Project description:The World Health Organization Classification of Hematolymphoid Tumors (WHO) and the International Consensus Classification (ICC) of 2022 introduced major changes to the definition of CMML. To assess qualitative and quantitative implications for patient care, we started with 3,311 established CMML cases (according to WHO 2017 criteria) and included also 2,130 oligomonocytosis cases fulfilling the new CMML diagnostic criteria. Applying both classification systems from 2022, 356 and 241 of oligomonocytosis cases were newly classified as myelodysplastic (MD)-CMML (WHO and ICC 2022, respectively), most of which were diagnosed as MDS according to WHO 2017. Importantly, 1.5 times more oligomonocytosis cases were classified as CMML according to WHO 2022 than based on ICC, due to different diagnostic criteria. Genetic analyses of the newly classified CMML cases showed a distinct mutational profile with strong enrichment of MDS-typical alterations, resulting in a transcriptional subgroup separated from established MD- and myeloproliferative (MP)-CMML. Despite a different cytogenetic, molecular, immunophenotypic, and transcriptional landscape, no differences in overall survival were found between newly classified and established MD-CMML cases. To the best of our knowledge, this study represents the most comprehensive analysis of routine CMML cases to date, both in terms of clinical characterization and transcriptomic analysis, placing newly classified CMML cases on a disease continuum between MDS and previously established CMML.
Project description:The outbreak-causing monkeypox virus of 2022 (2022 MPXV) is classified as a clade IIb strain and phylogenetically distinct from prior endemic MPXV strains (clades I or IIa), suggesting that its virological properties may also differ. Here, we used human keratinocytes and induced pluripotent stem cell-derived colon organoids to examine the efficiency of viral growth in these cells and the MPXV infection-mediated host responses. MPXV replication was much more productive in keratinocytes than in colon organoids. We observed that MPXV infections, regardless of strain, caused cellular dysfunction and mitochondrial damage in keratinocytes. Notably, a significant increase in the expression of hypoxia-related genes was observed specifically in 2022 MPXV-infected keratinocytes. Our comparison of virological features between 2022 MPXV and prior endemic MPXV strains revealed signaling pathways potentially involved with the cellular damages caused by MPXV infections and highlights host vulnerabilities that could be utilized as protective therapeutic strategies against human mpox in the future.
Project description:Airway epithelial cells are the initial site of infection with influenza viruses. The innate immune responses of airway epithelial cells to infection have the potential to limit virus replication and induce effective adaptive immune responses. However, relatively little is known about the importance of this innate anti-viral response to infection. Avian influenza viruses are a potential source of future pandemics, therefore it is critical to examine the effectiveness of the host anti-viral system to different influenza viruses. We used a human influenza (H3N2) and a low pathogenic avian influenza (H11N9) to assess and compare the anti-viral responses of bronchial epithelial cells (BECs). After infection, the H3N2 virus replicated more effectively than the H11N9 strain in BECs. This was not due to differential expression of different sialic acid residues on BECs but was attributed to the interference of the host anti-viral responses by H3N2. The H3N2 strain induced a delay in anti-viral signaling and impaired release of type I and type III interferons (IFNs) compared to the H11N9 virus. We then transfected the gene encoding for non-structural (NS) 1 protein into the BECs and the H3N2 NS1 induced a greater inhibition of anti-viral responses compared to the H11N9 NS1. While the low pathogenic avian influenza virus was capable of infecting BECs, the human influenza virus replicated more effectively than avian influenza virus in BECs and this may be at least in part due to a differential ability of the two NS1 proteins to inhibit anti-viral responses. This suggests that the subversion of human anti-viral responses may be an important requirement for influenza viruses to adapt to the human host and induce disease.