Expanded protocadherin-1 usage reveals a broader hantavirus entry landscape

Abstract

Mammalian hantaviruses are RNA viruses that cause hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome in the Americas and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome in Eurasia. The cellular entry mechanisms of most hantaviruses remain poorly defined. To examine entry by phylogenetically distinct hantaviruses, we generated replication-competent recombinant vesicular stomatitis viruses (rVSVs) bearing Gn/Gc proteins from Necocli, Sangassou, Thottapalayam, Kenkeme, Nova, Oxbow, and Tula viruses. All these Gn/Gc proteins except Kenkeme supported infection of primary human endothelial cells, indicating that endothelial cell entry is permissive for a broader range of hantaviruses than previously appreciated. Except for rVSV-Kenkeme, these rVSVs did not acquire additional mutations beyond pre-engineered rescue-enhancing changes during rescue and passaging. Genetic studies in human cells lacking protocadherin-1 (PCDH1) showed that Necocli, Tula, and Nova viruses use PCDH1 for efficient infection, although the Nova phenotype was weaker. These three Gn/Gc proteins bound soluble PCDH1 with different apparent avidities, and infection by the corresponding rVSVs was inhibited by soluble PCDH1; Necocli and Tula, but not Nova, were also blocked by a PCDH1-targeting monoclonal antibody. Authentic Tula virus infection was similarly reduced in PCDH1 knockout endothelial cells. Finally, the broadly reactive anti-Gn/Gc human monoclonal antibody ADI-42898 efficiently neutralized Necocli, Nova, Sangassou, and Kenkeme rVSVs but showed weak or undetectable activity against Oxbow, Tula, and Thottapalayam rVSVs. Together, these findings expand the range of hantavirus glycoproteins capable of mediating infection of human endothelial cells, broaden the phylogenetic scope of PCDH1-dependent entry, and identify receptor-targeted and viral glycoprotein-targeted strategies with differential activity. ImportanceMany newly discovered hantaviruses are known only from sequence data, leaving their ability to enter human cells and their receptor usage unresolved. Using a BSL2-compatible rVSV system, we show that glycoproteins from several divergent hantaviruses can mediate infection of primary human endothelial cells, indicating that endothelial cell entry is permissive for a broader range of hantaviruses than previously appreciated. We also show that protocadherin-1 (PCDH1), previously linked mainly to New World hantaviruses, is used by Necocli, Tula, and Nova viruses but not universally across the panel, revealing broader but heterogeneous receptor usage. An authentic Tula virus experiment supports this conclusion beyond the surrogate system. Finally, a broadly reactive anti-Gn/Gc antibody neutralizes several, but not all, of these viruses, highlighting both the promise and the limits of broadly protective countermeasures and the utility of these rVSVs for evaluating entry inhibitors.