Preprint Review Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Drivers and Distribution of Henipavirus-Induced Syncytia: What Do We Know?

Amandine Gamble
* ORCID logo ,
Yao Yu Yeo
,
Aubrey Butler
,
Hubert Tang
,
Celine Snedden
,
Christian Mason
,
David Buchholz
,
John Binghman
ORCID logo ,
Hector Aguilar
,
James Lloyd-Smith
Version 1 : Received: 12 July 2021 / Approved: 14 July 2021 / Online: 14 July 2021 (11:09:08 CEST)

How to cite: Gamble, A.; Yeo, Y.Y.; Butler, A.; Tang, H.; Snedden, C.; Mason, C.; Buchholz, D.; Binghman, J.; Aguilar, H.; Lloyd-Smith, J. Drivers and Distribution of Henipavirus-Induced Syncytia: What Do We Know?. Preprints 2021, 2021070320. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202107.0320.v1 Gamble, A.; Yeo, Y.Y.; Butler, A.; Tang, H.; Snedden, C.; Mason, C.; Buchholz, D.; Binghman, J.; Aguilar, H.; Lloyd-Smith, J. Drivers and Distribution of Henipavirus-Induced Syncytia: What Do We Know?. Preprints 2021, 2021070320. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202107.0320.v1

Abstract

Syncytium formation, i.e., cell-cell fusion resulting in the formation of multinucleated cells, is a hallmark of infection by paramyxoviruses and other important viruses. This natural mechanism has historically been a diagnostic marker for paramyxovirus infection in vivo and is now widely studied for virus-induced membrane fusion in vitro. However, the role of syncytium formation in within-host dissemination and pathogenicity of viruses remains poorly understood. The diversity of henipaviruses and their wide host range and tissue tropism make them particularly appropriate models to characterize the drivers of syncytium formation and its implications for virus fitness and pathogenicity. Based on the henipavirus literature, we summarized current knowledge on the mechanisms driving syncytium formation, mostly acquired from in vitro studies, and on the in vivo distribution of syncytia. While these data suggest that syncytium formation widely occurs across henipaviruses, hosts and tissues, we identified important data gaps that undermined our understanding of the role of syncytium formation in virus pathogenesis. Based on these observations, we propose solutions of varying complexity to fill these data gaps, from better practices in data archiving and publication for in vivo studies, to experimental approaches in vitro.

Supplementary and Associated Material

Keywords

Cell-cell fusion; henipavirus; pathogenesis; paramyxovirus; syncytium; within-host dynamics

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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