Clinical Correlations of Transcriptional Profile in Patients Infected With Avian Influenza H7N9 Virus

• Published in: The Journal of infectious diseases Vol. 218; no. 8; pp. 1238 - 1248
• Main Authors: Guan, Wenda, Yang, Zifeng, Wu, Nicholas C, Lee, Horace H Y, Li, Yimin, Jiang, Wenxin, Shen, Lihan, Wu, Douglas C, Chen, Rongchang, Zhong, Nanshan, Wilson, Ian A, Peiris, Malik, Mok, Chris K P
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Oxford University Press 08.09.2018
• Subjects: Case-Control Studies; Gene Expression Regulation, Viral - immunology; Humans; Immunity, Cellular - genetics; Immunity, Cellular - physiology; Influenza A Virus, H7N9 Subtype; Influenza, Human - metabolism; Influenza, Human - virology; Leukocytes - metabolism; Lung; Major and Brief Reports; T-Lymphocytes - metabolism; Transcriptome; Viral Load
• ISSN: 0022-1899; 1537-6613
• DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jiy317

Avian influenza A (H7N9) viruses emerged in China in 2013 and caused zoonotic disease associated with a case-fatality ratio of over 30%. Transcriptional profiles in peripheral blood reflect host responses and can help to elucidate disease pathogenesis. We correlated serial blood transcriptomic profiles of patients with avian influenza A (H7N9) virus infection and determined the biological significances from the analysis. We found that specific gene expression profiles in the blood were strongly correlated with the Pao 2/Fio 2 ratio and viral load in the lower respiratory tract. Cell cycle and leukocyte-related immunity were activated at the acute stage of the infection while T-cell functions and various metabolic processes were associated with the recovery phase of the illness. A transition from systemic innate to adaptive immunity was found. We developed a novel approach for transcriptomic analysis to identify key host responses that were strongly correlated with specific clinical and virologic parameters in patients with H7N9 infection.