Fast-evolving RNA viruses are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among human and animal populations, contributing significantly to both global health and economic burden. The advent and revolution of high-throughput sequencing has empowered phylogenetic analyses with increasing amounts of temporally and spatially sampled viral data. Moreover, the parallel advancement in molecular evolution and phylogenetic methods has provided investigators with a unique opportunity to gain detailed insight into the evolutionary and epidemiological dynamics of emerging viral pathogens. Using state-of-the-art statistical approaches, this thesis addresses some of the important but controversial questions in viral emergence. Chapter 2 introduces a new framework to quantify and investigate reassortment events in influenza A viruses. By developing a computationally efficient algorithm to calculate the largest common subtree for a pair of tree sets, which are estimated from diffe rent parts of the genome for the same taxa set, the level of phylogenetic incongruency due to reassortment can be appropriately ascertained. Chapters 3, 4 and 5 investigate the evolutionary origins of three diff erent viruses: the novel emergence and cross-species transmission of SARSCoV, the genesis and dissemination of the unique HCV circulating recombinant form, and the ancient divergence of all influenza viruses, respectively. Moreover, Chapter 4 presents an improved statistical framework, which provides more precise evolutionary estimates, by utilizing the hierarchical bayes approach to investigate recombination events in emerging RNA viruses. The last empirical study, presented in Chapter 6, applies the recently developed Bayesian phylogeography models to a large viral sequence dataset sampled from southern Viet Nam to examine the fine-scale spatiotemporal dynamics of endemic dengue in Southeast Asia. The work presented here reflects both the advancements made in sequencing technology and statistical phylogenetics, along with some of the challenges that remain in studying the emergence of fast-evolving RNA viruses. This thesis proposes new and improved solutions to these evolutionary problems, such as incorporating non-vertical evolution (i.e. homologous recombination and reassortment) into the phylodynamic framework, with the aim of facilitating future investigations of emerging viral diseases.

La famille des Arenaviridae comporte sept virus responsables de fièvres hémorragiques humaines. Ces virus représentent un risque naturel pour les populations vivant dans les zones endémiques, ou y séjournant comme les militaires français déployés. Ce risque peut également toucher des populations vivant en dehors des zones endémiques en raison du risque d'importation d'un patient infecté ou consécutivement à l'utilisation intentionnelle et malveillante de tels virus dans le cadre d'une attaque bioterroriste. Les fièvres hémorragiques humaines causées par les arénavirus sont relativement rares et les premiers symptômes, non spécifiques, sont souvent confondus avec ceux de maladies plus fréquentes dans ces régions, comme le paludisme ou les arboviroses. Par conséquent, le diagnostic clinique est souvent retardé, ce qui réduit l'efficacité du seul traitement étiologique actuellement préconisé, la ribavirine. Dans ce contexte, le développement de solutions prophylactiques similaires au vaccin Candid #1, protégeant contre l'arénavirus Junin, constituent une alternative intéressante. Dans le cadre du développement de candidats vaccins, la première stratégie utilisée dans ce travail a consisté à atténuer la pathogénicité du virus d'intérêt en ciblant une étape clé de la réplication des arénavirus. Nous avons choisi l'étape du bourgeonnement viral, dont l'acteur principal est la protéine Z. Une preuve de concept a été réalisée avec le virus de la chorioméningite lymphocytaire (LCMV). Pour cela, nous avons conçu un système de génétique inverse qui exprime un segment L viral où le gène de la protéine Z est remplacé par un gène d'intérêt. De manière surprenante, ce virus recombinant était capable de produire en culture cellulaire une progénie à un titre très faible sans l'apport en trans de la protéine Z. Nous avons identifié des domaines tardifs dans la séquence peptidique de la nucléoprotéine, motifs peptidiques permettant le détournement de la machinerie cellulaire impliquée dans la production d'exosomes et présents dans les protéines de matrices virales, comme la protéine Z des arénavirus. Nous avons observé que ces domaines pourraient partiellement compenser l'absence de la protéine Z. Des résultats similaires ont été obtenus avec deux autres arénavirus ayant une importance majeure en santé publique, les virus Lassa et Machupo, tous deux responsables de fièvres hémorragiques humaines. Cette suppression pourrait constituer une stratégie d'atténuation et semblerait prometteuse en vue du développement de candidats vaccins réplicatifs atténués. En effet, elle pourrait être utilisée sur plusieurs arénavirus responsables de pathologies humaines. Une approche complémentaire à cette stratégie vaccinale a été envisagée. Dans le but de développer un traitement d'urgence, utilisant des immunoglobulines équines hautement purifiées, les F(ab')2, selon la méthodologie de la société Fab'entech, deux études préliminaires ont été réalisées. La première a permis de vérifier la capcité des virus à se répliquer dans les cellules immunitaires circulantes de cheval. La seconde a permis l'évaluation du cahier des charges qualité de particules virales en vue de leur utilisation comme source d'antigène afin de produire les F(ab')2. Une seconde stratégie vaccinale a été envisagée, basée sur une modification du nombre de segments génomiques viraux. Des travaux précédents ont montré qu'un arénavirus à 3 segments, au lieu de 2, était viable et atténué, tout en pouvant exprimer 2 gènes d'intérêt supplémentaires. Cette stratégie a été utilisée sur le virus Machupo, responsable de fièvres hémorragiques en Bolivie. Ce virus recombinant devrait exprimer les glycoprotéiques tronquées des virus Chapare et Guanarito. Ce candidat vaccin a été caractérisé en culture cellulaire, et a induit une protection de 50% des animaux lors d'une administration en post-exposition [etc...] / The Arenaviridae family comprises seven viruses responsible for human hemorrhagic fevers. These viruses represent a natural threat to the local populations, healthcare workers and scientists, as well as to the French forces deployed in the regions where these viruses are endemic. This viral threat can also be intentional in case of a bioterrorist attack. Human hemorrhagic fevers caused by arenaviruses are relatively rare and the first symptoms, frequently non-specific, are often confused with more common diseases such as malaria. Therefore, their diagnosis is delayed, which reduces the efficacy of ribavirin, the only etiological treatment currently recommended. ln this context, the development of prophylactic treatments, such as the Candid #1 vaccine targeting the Junin arenavirus, are an interesting alternative. The first strategy developed in this work to produce a vaccine candidate relied on the attenuation of the virus of interest by targeting a key stage of its replication. We chose the egress step, in which the main actor is the Z protein. This work was conducted using the lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV). We therefore designed a reverse genetic system, and replaced the Z gene by the fluorescent protein eGFP reporter gene. Surprisingly, during its cellular infection, a progeny was detected in absence of the Z protein trans-complementation although the titer remained very low. ln this infectious model, we further identified late motifs in the nucleoprotein genome, comparable to those known in the Z protein. These NP late motifs seemed to play an essential role in the compensation of the absence of the Z protein. Similar results were observed using two others arenaviruses of medical importance, the Lassa and Machupo viruses, responsible of human hemorrhagic fevers. The strong diminution of the resulting vaccine candidate replication suggests that this strategy would render safe enough BSL-4 viruses to be used as a multivalent vaccine platform in humans. A complementary approach has been studied in this work. ln order to develop an emergency treatment, based on the production of highly purified F(ab')2 equine immunoglobulins, according to the Fab'entech technology. Two preliminary studies were carried out. The first one consisted in the study of the replication of arenaviruses in circulating horse's white blood cells. The second tested the specifications of attenuated viral particles that could be used as an antigen source to produce the F(ab')2 under good manufacturing practices. Another vaccine strategy was developed using the previously described duplication of the LCMV S genomic small segment in order to produce a tri-segmented recombinant virus. This genetic modification, known to attenuate the LCMV virus pathogenicity, allows the expression of two genes of interest. This strategy has been applied onto the South American Machupo virus, responsible for hemorrhagic fevers in Bolivia. A recombinant Machupo virus was designed to express the truncated glycoproteins of the Chapare and Guanarito viruses, two other New World mammarenaviruses responsible of human hemorrhagic fevers. This vaccine candidate was characterized in cell culture, and showed a 50% post-exposure protective effect in the animal model used. Taken together this work led to the development of two vaccine strategies and to the identification of a promising source of antigens to be used to produce highly purified F(ab')2 polyclonal immunoglobulin, which is the first step to the development of an emergency treatment

Au cours des dernières années, de nombreuses épidémies ont emergé ou ré émergé, et sont causées par des arbovirus (arthropod-borne viruses), des virus transmis à des vertébrés par des insectes piqueurs vecteurs. Avec l'augmentation de la densité humaine dans certaines zones géographiques et le réchauffement climatique qui contribuent à l'expansion géographique des vecteurs, les maladies induites par ces virus (arboviroses) ont un impact de plus en plus important sur la santé humaine et l'économie mondiale. Il est donc déterminant d'augmenter nos connaissances sur les systèmes mis en jeux pour garantir la sécurité sanitaire des populations exposées. Les enjeux actuels reposent aussi bien sur la compréhension des virus que sur la compréhension de l'alternance d'hôtes, directement responsables de l'émergence et la dissémination des agents infectieux. Les moustiques sont des vecteurs majeurs des arbovirus comme la dengue (genre Flavivirus) et le Chikungunya (genre Alphavirus). Transmis par les mêmes moustiques Aedes aegypti et Aedes albopictus, le virus de la Dengue (DENV) est responsable de la plus importante arbovirose en zone tropicale, et le virus Chikungunya (CHIKV) est responsable dans le monde entier de centaines de milliers de cas d'infection, et les épidémies récentes ont touché les pays européens. Ainsi, il a été observé que le moustique Ae. albopictus pouvait porter simultanément CHIKV et DENV, et des cas de co-infections humaines ont été observés en Afrique. Toutefois, bien qu'en théorie les deux virus soient capables d'infecter les mêmes cellules chez l'insecte ou l'homme, il n'y a aucune étude détaillée sur les interactions au niveau cellulaire entre CHIKV et DENV lors de la co-infection d'une cellule. C'est pourquoi il est indispensable d'accroitre nos connaissances sur l'interférence éventuelle entre les virus Chikungunya et Dengue pour l'utilisation de voies cellulaires communes chez les insectes vecteurs et l'hôte humain lors de co-infection / Emergence and geographical extension of dengue (DENV), Zika (ZIKV) and chikungunya (CHIKV) viruses increase simultaneous outbreak in an increasing number of countries. To date, no vaccine or cure have yet been developed against these diseases those cause a tremendous impact on human health and in the economy worldwide. During recent simultaneous outbreaks, up to 12% of patients have been diagnosed to be co-infected by CHIKV and DENV. In addition, it was shown that the mosquitoes Aedes albopictus could carry and transmit simultaneously CHIKV and DENV. However, the pathology, as well as the epidemiology of a pathogen, relies on the interactions between several infectious agents present within an organism or a community in the environment. It is crucial to consider to which extent a host infected by a first microorganism is modified and whether its reaction to the infection by a second microorganism is consequently altered. However, there is no extensive report of Alphavirus-Flavivirus or Flavivirus- Flavivirus interactions. Our global objective is to characterize these co-infections in both mosquitoes and humans, at the cell and molecular level. To this aim, we started this project by performing sequential co- infection in different cell lines from Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegypti. We found that the permissiveness and production of DENV is enhanced in presence of CHIKV. On the contrary, there is no effect of DENV pre-infection on subsequent CHIKV co-infection. We generalized the synergistic phenomena and we showed that CHIKV pre-infection also increased the infection by DENV-1, DENV-3 and DENV-4, but also by two others re-emerging Flaviviruses, the Yellow Fever Virus (YFV), and the Zika Virus (ZIKV). Remarkably, we succeeded to establish a mosquito model of co-infection of Aedes aegypti mosquito after by different two feedings at 4 days interval. Using this sequential co-infection, we were able to show that a pre-infection of Aedes aegypti by CHIKV increase the level of DENV-2 RNA in salivary glands compare to mono-infected mosquitos. This phenotype is reminiscent of the phenotype we observed in vitro during successive infections. Altogether, our study paves the way to the characterization of molecular interaction between Flaviviruses and Alphaviruses in mosquito in vitro and in vivo. This study can be crucial for a better understanding of disease and epidemiology during simultaneous outbreaks

The murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV) immediate early 1 (IE1) protein has been described as a trans-activator of viral and host gene expression. However, the precise role that IE1 plays in the viral life cycle, and in particular its effect on the host immune response is not known. This thesis investigates the functional relationship of the IE1 protein and the immune response induced after infection. By using an ie1-deletion mutant MCMV (MCMVdie1) it was demonstrated that, early after infection, tumor necrosis factor (tnf ) gene activation and protein production was significantly induced in infected-primary macrophages (M ) to a much greater extent than its wild type counterpart. In addition, preliminary studies on the signalling pathways activated upon infection were carried out in order to gain information about the pathways that might be involved in MCMVinduced modulation of tnf activation. Initial observations on the MAPK family members Erk1/2, p38 and JNK did not revealed any differential activation in the absence of IE1. However, due to a number of limitations, it was not possible to draw any firm conclusions from this study. Investigation of the role of IE1 in the in vivo production of TNF were also performed in both susceptible (BALB/c) and resistant (C57Bl/6) mice. These experiments confirmed the attenuated phenotype of MCMVdie1 in vivo, whereby the mutant strain grew to much lower titers than wild type. When cytokine production was assessed in relation to PFU levels a significant production of TNF after infection is observed in different organs of both mice strains. This raises the question whether IE1 contributes to MCMV modulation of TNF production in the natural host. Although, because it is still unclear whether the phenotype of MCMVdie1 in vivo is due to a defect in the virus or the result of a immune response, it was not possible to conclude unequivocally that IE1 is responsible for dampening this cytokine response. This thesis also tested whether the attenuated replication of MCMVdie1 in vivo was due to the increased TNF production induced after infection. An initial investigation in tnf depleted mice revealed that the MCMVdie1 growth phenotype is not due to TNF response. Overall, this study has provided insight into a potential immune modulatory function by MCMV associated with IE1 protein and the regulation of TNF in vivo and in vitro.

Despite intensive research, the cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in human cellular susceptibility to prion infection remain poorly defined, in part due to the continuing lack of cultured human cells that are susceptible to infection with human prions. Such culture models would present distinct advantages including speed and expense compared with animal models, and would provide systems in which to investigate the interaction between PrPC and PrPSc, the basis of cellular susceptibility, the nature of the species barrier and the mechanism of prion propagation in situ. This study sought to examine whether non-neuronal cells might provide opportunities to establish human cell lines replicating human prions. A human follicular dendritic cell-like cell line (termed HK) was obtained, further characterised and then tested for its ability to support human prion replication. The mechanisms of internalisation, intracellular trafficking and the eventual fate of exogenous PrPSc taken up by these cells were also examined. This thesis similarly examined the cellular response of human embryonic stem cells (hESC) to acute exposure to human and animal prions. PrPC was found to be abundantly expressed by HK cells and HK cell extracts were found to support conversion to PrPSc in a cell-free conversion assay. However, HK cells exposed to infectious brain homogenates failed to accumulate PrPSc or become infected in vitro. Exposed HK and hESC did display a readily detectable, time dependent uptake of PrPSc from medium spiked with prion-infected brain homogenates that was independent of the species, disease phenotype and PRNP codon 129 genotype of the human source and the recipient cells. The exposed cells showed intensely labelled intracellular accumulations of PrPSc with coarse granular morphology, largely in the juxtanuclear region of cytoplasm. However, when the brain-spiked medium was withdrawn and cells were given control medium, the intensity and extent of PrPSc immunostaining rapidly diminished. Co-localisation studies implicated caveolae-mediated endocytic uptake of exogenous PrPSc, apparently preceding uptake via clathrin coated pits in HK cells. Evidence suggesting that the endosomal recycling compartment and lysosomes are involved in intracellular trafficking and degradation of exogenous PrPSc was also found. Understanding the cell biology of these processes may help to explain why the majority of cultured cells are refractory to prion infection in vitro. Internalization of misfolded PrP and its subsequent degradation in the lysosomal compartment might function as a self-protective cellular mechanism, serving to eliminate non-native, presumably dysfunctional and potentially dangerous PrP conformers, whether generated endogenously or acquired through exposure to exogenous prion infectivity.

The influenza A virus genome codes for up to 12 proteins. Segment 2 encodes three proteins, the polymerase subunit PB1, a small protein PB1-F2 and an N-terminally truncated version of PB1 called N40. Different functions have been reported for PB1-F2 such as induction of apoptosis, regulation of the viral polymerase activity, enhancement of secondary bacterial infections and modulation of the innate immune system. So far, no function has been ascribed to N40. To study PB1-F2 in more detail, its coding sequence was deleted from its original position and inserted downstream of the PB1 (segment 2), NA (segment 6) or M (segment 7) open reading frames (ORF) employing different strategies, including the use of an overlapping Stop-Start cassette, a duplicated promoter sequence and the self-cleaving 2A peptide derived from foot-and-mouth disease virus. Viruses with bicistronic segments were rescued and tested for their ability to express PB1-F2. Whereas no expression of PB1-F2 was detected from bicistronic segments 2 and 7, expression of PB1-F2 from segment 6 was observed in high levels. However, the phenotype of all these viruses was similar to that of viruses lacking PB1-F2 which made mutational analysis of PB1-F2 not worthwhile. Previously, the function of PB1-F2 was mainly studied using a virus deficient in PB1-F2 production but showing increased N40 expression. In the present study, recombinant WSN viruses lacking either PB1-F2 or N40, or both proteins were engineered and the effects of these mutations on the viral life cycle were examined. Viruses deficient for PB1-F2 that overexpressed N40 showed the most attenuated phenotype, whereas the loss of PB1-F2 alone did not obviously affect virus replication. Reduced viral polymerase activity was observed for viruses lacking N40, however attenuation in vivo was only seen in combination with the loss of PB1-F2. Neither the loss of PB1-F2 nor N40 alone had a great impact, but changes in the expression level of both proteins were disadvantageous for the virus. Increased levels of N40 shifted the polymerase activity towards replication, suggesting a new function for N40. Thus, it was shown that the segment 2 gene products and their expression level influence viral replication and pathogenicity, and a careful design of mutant recombinant viruses is vital for determining the experimental outcome.

Arboviruses are transmitted to vertebrates by arthropod vectors such as mosquitoes or ticks. The replication of Semliki Forest virus (SFV) (Togaviridae; Alphavirus) in vertebrate cells is well established and triggers cell death. SFV infection of Aedes albopictus mosquito cells was characterised. Virus growth curves were compared in three cell lines. Infection of U4.4 cells was persistent and did not affect growth of the culture. In contrast, infection of C6/36 and C7-10 cells resulted in a static culture with no cell division and no cell death. The response of U4.4 cells was characterised in greater detail using viruses containing fluorescent or luciferase markers within the replicase or structural open reading frame of the virus genome. Activation of the STAT/IMD pathway prior to SFV infection significantly reduced virus driven luciferase expression and virus production. Activation of the Toll pathway prior to SFV infection had no effect. However, activation of Toll in addition to STAT/IMD had a cumulative effect on luciferase expression and virus production. viRNAs were characterised by Illumina Solexa sequencing. Two percent of the small RNA species found in virus infected cells were derived from virus RNA. These were predominantly 21 nt long and mapped along the entire SFV genome and genome complementary RNAs. Generation of these viRNAs was not random. Some areas produced high frequencies and others no or very few; hot and cold spots respectively. There were no correlations between viRNA frequency and base pairing or secondary structures predictions. Cold spot-derived viRNAs were more effective than hot-spot viRNAs in inhibiting virus replication. Similar results were observed in Aedes aegypti-derived cells. Attempts were made to investigate the source of these viRNAs using a virus containing an IRES element which had been reported to prevent virus replication in insect cells but which did not efficiently do so in this study. A virus containing the RNAi inhibitor p19 was characterised and shown to increase virus production. Techniques for infecting mosquitoes via a blood meal feed were established. No infection was observed with virus replicon particles carrying a fluorescent marker gene. Infection was established using virus containing p19.

The influenza virus, a member of the Orthomyxoviridae family, causes regular, large-scale morbidity and mortality in birds and humans and significant human suffering and economic loss. The primary aim of this study was to develop a novel influenza vaccine. Vaccines are an essential tool for the control of influenza because they increase resistance to infection, prevent illness and death and help to limit virus transmission to other birds and mammals, including humans. By reducing the environmental contamination of influenza virus in global poultry stocks, the risk of a new pandemic virus being generated by the human-avian link is diminished. Marek’s Disease is a common lymphoproliferative disease of poultry that is readily controlled worldwide using the live attenuated vaccine, CVI988. The Marek’s Disease Virus (MDV) CVI988 viral genome, available as a Bacterial Artificial Chromosome (BAC), forms viable infectious viral particles when transfected into Chicken Embryo Fibroblast (CEF) cells. Using BAC mutagenesis, two non-essential genes in the MDV CVI988 BAC (UL41 and US10), were identified and replaced by the low pathogenic influenza haemagglutinin 10 (H10) gene. These live recombinant MDV-H10 vectors will allow simultaneous vaccination against both pathogens. In addition, the non-essential genes were also replaced with GFP creating MDV-GFP constructs. Both genes were expressed initially using a CMV promoter, although this disrupted the MDV CVI988 BAC; a second promoter, PGK-1, proved more successful. A third MDV gene (UL50) was deleted, but severe attenuation prevented the incorporation of H10 into this open reading frame. Future work to test the MDV-HA constructs in vivo will be carried out in collaboration with the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie in Italy. In addition, development of MDV constructs containing multiple HA genes (H10 and H5) linked by the 2A polyprotein can be developed with the goal of establishing heterosubtypic immunity.

La truite arc-en-ciel (Oncorhynchus mykiss), espèce d'élevage majeure en Europe et notamment en France, est l'une des espèces de poisson les mieux connues dans un grand nombre de domaines, y compris l'immunologie. Les virus qui l'infectent ont aussi été bien caractérisés, en particulier deux Novirhabdovirus, le virus de la septicémie hémorragique virale (VSHV) et le virus de la nécrose hématopoïétique infectieuse (VNHI), tous deux connus pour provoquer des pertes importantes dans les élevages aquacoles. Quelques travaux, conduits notamment à l'INRA, ont mis en évidence l'existence d'une variabilité génétique de la résistance à ces infections chez la truite (Quillet et al., 2007). Une approche combinant analyse génétique et étude des réponses cellulaires a été développée pour tenter de mieux caractériser la réponse de la truite contre le VSHV. L'objectif est de développer des outils d'amélioration de la santé dans les élevages piscicoles et de mieux comprendre les mécanismes de résistance antivirale chez les vertébrés. Tout d'abord, une démarche de cartographie de QTL (quantitative trait locus) a permis de détecter un QTL majeur de résistance au VSHV dans la région télomérique du groupe de liaison 31 de la truite arc-en-ciel. Ce QTL contrôle la survie des poissons et la croissance in vitro du virus sur explants de nageoire (VREFT), ce qui suggère fortement l'implication de mécanismes innés dans la résistance. Le QTL est retrouvé dans des croisements impliquant des reproducteurs de résistance variée, et peut expliquer jusqu'à 65% (survie) et 49% (VREFT) de la variance phénotypique observée. Enfin, l'effet du QTL est conservé quel que soit le mode d'infection employé (balnéation ou injection intrapéritonéale), suggérant que la résistance n'est pas liée à des particularités des tissus superficiels (peau, mucus), premiers sites de contact entre le virus et son hôte. En parallèle, des lignées cellulaires ont été dérivées à partir d'ovaires de truites appartenant à des lignées isogéniques présentant des niveaux de résistance variable à l'infection par le VSHV. Une corrélation remarquable est observée entre la résistance à l'infection des lignées cellulaires et la survie des poissons dont elles sont issues, confirmant définitivement le rôle déterminant de mécanismes innés dans la résistance. Ce modèle cellulaire a également permis de montrer que le contrôle précoce de la prolifération virale était une étape clé de la résistance. Le parallélisme entre résistance in vitro et in vivo semble conservé lors de l'infection par un second rhabdovirus, le VNHI, bien qu'aucune corrélation dans la résistance à ces deux infections n'ait été observée dans cette étude. Par ailleurs, le QTL à effet fort identifié pour la résistance au VSHV ne joue pas un rôle majeur dans la variabilité de résistance au VNHI. Ceci suggère que, même si ils concourent à l'activation de voies de signalisation communes, les facteurs clés de la résistance aux deux virus sont différents, et leur expression contrôlée par des zones génomiques distinctes. Les résultats obtenus dans cette étude ont permis de démontrer sans équivoque le rôle clé des mécanismes innés dans la résistance de la truite à l'un de ses principaux virus, et l'existence d'une forte variabilité génétique sous-tendant l'expression des facteurs impliqués. En proposant des bases nouvelles pour aborder l'analyse des interactions hôte-virus chez la truite, ils ouvrent la voie à la découverte de mécanismes potentiellement nouveaux dans la réponse des poissons à ces infections et à une meilleure compréhension de ces mécanismes chez les vertébrés. / The rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) is one of most significant fish model in many scientific fields, including immunology. Due to its importance in aquaculture, viruses that can infect this species have been well characterized. Two well-known Novirhabdoviruses, the viral haemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV) and the infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) cause serious damage in fish farms and represent a significant threat for aquaculture in a number of countries. Our laboratories have previously reported a wide range of susceptibility to these infections in rainbow trout depending on the host genetic background (Quillet et al., 2007). In this work, we undertook a dual approach to better characterize the antiviral response in fish. A without a priori approach led to the detection of a major QTL (quantitative trait locus) for resistance to VHSV in the telomeric region of the rainbow trout linkage group 31. This QTL controls both fish survival and viral replication in excised fin tissue (VREFT), suggesting the involvement of innate mechanisms in the resistance, and can explain up to 65% (survival) and 49% (VREFT) of the observed phenotypic variation. Additionally, this major locus was retrieved in a number of genetic backgrounds, and regardless of the infection route (waterborne infection or injection), suggesting that the virus entry in fish is not the main factor of resistance. In parallel, cell lines were derived from ovaries of several rainbow trout isogenic lines with various levels of susceptibility to infection with VHSV. Resistance of cell lines to infection by the virus was remarkably correlated with the survival of fish from which they were derived, confirming the importance of innate factors for the resistance. This model also showed that the early stage response is critical for the cellular fate after infection. The parallelism between resistance in vitro and in vivo has finally been observed after infection by a second rhabdovirus, IHNV, although no correlation in resistance to these two viruses could be detected. Moreover, no major QTL for IHNV resistance was found in the region of the VHSV QTL. This observation suggests that the key factors of resistance are different, even if they contribute to the activation of common signaling pathways. The expression of these factors is in any case controlled by distinct regions of the genome. Our work demonstrates a strong genetic determinism of resistance to a major virus in rainbow trout, based on innate mechanisms. We believe that these results pave the way for the discovery of new host response mechanisms against viruses, leading to a better understanding of antiviral immunity in vertebrates.

The role of the E4 protein in the human papillomavirus (HPV) life cycle is an enigma even though it has varied effects on cell behaviour and organisation in overexpression studies. Full-length E4 proteins are derived from E1^E4 spliced RNA transcripts and E1^E4 proteins from diverse HPV types interact with serine-arginine (SR)-specific protein kinase SRPK1, that regulates diverse cellular functions including RNA splicing. This thesis has sought to address the hypothesis that E1^E4 alters SRPK1 activity and influences SRPK1 functions in the HPV life cycle. This study has uncovered the novel finding that E1^E4 protein of HPV1, but not HPV5, 16 and 18, is a potent inhibitor of SRPK1 activity in vitro and in vivo and inhibition is dependent upon E1^E4 binding to SRPK1. Whilst HPV1 E1^E4 inhibits SRPK1 phosphorylation of cellular (ASF/SF2, SRp20, SC35, 9G8 and SRp75) and viral (HPV E2) SR protein substrates, it has only weak effects on SR protein cellular localisation and on cellular and viral RNA splicing in minigene systems. Addition of the small molecule inhibitor of SRPK, SRPIN340 to organotypic raft cultures of HPV18 genome-containing keratinocytes enhances the morphological features of HPV viral replication suggesting that the HPV may modulate SRPK activity to facilitate the virus life cycle.