pharynx, encodes a protein that strongly up - regulates the type I interferon (IFN) pathway. While it is not IFN - inducible, its in vivo expression in gills of healthy fish correlates with that of type I IFN. In vitro , overexpression of this finTRIM induce s IFN and IFN - stimulated gene expression, and affords protection against different enveloped and non - enveloped RNA viruses. This antiviral activity is IFN - dependent, and is abolished by a dominant negative IRF3 mutant. Our work indicates that TRIM proteins contribute to the establishment of antiviral immunity , possibly by permanent type I IFN stimulation in exposed tissues . Hence TRIMs might create a loc al anti - viral environment at sites exposed to pathogens, a mechanism participating to the regionalization of immunity. Our data also reveal that TRIMs were involved in antiviral immunity before the divergence between bony fish and tetrapods, early in Verte brate evolution

Zebrafish Plzf transcription factors enhance early type I IFN response induced by two non-enveloped RNA viruses

International audienceThe BTB-POZ transcription factor Promyelocytic Leukemia Zinc Finger (PLZF, or ZBTB16) has been recently identified as a major factor regulating the induction of a subset of Interferon stimulated genes in human and mouse. We show that the two co-orthologues of PLZF found in zebrafish show distinct expression patterns, especially in larvae. Although zbtb16a/plzfa and zbtb16b/plzfb are not modulated by IFN produced during viral infection, their over-expression increases the level of the early type I IFN response, at a critical phase in the race between the virus and the host response. The effect of Plzfb on IFN induction was also detectable after cell infection by different non-enveloped RNA viruses, but not after infection by the rhabdovirus SVCV. Our findings indicate that plzf implication in the regulation of type I IFN responses is conserved across vertebrates, but at multiple levels of the pathway and through different mechanisms

MOESM2 of Novel transcripts reveal a complex structure of the human TRKA gene and imply the presence of multiple protein isoforms

Additional file 2: Primers and cycling conditions used in this study