Single-cell transcriptome analysis of the invivo response to viral infection in the cave nectar bat Eonycteris spelaea.

Abstract

Bats are reservoir hosts of many zoonotic viruses with pandemic potential. We utilized single-cell transcriptome sequencing (scRNA-seq) to analyze the immune response in bat lungs upon invivo infection with a double-stranded RNA virus, Pteropine orthoreovirus PRV3M. Bat neutrophils were distinguished by high basal IDO1 expression. NK cells and Tcells were the most abundant immune cells in lung tissue. Three distinct CD8+ effector Tcell populations could be delineated by differential expression of KLRB1, GFRA2, and DPP4. Select NK and T clusters increased expression of genes involved in Tcell activation and effector function early after viral infection. Alveolar macrophages and classical monocytes drove antiviral interferon signaling. Infection expanded a CSF1R+ population expressing collagen-like genes, which became the predominant myeloid cell type post-infection. This work uncovers features relevant to viral disease tolerance in bats, lays a foundation for future experimental work, and serves as a resource for comparative immunology studies.