White-nose syndrome is associated with increased replication of a naturally persisting coronaviruses in bats

Abstract

Spillover of viruses from bats to other animals may be associated with increased contact between them, as well as increased shedding of viruses by bats. Here, we tested the prediction that little brown bats (Myotis lucifugus) co-infected with the M. lucifugus coronavirus (Myl-CoV) and with Pseudogymnoascus destructans (Pd), the fungus that causes bat white-nose syndrome (WNS), exhibit different disease severity, viral shedding and molecular responses than bats infected with only Myl-CoV or only P. destructans. We took advantage of the natural persistence of Myl-CoV in bats that were experimentally inoculated with P. destructans in a previous study. Here, we show that the intestines of virus-infected bats that were also infected with fungus contained on average 60-fold more viral RNA than bats with virus alone. Increased viral RNA in the intestines correlated with the severity of fungus-related pathology. Additionally, the intestines of bats infected with fungus exhibited different expression of mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway and cytokine related transcripts, irrespective of viral presence. Levels of coronavirus antibodies were also higher in fungal-infected bats. Our results suggest that the systemic effects of WNS may down-regulate anti-viral responses in bats persistently infected with M. lucifugus coronavirus and increase the potential of virus shedding.

Selection of viral variants during persistent infection of insectivorous bat cells with Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus

“…While persistence in bat cultured cells, devoid of the in vivo environment, may not exactly recapitulate MERS-CoV -bat interactions, our model of MERS-CoV persistence mirrors some features observed during enhanced replication of persistently-infecting CoV in bats suffering from White Nose Syndrome 25,26 . Our model also allows us to develop hypotheses that can then be tested by observations in a wild free-living species.…”

“…In little brown bats (Myotis lucifugus) that are co-infected with a bat CoV and White Nose Syndrome-causing fungus (P. destructans), suppression of the MAPK pathway has been speculated to increase CoV replication 26 . To test if this pathway played a similar role in regulating viral load in persistently infected bat cells in culture, we inhibited the MAPK signaling pathway using a commercial MAP kinase inhibitor, URMC-99 37 .…”

Personality affects dynamics of an experimental pathogen in little brown bats

“…Our results also have implications for understanding the host-pathogen dynamics of potentially zoonotic pathogens occurring in bat populations. We recommend that future studies examine the role of personality and host behaviour in the dynamics of bat viruses like Myotis lucifugus coronavirus (Myl-CoV), which occurs naturally in little brown bat populations [28], and for which viral replication is known to increase when hosts are stressed by infection with P. destructans [66].…”

A call to action: Understanding land use-induced zoonotic spillover to protect environmental, animal, and human health

“…Accordingly, the likelihood and intensity of bat infection changes with the host population distribution, as bats that are stressed (e.g., nutritionally deprived or crowded around resources) are thought to be more likely to become infected 15 . B) Pathogen Shedding: Environmental stress likely also influences whether bats shed pathogens into the environment 16,17 . For example, in Australia, acute nutrient deprivation is thought to cause Pteropodid bats to have reduced ability to control pathogens and they shed multiple zoonotic viruses in extreme, brief, and spatially restricted pulses 18,19 .…”