Differences in the constitutive and SIV infection induced expression of Siglecs by hematopoietic cells from non-human primates

The expression of the Siglec family of molecules by hematopoietic cells from uninfected and SIV infected disease susceptible rhesus macaques (RM) and SIV infected disease resistant sooty mangabeys (SM) and for comparison humans was carried out. The predominant cell lineage in all three species expressing Siglec’s was monocytes. The major finding by both a cross sectional and a prospective SIV infection study showed that, whereas monocytes from RM show marked increase in each Siglec constitutively expressed, monocytes from SM showed marked decreases in Siglec-1 expression. While monocytes from all three species constitutively expressed Siglec-3, human monocytes in addition expressed Siglec-5 and -9 and to a lower density 7, monocytes from RM expressed Siglec-7 and those from SM expressed Siglec-1. Monocytes from all three species, however, expressed mRNA for Siglec-1, -5, -7 and -9. The reasons for the failure to detect these molecules at the protein level and the mechanisms for such distinct effects of SIV infection on Siglec expression are discussed.