Publications [#241046] of Anne Pusey

Journal Articles

1. Keele, BF; Jones, JH; Terio, KA; Estes, JD; Rudicell, RS; Wilson, ML; Li, Y; Learn, GH; Beasley, TM; Schumacher-Stankey, J; Wroblewski, E; Mosser, A; Raphael, J; Kamenya, S; Lonsdorf, EV; Travis, DA; Mlengeya, T; Kinsel, MJ; Else, JG; Silvestri, G; Goodall, J; Sharp, PM; Shaw, GM; Pusey, AE; Hahn, BH, Increased mortality and AIDS-like immunopathology in wild chimpanzees infected with SIVcpz., Nature, vol. 460 no. 7254 (July, 2009), pp. 515-519, ISSN 0028-0836 [doi]
   (last updated on 2024/01/01)

   Abstract:
   African primates are naturally infected with over 40 different simian immunodeficiency viruses (SIVs), two of which have crossed the species barrier and generated human immunodeficiency virus types 1 and 2 (HIV-1 and HIV-2). Unlike the human viruses, however, SIVs do not generally cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in their natural hosts. Here we show that SIVcpz, the immediate precursor of HIV-1, is pathogenic in free-ranging chimpanzees. By following 94 members of two habituated chimpanzee communities in Gombe National Park, Tanzania, for over 9 years, we found a 10- to 16-fold higher age-corrected death hazard for SIVcpz-infected (n = 17) compared to uninfected (n = 77) chimpanzees. We also found that SIVcpz-infected females were less likely to give birth and had a higher infant mortality rate than uninfected females. Immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization of post-mortem spleen and lymph node samples from three infected and two uninfected chimpanzees revealed significant CD4(+) T-cell depletion in all infected individuals, with evidence of high viral replication and extensive follicular dendritic cell virus trapping in one of them. One female, who died within 3 years of acquiring SIVcpz, had histopathological findings consistent with end-stage AIDS. These results indicate that SIVcpz, like HIV-1, is associated with progressive CD4(+) T-cell loss, lymphatic tissue destruction and premature death. These findings challenge the prevailing view that all natural SIV infections are non-pathogenic and suggest that SIVcpz has a substantial negative impact on the health, reproduction and lifespan of chimpanzees in the wild.

   Keywords:
   Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome • Africa • Animals • Animals, Wild • CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes • Female • Humans • Male • Molecular Sequence Data • Pan troglodytes • Prevalence • Simian Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome • Simian immunodeficiency virus • epidemiology • immunology • mortality* • pathology • pathology* • physiology* • virology*