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Wen SC, Tollefson SJ, Johnson M, Gilchuk P, Boyd KL, Shepherd B, Joyce S, Williams JV. Acute clearance of human metapneumovirus occurs independently of natural killer cells. Journal of virology. 2014 Sep 15;88(88). 10963-9.
Abstract
Human metapneumovirus (HMPV) is a major cause of respiratory disease. The role of NK cells in protection against HMPV is unclear. We show that while HMPV-infected C57BL/6 mice had higher numbers of functional lung NK cells than mock-treated mice, comparing NK cell-depleted and control mice did not reveal differences in lung viral titers, histopathology, cytokine levels, or T cell numbers or function. These data indicate that NK cells are not required for host control of HMPV.