Chemokine Production Predominates in Human Monocytes Infected with Tula Virus

Abstract

Many reports suggest the hypothesis of a complex immune response accompanying hantaviral infections. However, little is known about the immunopathogenesis of nonpathogenic hantaviruses, especially Tula virus (TULV). The aim of our study was to determine the cytokine/chemokine profile induced after the infection of human macrophages with TULV and the role of viral replication in this process. Also, we wanted to establish how the study of TULV is relevant to our previous study of pathogenic hantaviruses. We showed that TULV-infected macrophages produced chemokines (interleukin-8, macrophage chemoattractant protein-1, and macrophage inflammatory protein-1beta) important for recruiting inflammatory cells, whereas no significant changes were recorded in the tested cytokine levels. This property was not influenced by ultraviolet inactivation. There were some differences in chemokine production compared with our previous study with pathogenic hantaviruses. A possible explanation could be a different way of entering host cells found in the pathogenic and nonpathogenic hantaviruses and activation of different intracellular signaling pathways.