Rapid and Efficient Clearance of Blood-borne Virus by Liver Sinusoidal Endothelium
2011

Liver Endothelium Clears Blood-borne Virus

Sample size: 3 publication 10 minutes Evidence: high

Author Information

Author(s): Ganesan Latha P., Mohanty Sudhasri, Kim Jonghan, Clark K. Reed, Robinson John M., Anderson Clark L.

Primary Institution: The Ohio State University

Hypothesis

Is the liver sinusoidal endothelial cell (LSEC) the major cell responsible for the rapid clearance of blood-borne viruses?

Conclusion

The study concludes that liver sinusoidal endothelial cells are primarily responsible for clearing blood-borne adenovirus, rather than Kupffer cells.

Supporting Evidence

  • Over 90% of the infused adenovirus was localized to liver sinusoidal endothelial cells within one minute.
  • Electron microscopy confirmed that the majority of virus particles were found in LSEC and not in Kupffer cells.
  • Clearance kinetics showed that more than 90% of the virus was cleared from the bloodstream within 20 minutes.

Takeaway

The liver helps clean up viruses from the blood really fast, mostly using special cells called endothelial cells, not the ones we thought before.

Methodology

Mice were infused with adenovirus and blood samples were taken at various time points to measure viral clearance using qPCR.

Limitations

The study was conducted in a mouse model, which may not fully represent human physiology.

Participant Demographics

Wild type male Balb/C mice, aged 12–15 weeks.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1371/journal.ppat.1002281

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