Alteration of gene expression in human middle ear epithelial cells induced by influenza A virus and its implication for the pathogenesis of otitis media.

Influenza A virus infection plays a significant role in the pathogenesis of Streptococcus pneumoniae-induced acute otitis media in children. An understanding of how influenza A virus modulates host cellular responses is critically important in efforts to explore the molecular mechanisms of this synergism. We used microarray technology to characterize the mRNA expression profile in human middle ear epithelial cells induced by influenza A virus. Alterations of mRNA expression in 142 out of approximately 12,600 genes were observed at 24h after virus infection. Of these 142 genes with altered expression, interferon inducible genes, chemokine and cytokine genes, pro- and antiapoptotic genes, signal transduction and transcription factors, cellular immune response, cell cycle and metabolism genes were the most prominent. Our results reveal several previously unknown alterations of host gene expression induced by influenza A virus which may provide new targets for further analysis of its role in this particular host-pathogen interaction.