Journal article
Antibody response against koala retrovirus (KoRV) in koalas harboring KoRV-A in the presence or absence of KoRV-B
Scientific Reports, Vol.9, 12416
2019
Abstract
Koala retrovirus (KoRV) is in the process of endogenization into the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) genome and is currently spreading through the Australian koala population. Understanding how the koala's immune system responds to KoRV infection is critical for developing an efficacious vaccine to protect koalas. To this end, we analyzed the antibody response of 235 wild koalas, sampled longitudinally over a four-year period, that harbored KoRV-A, and with or without KoRV-B. We found that the majority of the sampled koalas were able to make anti-KoRV antibodies, and that there was a linear increase in anti-KoRV IgG levels in koalas up to approximately seven years of age and then a gradual decrease thereafter. Koalas infected with both KoRV-A and KoRV-B were found to have slightly higher anti-KoRV IgG titers than koalas with KoRV-A alone and there was an inverse relationship between anti-KoRV IgG levels and circulating KoRV viral load. Finally, we identified distinct epitopes on the KoRV envelope protein that were recognized by antibodies. Together, these findings provide insight into the koala's immune response to KoRV and may be useful in the development of a therapeutic KoRV vaccine.
Details
- Title
- Antibody response against koala retrovirus (KoRV) in koalas harboring KoRV-A in the presence or absence of KoRV-B
- Authors
- Solomon Olusola Olagoke (Author) - University of the Sunshine CoastBonnie L Quigley (Author) - University of the Sunshine CoastM V Eiden (Author) - National Institute of Mental HealthPeter Timms (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast
- Publication details
- Scientific Reports, Vol.9, 12416
- Publisher
- Nature Publishing Group
- Date published
- 2019
- DOI
- 10.1038/s41598-019-48880-0
- ISSN
- 2045-2322
- Copyright note
- Copyright © 2019 The Authors. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. Te images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons license and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
- Organisation Unit
- University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Health and Sport Sciences - Legacy; Thompson Institute; Centre for Bioinnovation; School of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Legacy
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99451432302621
- Output Type
- Journal article
Metrics
117 File views/ downloads
283 Record Views
InCites Highlights
These are selected metrics from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool, related to this output
- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- International collaboration
- Web Of Science research areas
- Immunology
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
This output has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:
Source: InCites