Availablity of huma skin fibroblast cells for assessment of individual susceptibility to avian influenza virus infection *
The availability of human skin fibroblast cells（HSFs）for assessment of individual susceptibility to avian influenza virus was examined. It was found that HSFs were as susceptible to a human influenza virus as are human bronchial epithelium primary cultures. A large amount of a2,3-linked sialosaccharide（that is, avian type receptor）was present on HSFs along with a small amount of a2,6-linked sialosaccharide（human type receptor）. The human influenza virus grew efficiently despite the very small amount of human type receptor. As well, the growth characteristics of the virus were reproducible in HSFs with different passage histories from p6 to p22. These results indicated that HSFs are available to estimate the growth characteristics of the influenza virus. The growth potential of an avirulent avian H5N3 influenza virus in human cells was examined in cultures of HSFs derived from 15 different individuals. The growth characteristics of the avian virus were different among individual HSF cells; however, avian virus growth in HSF was very poor as compared with that of the human virus. The present study showed that HSFs are useful to assess the potential of avian influenza viruses to grow in human cells; thereby, facilitating the evaluation of the risk of the emergence of a new pandemic virus. (Accepted on July 6, 2009)
