Researchers develop a new technique to characterize a little-known infection using CNPEM’s synchrotron light source
A multidisciplinary group of scientists from various institutions including UNICAMP, CNPEM, FAMERP, and two universities outside Brazil was able to observe and quantify the inflammation caused by the Mayaro virus in lab rat tissues. The use of a particle accelerator to produce images of this type is unprecedented and could help future researchers understand how other viruses act within the body. Experiments took place at the Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM).
The symptoms of Mayaro virus disease are similar to Chikungunya, and its transmission cycle is understood to be solely wild at this time. The disease is not widely known, even though it was discovered in the 1950s in Trinidad and Tobago. Since that time, the virus has spread quickly across Central and South America, and some outbreaks have been described in rural areas and regions in contact with wild areas in Brazil.
Molecular structure of the Mayaro virus. Image provided by the Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM)
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The researcher who led the current study, Rafael Elias Marques, was responsible for the first detailed viral structure fully investigated in Brazil in 2021: his group focused on detailed characterization of the molecular structure of the Mayaro virus. Interest in the virus has grown alongside the attention it has drawn from health organizations as cases have climbed in recent decades. There is also concern that a form of the disease with an urban transmission cycle could emerge, especially as deforestation increases in the country.
Thanks to Sirius, one of only three fourth-generation synchrotron light sources in the world (located in Brazil’s largest complex of scientific laboratories, the CNPEM, in Campinas), researchers in the group were able to observe details of the immune system response in rats inoculated with the Mayaro virus in their paws. A rapid spread to other areas was observed, along with broad participation of inflammatory cells. The researchers also quantified inflammation at the inoculation site, measuring the difference in volume compared to the unaffected paws. The findings may be helpful in the search for treatments in the future. There are currently no approved specific pharmaceutical treatments or vaccines for the Mayaro virus.
High-precision method
Current techniques for in vivo analysis of tissue affected by viruses frequently result in the destruction of specimens of soft tissue or provide only indirect and approximate data. The use of high-resolution 3D images obtained via X-ray microtomography using the synchrotron light source was specifically developed for the Mayaro study and proved to be precise, as well as non-invasive and non-destructive.
3D image produced by synchrotron light microtomography. The mouse paw on the left was not inoculated with the virus; note the significant increase in volume in the image at right (inoculated paw) resulting from inflammation and swelling in the soft tissue
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“At first glance, it may seem a bit much to use a particle accelerator for a microtomography, but we are showing the world the full potential and knowledge we have developed at CNPEM to make ample use of synchrotron light technology in biological studies,” says Ana Carolina de Carvalho, one of the authors of the study.
She goes on to add that the idea may be considered “outside the box” for global study of infections. “CNPEM was founded on the principle that one area of science can always benefit from another, and that major innovations are found in the borders between knowledge,” adds Carvalho, who attributes the diversity of the group of specialists (which include virologists, immunologists, and physicists) to the open science, collaborative, and accessible environment at CNPEM, and to professor Rafael Elias Marques for “wanting to test the limits of what we can do with what we know.”
Now the researchers expect this pioneering initiative to also become useful for studying the effects caused by other viruses.
About CNPEM
Sophisticated and effervescent environment for research and development, unique in Brazil and present in few scientific centers in the world, the Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM) is a private non-profit organization, under the supervision of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI). The Center operates four National Laboratories and is the birthplace of the most complex project in Brazilian science – Sirius – one of the most advanced synchrotron light sources in the world. CNPEM brings together highly specialized multi-thematic teams, globally competitive laboratory infrastructures open to the scientific community, strategic lines of investigation, innovative projects in partnership with the productive sector and training of researchers and students. The Center is an environment driven by the search for solutions with impact in the areas of Health, Energy and Renewable Materials, Agro-environment, and Quantum Technologies. As of 2022, with the support of the Ministry of Education (MEC), CNPEM expanded its activities with the opening of the Ilum School of Science. The interdisciplinary higher course in Science, Technology and Innovation adopts innovative proposals with the aim of offering excellent, free, full-time training with immersion in the CNPEM research environment. Through the CNPEM 360 Platform, it is possible to explore, in a virtual and immersive way, the main environments and activities of the Center, visit: https://pages.cnpem.br/cnpem360/.
