Mucus Physically Restricts Influenza A Viral Particle Access to the Epithelium.

ABSTRACT: Prior work suggests influenza A virus (IAV) crosses the airway mucus barrier in a sialic acid-dependent manner through the actions of the viral envelope proteins, hemagglutinin, and neuraminidase. However, host and viral factors that influence how efficiently mucus traps IAV remain poorly defined. In this work, how the physicochemical properties of mucus influence its ability to effectively capture IAV is assessed using fluorescence video microscopy and multiple particle tracking. Our studies suggest an airway mucus gel layer must be produced with virus-sized pores to physically constrain IAV. While sialic acid binding by IAV may improve mucus trapping efficiency, sialic acid binding preference is found to have little impact on IAV mobility and the fraction of viral particles expected to p

SUBMITTER: Kaler L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12001005 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature