Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42481490›Full record

ArticleNature communications2026

An immune-poised state of human bronchial epithelial cells mediates defense against RSV in adults.

Caiqi Zhao, Yan Bai, Hongmei Mou, Paul H Lerou, Daisy W Leung, Harish Narasimhan, Xiaoqin Wei, Jie Sun, Jin-Fu Xu, Rachel Fearns and 1 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Nature communications, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Caiqi ZhaoDivision of Newborn Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA. czhao12@mgh.harvard.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9112-564X
Yan BaiDivision of Newborn Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
Hongmei MouThe Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Boston, MA, USA.
Paul H LerouDivision of Newborn Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6777-7389
Daisy W LeungDepartment of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7189-9557
Harish NarasimhanBeirne B. Carter Center for Immunology Research, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA.
Xiaoqin WeiBeirne B. Carter Center for Immunology Research, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6210-7899
Jie SunBeirne B. Carter Center for Immunology Research, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2347-4511
Jin-Fu XuDepartment of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Tongji Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8039-8973
Rachel FearnsDepartment of Virology, Immunology & Microbiology, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0783-7498
Xingbin AiDivision of Newborn Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA. ai.x@wustl.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2178-0080

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) impairs STAT3 activation in infected ciliated cells in infants, but not adults, causing apoptosis to facilitate virus spread. How age regulates the STAT3 response to RSV in human bronchial epithelial cells (BEpiCs) is unknown. Here, we identify an age-associated immune-poised physiological state in human bronchial basal stem cells (BSCs) and progeny BEpiCs, rendering robust RIG-I to guard against the inactivation of RIG-I-STAT3 signaling by RSV nonstructural protein 2. In contrast, infant BEpiCs are vulnerable to such inactivation by RSV due to lower RIG-I levels. We show that acute respiratory viral infection in specific pathogen-free mice, rather than physical age, triggers sustained epigenetic and transcriptomic remodeling in BEpiCs that resembles age-associated changes in human BEpiCs. In addition, cytokine pretreatment of human neonatal BSCs induces an adult-like immune-poised state that is maintained in progeny BEpiCs to defend against RSV. Therefore, respiratory infection and inflammation during a lifetime imparts the effect of age to BSCs, which fortifies RIG-I in progeny cells to mitigate RSV infection.

Indexed as

BronchiEpithelial CellsRespiratory Syncytial Virus, HumanRespiratory Syncytial Virus InfectionsAdultAnimalsDEAD Box Protein 58HumansInfantMiceReceptors, ImmunologicRespiratory Syncytial VirusesSignal TransductionSTAT3 Transcription FactorStem CellsDEAD Box Protein 58Receptors, ImmunologicRIGI protein, humanSTAT3 protein, humanSTAT3 Transcription Factor

Identifiers

PMID42481490
PMCPMC13500674

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.