Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
The order of innate immune activation is likely important for the host
response to HCMV infection. HCMV has developed an intimate relationship
with the host immune response and often the outcome of HCMV infection
correlates with the immune status of the host. Rapid recognition of incoming
virus could provide a temporal advantage to the cell and prove to be extremely
beneficial for combating viral infection. The immediate activation of IC signal-
ing would allow the host to initiate the positive effects of NF
κ-B activation such
as the infiltration of professional immune cells. However, HCMV may also
benefit from innate immune activation. HCMV contains NF
κ-B elements within
its major immediate early promoter and IC activation even prior to virus entry
would prime the cell for viral replication (DeMeritt et al. 2004). Once HCMV
has committed to entering the cell, the interferon response is induced, which
promotes an antiviral state to protect neighboring cells. The ability of the host
to detect HCMV in concert with virus-cell contact and/or entry further high-
lights the complexity and sophistication of the host innate immune response at
the earliest points in HCMV infection.
Perspectives
The exceptionally broad cellular and tissue tropism is a hallmark of CMV patho-
genesis. Clearly, CMV exploits is generous glycoprotein coding capacity to form
numerous and, in some cases, modular envelope complexes that facilitate interac-
tions with multiple cellular receptors. Mapping the molecular determinants of
these interactions will lay the foundation for better insights into the basis of dis-
ease and provide targets for therapeutic intervention. Yet, despite the apparent
cleverness of CMV to utilize a range of receptors for entry and spread, these events
are not silent and do not go undetected by the host. The primal alarm system
sounds from the earliest point of virus-cell contact representing yet another avenue
for therapeutic manipulation.
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