Scientific discovery, "Peking top monkey" is a better animal model for AIDS
2009/07/23 10:33 Source: explore network


Top Beiping monkey monkey, also known as dolphin, the current number of wild under-estimate the total number of 1000
Recently, at the national "973" project, National Natural Science Foundation of NSFC-and co-fund the project in Yunnan Province, with financial support from Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming Institute of Zoology, animal model and the mechanism of human disease researcher Yong Tang Key Laboratory in Beijing Top-disciplinary group of monkeys innate immune molecules TRIM5 genes and HIV-1 infection has been important progress in the study, and further clarified the TRIM5α restricted HIV-1 infection and replication mechanism, and that Beijing is the top of the monkey AIDS model for better animal.


According to Tang Yong, the ideal animal model for the pathogenesis of AIDS, anti-HIV drugs and vaccine research is a particularly important role, but so far the international community has not yet been established animal model of an ideal. Non-human primates is currently recognized as a better animal model of AIDS, chimpanzee and human relationships is the most recent primates. Studies have reported that chimpanzees can be infected with HIV-1 and human AIDS-like symptoms appear.


However, chimpanzees are highly endangered species, but also a great size, easy breeding and rearing, the cost of expensive, difficult to study as an animal model of AIDS. In addition to the New World primates monkeys outside the Eagle would be able to support HIV-1 replication, but the HIV-1 into the low level of host cells, and the New World monkeys of all types are rare and protected species, extremely scarce resources, China has not and distribution of resources. Old World monkeys of the relative abundance of resources, but research in the Old World monkey, the flat-topped monkey, there is only reported HIV-1 infection and with AIDS-like symptoms occurred in primates, but its exact mechanism to be explored.

In 2004 found that TRIM5α is an important host cell innate immune molecules. In primates, TRIM5α protein restricted HIV-1, N-type murine leukemia virus, equine infectious anemia virus replication retrovirus. ZHENG Yong-Tang-disciplinary group and places the pre-soldiers-disciplinary research team first found that flat-topped monkey TRIM5 locus by inserting a gene cyclophilin A to form a TRIM5-CypA fusion model, the fusion gene product can not restrict HIV-1 replication This may be flat-topped monkey susceptible HIV-1 molecular basis of important.


However, according to the existing primate taxonomy, animal taxonomists in 2001 the original flat-topped monkey Macaca three subspecies in the upgrading of three different types - flat-topped monkey Sunda (Sunda pig-tailed macaque, M.nemestrina), Peking top monkey (Northern pig-tailed macaque, M.leonine) and Ming-wei monkey fight (Mentawai macaque, M.pagensis), and Beijing is only distributed in the top monkey in southern China's Yunnan and southeastern Tibet and Myanmar, the northern region of Thailand and India.


ZHENG Yong-Tang in, under the guidance of the subject group the status of doctoral students and others study found Yiqun, China Yunnan Top Beiping monkey CypA pseudogene exists through the reversal of the cDNA insert to block the mechanism of TRIM5 locus 3 'untranslated region of the phenomenon, formed a new fusion gene npmTRIMCyp. fusion gene transcripts npmTRIMCyp foreign exons 7 and 8 have been cut off. Exon 7 splicing mechanism stems from the loss of TRIM5 intron 6 within the first 3 'splice site of the G / T mutation.

At the same time, Beijing top monkey peripheral blood mononuclear cells susceptible to HIV-1 does not restrict HIV-1 replication in cells; npmTRIMCyp fusion protein can effectively limit the replication of HIV-2, simian immunodeficiency virus for only a very weak restrictions on activity; Beiping top monkey may npmTRIMCyp retroviral capsid protein to identify regions of high polymorphism. The results of these studies further elucidate the innate immune molecules TRIM5α restricted HIV-1 infection and replication mechanism, in the cellular and molecular level in support of a top Peking monkey AIDS is an ideal animal model for the establishment of a monkey on top of AIDS Beiping Ling Cheung type of animal model provides a scientific basis. A few days ago, the international academic journal, "retroviral virology," published the results of the study.


It is understood that the top monkey in China Peking narrow distribution, the number of existing scarce, it is estimated that less than 1000 wild. To this end, Yong Tang proposed to enhance the top of wild monkeys Beiping protection, support of relevant agencies and the expansion of artificial breeding populations of independent innovation of China's science and technology, disease prevention and control and human health provide a strong support.